Thursday, April 11, 2013

Obamacare Architects Rockefeller and Sebelius: Our Bill is Confusing Beyond Comprehension

EIB/RUSH: “Do you think Jay Rockefeller's really gonna go out there and give ammo to the Republicans? No, he's not doing that. They're setting it up for single payer. They're trying to accelerate the public demand for simplicity.”

ROCKEFELLER: I'm of the belief that the ACA is probably the most complex piece of legislation ever passed by the United States Congress. Tax reform, obviously, is gonna be huge, too, but up to this point it's just beyond comprehension.

RUSH: He's one of the architects, folks. Jay Rockefeller's one of the guys whose staff worked on it. So he knows it's beyond comprehension. I'm telling you, this can't work. That doesn't mean it's gonna go away. What it means is it's gonna be a nightmare. What it means is it's gonna be an absolute disaster. And you know what's gonna happen? What always happens in Washington. Washington creates a program because they think there's a pressing need, or in this case, because they just want to commandeer one-sixth of the economy, put it under government control, grow the government, give themselves more power.

So they do that, then that doesn't work, then they run around saying, "My God, we've got a mess here, this is horrible, we need a new program to fix this," and that's what they'll do. They'll come up with Obamacare 2, which will be designed to fix what went wrong in Obamacare 1, but there will never be any acknowledgement that they are the problem. They create the problem. They offer the fix. That doesn't work and the cycle repeats. That's how you end up with redundant federal entitlement programs. That's how you end up with multiple programs for school lunch, school breakfast. Multiple programs for child health care 'cause the first one doesn't work, and the same people who act like they were on the sidelines when it all happens, "Guess what, we need to come in here and fix this." The same people who blew it up the first time go in to fix it, and they blow it up again. He's just warning everybody that's what's ahead of us. It's too late now. It's already off to a bumpy start.

Now, Monday in Boston, Kathleen Sebelius, the Health and Human Services secretary, said this about the impact of health care reform.

SEBELIUS: Probably no one fully anticipated when you have a law that phases in over time, how much confusion that creates for a lot of people.

RUSH: What do you mean, no one fully anticipated it? We did. Countless people did. Countless people screamed from the mountaintops that this was a disaster, that this was unworkable, that it was gonna lead to mass confusion. But here comes the sanctimonious arrogance and contempt of the elites. (doing impression) "Well, probably no one fully anticipated when you have a law that phases in over time, how much confusion that creates for a lot of people. No one fully anticipated this, not adequately planned for the rollout, and so everybody ends up being totally confused. It's no fault of anyone's, of course, we just can't anticipate the complexity." Which is all a crock. They don't care at the outset about the complexity.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: By the way, ladies and gentlemen, I'll just explain all of this Jay Rockefeller and his complaining about the complexity of Obamacare and Kathleen Sebelius saying that no one accounted for it. Here's the thing, and never forget this. They want it to be complicated. It was supposed to be complicated. It is supposed to be a nightmare. It is supposed to be impossible. Do you know why? So that people will eventually demand single payer to make it simple. Don't doubt me.

This is all part of the plan.

Do you think Jay Rockefeller's really gonna go out there and say something harmful to the Democrat Party? Do you think Jay Rockefeller's really gonna go out there and give ammo to the Republicans? No, he's not doing that. They're setting it up for single payer. They're trying to accelerate the public demand for simplicity. "Let's just get rid of the exchanges! You know, let's get rid of private insurance. Get rid of all that. Get rid of my employer providing insurance. It's too much trouble.

"Just let me go to the government, get the insurance, and be done with it. In fact, when I go to the doctor, the government pays the bill and that's it." That's all this is. This is the original intent. Obama said so in 2007 in a speech to the Service Employees International Union group. He said (paraphrased), "I'd love to get to single payer overnight, but we're not gonna be able to. It's gonna take ten, maybe 15 years until people demand it."

