Fibromyalgia and Plastics(?)

I wish I had an answer to fibromyalgia; it's such a miserable illness. I can't find anything that mentions a definite connection between fibromyalgia and plastics, but I think it's safe to assume that the cause of fibromyalgia is environmental and plastics, cosmetics, and insecticides are exposures that are easy enough to limit. Today I'm picking on plastics.

The battle over the health risks from plastics is ongoing. The plastics industry is fighting to make plastics appear safe while the environmentalists are struggling with the difficulty of proving long-term and combined effects. Looking at the various studies is confusing because the plastics industry is funding studies that appear valid yet have completely opposite findings from the studies being done by institutions without ties to the chemical industry. An interesting editorial in Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine discusses the problem of reconciling the studies.

Anyway, here's some links:

Re: General Toxicity of the Environment
http://archive.ewg.org/reports/bodyburden1/es.php
http://www.ewg.org/node/16365

Re: Bisphenol
http://www.ewg.org/node/22300
http://www.ewg.org/reports/bisphenola

Re: Phthalates
http://www.ewg.org/node/15076
http://www.lestout.com/article/health-beauty-fitness/natural-health-wellness/plastics_cancer_birth_defects.html


Re: Non-stick cooking
http://www.ewg.org/node/25695

Re: Using Plastics Safely in the Kitchen
http://www.lestout.com/article/health-beauty-fitness/natural-health-wellness/use_plastics_safely.html

Re: Safe Cosmetics
http://www.lestout.com/article/health-beauty-fitness/natural-health-wellness/beauty_cancer_insanity.html

Re: Diet Soda Risks (in case your family drinks these--I hope not)
http://www.lestout.com/article/health-beauty-fitness/natural-health-wellness/aspartame_cancer.html


I find this all very scary. The more I know about the chemical soup that we live in, the more hopeless I am at being able to avoid the poisons that surround us. I know several people who have gone from doctor to doctor looking for answers for fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue and other syndromes, but if each of us has dozens, perhaps hundreds of artificial toxins in our bodies then how is a doctor to know which toxin is causing the problem? And even if they know, what can be done to rid the body of the current toxins and prevent more exposure?

I think that part of the answer is to live as natural a life as possible, dressing in natural fibers, eating on glass or ceramic plates, using steel utensils, and avoiding plastics, insecticides, and unsafe cosmetics.

Take a deep breath,

Dr. Ron