Dying To Work
New Zealand’s Sunday Star-Times newspaper recently published an article on a study undertaken at Massey University’s Centre for Public Health Research. The investigators had found that tens of thousands of New Zealanders are in jobs that put them at increased risk of cancer - but neither their doctors nor they know it.
They say work-related cancers affect between 700 and 1000 people a year and kill 400, yet fewer than 40 cases a year are notified to the Labour Department - this in a country with a population of just 4 million people.
The research has highlighted the potential risk of bladder cancer and non-Hodgkins lymphoma in jobs where people are in contact with dyes, petrol, solvents and pesticides, with work underway to establish which agents are most dangerous. At risk occupations include hairdressers, textile workers, painters, cleaners, heavy vehicle drivers, market gardeners, abattoir workers, fruit and vege growers and pickers and metal workers. The researchers say around 20% of the workforce is or has been in a job that exposes them to increased risk of non-Hodgkins lymphoma, a type of blood cancer which kills 300 New Zealanders a year.
Massey researcher Professor Neil Pearce said there is widespread ignorance about the risks of job-related cancer. “It is not just that your hairdresser doesn’t know that hairdressers have a high risk of bladder cancer, but 99.9% of doctors don’t know either. In fact, the vast majority of doctors don’t know what job their patients have now, let alone 20 years ago. In 90% of cases, the connection with occupation is never made”.
The next phase of the research will be into leukaemia, which has been associated with agricultural and freezing works and exposure to low- frequency electromagnetic fields, and lung cancer - linked with jobs including bricklaying, carpentry, machine tool operation, pulp and paper work and meat work.
The latest findings, showing increased risk of non-Hodgkins lymphoma for crop farmers but not sheep and dairy farmers, are opposite of what is generally found overseas. Lead researcher Andrea Mannetje said the findings for fruit and vegetable growers were significant - and peculiar to New Zealand. Crops farmed in New Zealand were predominantly perishable and pesticides, particularly insecticides and fungicides are essential. But in the US, for example, grains are the main crop.
The New Zealand findings are also unusual in that the lymphoma risk is much higher for women crop workers (three to four times the normal population) but she does not know why. Some studies overseas have shown an increased risk to women who get their hair dyed regularly.
This study yet again alerts us to the risk that our everyday lifestyle poses to our wellness. Emissions from vehicles and factories, pesticides in our foodchain, processed food, chemicals on the clothes we wear, depleted nutrients in the food we grow, air conditioning in homes and offices are just many of the contributors to the assault on our bodies that we need to manage and cope with on a daily basis. What’s the answer? Turn back the clock and find an isolated, pollution-free corner of the world where we can grow our own food and make our own soap? Well, if everyone did that, we’d run out of remote spots and we’d be spending all day just doing the basics to exist and the world would stop functioning. So, despite a desire in many people to “get away from it all”, it’s just not practical.
What we can do though is ensure the things within our control to live a healthy life are as good as they can be. Stop smoking, eat well - plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, drink plenty of water, exercise daily, maintain a health body weight, reduce or eliminate the stress in our lives, develop and cultivate a positive outlook. And, of course, boost our immune system to fight any challenges that come our way. Life Health Noni is the natural, 100% organic ‘power pack’ that works on so many levels within our body to ensure optimum wellness.
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