He essentially said to his union buddies, "We can't force this on people. They won't accept it right now. But we can make them want it." How do you do that? You screw it up so badly, you make all the places people go for insurance so screwed up that they will willingly accept it. "You know what? The government will do it and just be done with it," and so that's the objective. Looky here. "The state health exchanges that are central to [Obamacare] are costing the federal government more than twice its initial budget to" implement.

"In its just-released budget, the regime "expects to have spent $4.4 billion in fiscal years 2012 and 2013 on grants to states that are building" the exchanges. A year ago, they estimated spending two billion. This year, they say, "Nah, it's gonna cost four." So the price of the exchanges in one year has already doubled. That's just one tiny little element of this monstrosity. It's where it's all headed.

END TRANSCRIPT

Related:

Obama’s Stealth Move Towards Single Payer Healthcare

THE TRUTH ABOUT THE ROCKEFELLER DRUG EMPIRE

The Drug Story

For The Record: Rockefeller Soft Kill Depopulation Plans Exposed

Updated: 5-Reasons Obama is Losing the Contraceptive Mandate Battle... But Could be Winning the Power Grab Mandate War

*Here is Ultra Left Wing HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius’ Spin (Remember, Sebilius was an ardent supporter of murdered partial birth abortionist, Tiller and her extreme record on abortion has sadly been ignored (or hidden) by the media.)

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Stunner! State to help infertile 'gay' duos

That’s right folks… proposal would extend treatments to homosexuals, lesbians… really?

Rush Limbaugh: “I know you're scratching your head. "Wait, wait, wait. There's no such thing as 'gay infertility.'" Oh, yes, there is now. The language doesn't mean anything anymore, folks. Truth doesn't mean anything anymore.”

Majority Democrats in the California legislature over the years have demanded that school children celebrate the life of homosexual activist and reported sexual predator Harvey Milk.

They’ve also demanded that children as young as 5th grade be taught any consensual sexual behavior is “safe” as long as you “protect” yourself. And bisexuality and transexuality are “normal.”

But the state’s new proposal, AB 460, the “Health care coverage: infertility” proposal by California homosexual advocate Tom Ammiano takes the state’s pro-homosexual actions to a whole new level.

AB 460 would extend the idea of “non-discrimination” to homosexuals and lesbians regarding fertility, allowing them to be classified as “infertile” if they are unable “to conceive a pregnancy or to carry a pregnancy to a live birth after a year or more of regular sexual relations without contraception.”

They would then be eligible for insurance coverage for “treatment of infertility, except in vitro fertilization, under those terms and conditions as may be agreed upon between the group subscriber or the group policyholder and the plan or the insurer.”

“Coverage for the treatment of infertility shall be offered and provided without discrimination on the basis of age, ancestry, color, disability, domestic partner status, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, national origin, race, religion, sex, or sexual orientation.”

“No wonder California taxpayers are going bankrupt,” said a commentary at Breitbart.com. “Even biology must take a back seat to political leftism now.”

The commentary said the legislation’s “fact sheet” notes that insurance companies are refusing coverage “based on[the policy holder's] not having an opposite sex married partner with which to have one year of regular sexual relations without conception.”

Pondered Breitbart.com, “Makes sense, due to biology.”

The proposed change would apply the requirement that insurance companies provide benefits for “Treatment for infertility,” which includes “procedures consistent with established medical practices in the treatment of infertility by licensed physicians and surgeons, including, but not limited to, diagnosis, diagnostic tests, medication, surgery, and gamete intrafallopian transfer…”

It applies to homosexuals and lesbians alike the provision, “For purposes of this section, ‘infertility’ means either (1) the presence of a demonstrated condition recognized by a licensed physician and surgeon as a cause of infertility, or (2) the inability to conceive a pregnancy or to carry a pregnancy to a live birth after a year or more of regular sexual relations without contraception.”

California has a long record of legislatively promoting homosexuality and other alternative lifestyles. Just last year lawmakers demanded that any counseling involving sexual orientation change for minors be banned – even if the minor and the minor’s parents requested it.

That law is on hold while it is fought over in court.

It would require all counselors dealing with minors to affirm homosexuality and all its variations under all circumstances, regardless of the requests of the minor or his or her parents.

Earlier, the California lawmakers’ pursuit of a free-sex atmosphere in public schools and elsewhere included a vote in which the majority Democrats killed a plan that would have cracked down on intimate relationships between school teachers and their students.

The unsuccessful Assembly Bill 1861 would have made it a felony if any teacher or employee of a public or private school “engages in a sexual relationship or inappropriate communications with a pupil.”

Randy Thomasson, president of SaveCalifornia.com, has created a Rescue Your Child website, which encourages parents to seek out church schools or homeschooling options for their children.

His group explains that already in California’s public schools children as young as 5th and 7th grades are told they have the “individual” and “personal” right to engage in “respectful” sexual activity with anyone as long as it is consensual and males wear a condom.

California has adopted numerous sexual indoctrination bills, including SB48, which requires positive portrayals of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons in public school social studies and history classes.

Others cited by Thomasson’s group:

  • SB 543, signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2010, “allows school staff to remove children ages 12 and up from government schools and taken off-campus for counseling sessions, without parental permission or involvement. The purpose is to permit pro-homosexuality teachers and administrators to remove sexually confused children in 6th grade and up from campus and take them to pro-homosexuality counselors who will encourage them to embrace the homosexual lifestyle.”
  • ACR 82, approved by the California Legislature in 2010, “creates de facto ‘morality-free zones’ at participating schools (pre-kindergarten through public universities). Schools that become official ‘Discrimination-Free Zones’ will ‘enact procedures’ (including mandatory counseling) against students from pre-kindergarten on up who are accused of ‘hate,’ ‘intolerance,’ or ‘discrimination’.” What is the hate? Peacefully speaking or writing against the unnatural lifestyles choices of homosexuality and bisexuality.
  • SB 572, signed by Schwarzenegger in 2009, establishes “Harvey Milk Day” in K-12 California public schools and community colleges. In classrooms, schools and school districts that participate, children will now be taught to admire the life and values of late homosexual activist and teen predator Harvey Milk of San Francisco the month of May.
  • SB 777, signed by Schwarzenegger in 2007, prohibits all public school instruction and every school activity from “promoting a discriminatory bias” against (effectively requiring positive depictions of) transsexuality, bisexuality and homosexuality to schoolchildren as young as five years old. SB 777 means children will be taught their “gender” is a matter of choice.
  • AB 394, signed by Schwarzenegger in 2007, effectively promotes transsexual, bisexual and homosexual indoctrination of students, parents and teachers via “anti-harassment” and “anti-discrimination” materials, to be publicized in classrooms and assemblies, posted on walls, incorporated into curricula on school websites, and distributed in handouts to take home.
  • SB 71, signed by Gov. Gray Davis in 2003 and implemented in 2008 through the new “sexual health” standards approved by appointees of Schwarzenegger and State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell, teaches children as young as 5th grade that any consensual sexual behavior is “safe” as long as you “protect” yourself with a condom, and teaches children that homosexuality, bisexuality and transsexuality is “normal.”
  • AB 1785, signed by Davis in 2000, required the California State Board of Education to alter the state curriculum frameworks to include and require “human relations education” for children in K-12 public schools, with the aim of “fostering an appreciation of the diversity of California’s population and discouraging the development of discriminatory attitudes and practices,” according to the state legislative counsel’s digest.
  • AB 537, signed by Davis in 1999, permits teachers and students to openly proclaim and display their homosexuality, bisexuality or transsexuality, even permitting cross-dressing teachers, school employees and student on campus, in classrooms, and in restrooms.

The state legislature even demanded earlier students in public schools every year honor Harvey Milk, a homosexual activist and reported sexual predator, as well as an advocate for Jim Jones, leader of the massacred hundreds in Jonestown, Guyana.

In honoring Milk, schools are advocating for the acceptance of what Milk sought: the entire homosexual, bisexual and cross-dressing agenda; a refusal to acknowledge sexually transmitted diseases spread by the behavior; his behavior as “a sexual predator of teenage boys, most of them runaways with drug problems”; advocacy for multiple sexual relationships at one time; and “lying to get ahead”; according to SaveCalifornia.com.

A 1982 biography of Milk tells of a 16-year-old named McKinley, who “was looking for some kind of father figure.”

“At 33, Milk was launching a new life, though he could hardly have imagined the unlikely direction toward which his new lover would pull him,” the book says.

It also states, “It would be to boyish-looking men in their late teens and early 20s that Milk would be attracted for the rest of his life.”

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Gay infertility. It is... (chuckles) It's about mandated insurance coverage for the inability to have babies. I know you're scratching your head. "Wait, wait, wait. There's no such thing as 'gay infertility.'" Oh, yes, there is now. The language doesn't mean anything anymore, folks. Truth doesn't mean anything anymore.

Language doesn't mean anything.

So if a bunch of activists want to create the concept of "gay infertility" and then tax all the rest of us to compensate them for the fact that they can't have babies, then that's gonna happen. You haven't missed anything yet. I'm just teasing you as to what's coming. Gays now think it's not fair they can't have babies, so they're calling that "infertility," and it will require mandatory health insurance because of it. (interruption) Yeah, I know they're not infertile but that doesn't matter; they can't have babies.

Even after they're married, they can't do it -- and that's not fair to them. That is culturally unfair. (interruption) Well, you mean the guy with the artificial womb? (interruption) Oh, that guy? Yeah, yeah, yeah. That guy. Well, I don't think they all want to go through that. See, that's the point. They'd have to do mastectomies, chopadicoffamies, addadictomies. They don't want to have to do all that. It's just gonna be easier to... (interruption) Folks, if you're thinking this never gonna happen, it's time to wake up. Time to wake up.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Now, gay infertility. Are you paying attention? This is from Front Page magazine, this David Horowitz's great publication. "It’s interesting sometimes to read about the last days of past civilizations. It’s hard not to notice during these readings that those last days were filled with completely irrational ideas and behaviors that could not be explained in any way outside of a mass collapse of reason." And boy, are we seemingly there.

You know, most societies die of suicide, not attack. Did you know that? Most societies wipe themselves out and it's interesting to read about the last days of past civilizations. You'll note that the last days of past civilizations were filled with idiotic, irrational ideas and behaviors that couldn't be explained by reason.

"In entirely unrelated news, there’s a new proposal to mandate coverage for gay infertility. The problem is that gay infertility is just biology. Two men and two women are not infertile. They’re just not capable of impregnating each other. This isn’t a medical problem. It’s a mental problem." It's a physiological problem.

"Infertility is meant to cover natural couples who would be capable of conceiving a child if not for medical problems. Gay rights activists will predictably argue that couples in which one partner has deeper medical problems may also be covered, but that is only as part of a larger set of natural couples."

What they're getting at here is that infertility coverage for heterosexual couples, it's not fair that coverage is not available to gay couples. And you say, "Wait a minute, gay couples are not infertile. They just, by definition, can't have baby." Doesn't matter. It's not fair that they can't have babies when other people can. It's not fair that gay couples can't have babies, and so we want access to infertility coverage. This is gonna be the next push according to this story in the magazine.

"Come on, Rush, it's never gonna happen."

Never gonna happen, right?

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Hey, Mike, you know, I just thought of something, as quickly as you can, grab Klaus Nomi. I may as well do a full-fledged gay community update on this infertility business. I may as well go all in, uh, all the way, uh, dadelut dadelut dadelut dadelut dadelut. We'll get to Mitch McConnell's office being bugged by the Democrats here just a second, folks, but first a gay community update on infertility insurance. Here's our theme, Klaus Nomi singing.

(playing of song)

The Rush Limbaugh program.

(Continued playing of song)

All right. Let 'er rip here, man.

(continued playing of song)

It is a story at the Front Page magazine, it's on their website: "'Gay Infertility' is the New Mandatory Health Insurance Frontier ... Now that we’ve decided that gay marriage is a real thing, biology be damned." Because if gay marriage is a real thing, gay infertility must be a real thing. It's not fair. I mean, it wasn't fair they couldn't get married, and now it's not fair that they can't have babies, even though they're not infertile, that doesn't matter. And so there must be access to infertility insurance for married gay couples, if our culture and if our society is to be fair and equal for one and all, and it is coming, and don't laugh about it.

(continued playing of song)

Okay, folks, they're gonna get really revved up here now.

(continued playing of song)

Klaus Nomi everybody, let's hear it, Klaus Nomi. You Don't Own Me. That's a cover, the old Lesley Gore tune, one of our all-time first favorite feminist update themes, by the way. I'm telling you, it's a genuine story in Front Page magazine, it's by Daniel Greenfield and he's heard rumblings of this and is writing about it, and is effectively predicting it.

"Now that we’ve decided that gay marriage is a real thing, biology be damned. Gay infertility must also be a real thing. And you must also pay for it. Should health insurers be legally required to offer infertility treatment for gay couples? Yes, according to a bill (AB 460) filed in the California legislature by assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco)."

So it's already a proposed piece of legislation. In fact, refusing to offer infertility treatment for gay couples, should be a crime according to this bill.

"Current California law requires group health plans to offer coverage for infertility treatments with the exception of in vitro fertilization (IVF). If such coverage is purchased, benefits must be paid whenever 'a demonstrated condition recognized by a licensed physician and surgeon as a cause for infertility' has been diagnosed -- or upon 'the inability to conceive a pregnancy or to carry a pregnancy to a live birth after a year of regular sexual relations without contraception.'"

So the bill says that if two people engage in sexual relations, two people, not two heterosexual couples, if two people engage in regular sexual relations and after a year there is no conception, that couple's entitled to infertility compensation. And since gay couples will be married and will engage in sexual relations and will not conceive, then they will be entitled to infertility compensation, and California taxpayers will pay for it.

"According to the fact sheet supporting AB 460, the trouble is that some insurance companies 'are not complying with current law that prohibits discrimination' based on sexual orientation."

So you see, whether the couple is the gay or not is irrelevant if after a year there is no conception. Hello, insurance.

But as Daniel Greenfield writes: "But why stop there? Once we’ve determined that 70-year-olds and gay men are equally entitled to infertility treatments, not to mention people paralyzed from the waist down and 3-year-olds… it’s time to extend the civil right of a medical treatment meant to help biologically compatible couples to people trying to impregnate," anything else. "If we’re going to treat biology like a bad joke, why stop at the human species line?"

And this sort of melds with what the actor Jeremy Irons was asking as a Libertarian. He said (paraphrasing), "Wait a minute, now, what's to stop a father from marrying a son so as to escape estate taxes on the death of the father? I mean, what's to stop that? Who is to say a father can't marry his son?" And somebody said, "Well, that would be incest, and there are laws against incest." Jeremy Irons said, "No, no, there wouldn't be incest here because there isn't any procreation." A father and son marriage will not produce kids, but it will get infertility coverage. And a father and son marriage would be a pretty clever way of avoiding estate tax upon the death of the father. And who's to say that the father and son should be denied the love that they obviously have for one another? Is it wrong to love another man?

I have been asked this frequently on the golf course after sinking a long put and saving a hole. Is it wrong to love another man? Of course not. It's not. And is it wrong to love your son, marry your son, to avoid paying taxes? Of course the people that would probably do this are people on the left who want everybody to pay more taxes. But that's just a slight contradiction, we'll deal with that later.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: I have a question about gay infertility. "If the treatments work, how do we deal with gay abortions?" Can there be gay abortions if there's no...? Gee, I'm confused. Would we pay for abortions if they change their minds? Gay couples. (sigh) I'm sorry. I've now lost the ability to follow my own train of thought. (interruption) "Stabbing Reported on a Texas College Campus." Eight victims, one arrest. (interruption) A stabbing, eight victims? In a stabbing? (interruption) Wait a minute. You're taking me now from whether or not we're gonna cover gay abortions in the infertility case to eight victims in a stabbing on a Texas college campus. (interruption) No, I know there's no magazine, and there's no clip, but... (interruption)

Well, I guess we're making it harder to gun down our kids.

Okay, Ryan in Cokeville, Wyoming. Let's grab a phone call here before it's too late. Ryan, welcome to the EIB Network. Hello, sir.

CALLER: Thank you, Rush. It was a pleasure to be on hold during your obscene profit break. Hey, the real issue with this gay infertility is that the human anatomy is a bigot. That's the real issue.

RUSH: Yeah, I could see that. The human anatomy is the bigot.

CALLER: Yes. The human anatomy is a bigot. We're born and we discriminate by the very definition of the human anatomy.

RUSH: I can't find any fault with that, folks. I really can't.

CALLER: In the spirit of fairness, Rush, I've got a solution here, and the solution is that we need to push some federal legislation mandating that the human anatomy come from the womb gender neutral. This will make everything fair. This will make the anatomy so that it's not a bigot anymore. To get the RINOs on board, we just need a grandfather clause so that those of you born before this legislation passes can keep our gender.

RUSH: Yeah, that's a key element here. If you don't grandfather this in, a lot of us would be really confused.

CALLER: (laughing) Yeah, exactly.

RUSH: Excellent point. So what we need is, human anatomy must come from the womb gender neutral?

CALLER: Yes, that solves the whole problem.

RUSH: Now, for people in Rio Linda, could you explain that?

CALLER: Well, I guess it's kind of difficult to explain but the primary purpose is that so that there's no more bigotry from the human anatomy.

RUSH: Yeah, but what's "gender-neutral anatomy"?

CALLER: Well, if you're not born male or female, and this anatomy can procreate, then it doesn't matter if you're gay, straight, or whatever. Everyone can procreate and there's no bigotry, and all is well.

RUSH: Okay, so all we gotta do is figure out how to give birth to a gender-neutral anatomy?

CALLER: Yes, and we'll mandate that federally so that, you know, it'll just happen.

RUSH: Yeah. Good. Good idea. I'm jealous I didn't think of this.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Here's Lauren in Morgan Hills, California. Lauren, glad you called. Thanks for waiting. You're on the EIB Network. Hello.

CALLER: Well, mega dittos, Maha Rushie.

RUSH: Thank you very much.

CALLER: Thanks so much for everything you do. I learn something new every day. First-time caller. This Tom Ammiano proposal for the California Assembly is really outrageous.

RUSH: Infertility insurance coverage for gay couples, yeah.

CALLER: Infertility insurance. Let me tell you. We are a mixed-race couple. I'm Chinese-American, and my husband is American mutt. It took us about eight and a half years before --

RUSH: Wait, wait, wait, wait. Whoa. I just want to make sure I'm hearing this right. You are Chinese-American and your husband is "American mutt"?

CALLER: Right. He's Irish, Italian, (garbled).

RUSH: Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. He's a white guy. Okay.

CALLER: A little bit of everything in there.

RUSH: Right.

CALLER: We did not know for some time that we were both infertile, and our internist -- we saw the same one -- she said, "Well, I am seeing a specialist, and I recommend him highly." We come to find out that both of us required infertility treatment and the odds were probably 4% that we would ever conceive naturally. Well, we were devastated. We hadn't planned for this. You know, we didn't think that... We were healthy. We're in the middle of our thirties. So we went to this great specialist and thank God --

RUSH: Yeah, but did you have infertility coverage?

CALLER: We did not. I worked for an evil corporation. My husband worked for an evil corporation. I had an SSA program, an account, and we utilized that -- and our savings -- to cover the cost of testing. There's a lot of blood testing.

RUSH: Let me guess. Let me guess. You and your husband have tried very hard; you've not been able to have babies. You found out you're infertile. It's been an arduous thing to endure, to deal with, to pay for, and so forth -- and you're insulted here that your circumstance can be just automatically blanket applied?

CALLER: Offended. Offended completely, and it's a mockery to those of us who have gone through fertility treatment. There's a huge range. You cannot imagine, Rush, what can be done even when the odds are minuscule, like the way we did. So my husband was on a prescription. I was on a prescription.

RUSH: Look, I totally understand. You have a real problem. You have a real, genuine problem, you and your husband -- who, by the way, when you said "American mutt," I was worried for a moment that you'd married your dog. But now I know that that's not the case. You and your... (interruption) Well, "American mutt," see... (interruption) Yeah, I know. Not yet. You and your husband have this real, genuine problem that is emotionally draining and so forth.

Now all of a sudden, just because some people want some money, there's a bill before the California legislature --the assembly -- to treat any couple who's failed to conceive after one year of sex, to grant them access to infertility coverage, treatment. I'd be offended if I were you, too. It's trivializing your real life circumstance, in exchange for a money grab. So I know exactly how you feel and I want you to know that. We feel for you and we all here wish you the best, Lauren. Thanks much.

END TRANSCRIPT

Dog rescued after being tied to train tracks by 'confused' man

Rescued Banjo

Rescued Banjo

Just One More Pet:

Were it not for an eagle-eyed engineer, the world would be minus this very lucky dog. Earlier this month, an engineer driving a Union Pacific train through Mecca, Calif., saw a man stepping away from something he'd left behind: a 10-month-old doggy, tied to the tracks. The emergency braking system stopped the train, and Union Pacific Special Agent Sal Pina arrested the man, 78, who reportedly said his family did not want the dog. Pina said animal-cruelty charges wouldn’t be filed, as the man appeared to be confused or unaware of what he'd done. The rescued pup, who animal services worker named Banjo — slang for old railroad traffic signs — is happy, healthy and looking for a new home.

This ended up being a success story, but it could have been a horror story.  Sadly the numbers of elderly suffering from dementia and Alzheimer’s as well as other people suffering from mental and emotional disorders are at an all time high, let alone the people who are innately cruel and animal abusers, plus the clueless who are just abandoning their animals because of monetary problems.  Be vigilant and intercede, report abuse and keep an eye on friends and family members experiencing mental, emotional or financial challenges.  Pets and children often become unintentional victims!!

Pets are fabulous companions for the elderly and those suffering from various illnesses and challenges and pet therapy has become very popular and useful treatment , but we must remember that those animals, who give their love and companionship selflessly, are God’s creatures as well and deserve love and compassion in return.

Related:

Alzheimer's patients follow different paths to a final debilitation

Pets Being Left Behind to Starve by Their Families

Pet Therapy

Alzheimer's patients follow different paths to a final debilitation

Untangling Alzheimer's – Part 2 of 3

Post-Gazette.com: Sitting in a small office on the fourth floor of UPMC Montefiore, Mary Lewellyn eagerly awaits a question from someone trying to assess her weakened mind's abilities.

Mary Lewellyn, 59, of Robinson has the "early-onset" version of Alzheimer's. (Andy Starnes, Post-Gazette)

"Do you know what day it is?" she is asked, a standard test question for Alzheimer's patients.

Lewellyn had come in from outside just minutes earlier, on a glorious October afternoon with the sun shining and the temperature reaching 70 degrees. She smiles beneath her frizzy hair, leaning forward in an earnest attempt to answer this once-simple question.

"December thirty-three -- is that what it is?" she responds, bright-eyed.

Eight years ago, Mary Lewellyn worked as a bookkeeper, helped her husband renovate their Robinson home and dreamed of retiring with him someday to Colorado Springs.

10 warning signs of Alzheimer's

1. Memory loss that affects job skills.
2. Difficulty performing familiar tasks.
3. Problems with language.
4. Disorientation to time and place.
5. Poor or decreased judgment.
6. Problems with abstract thinking.
7. Misplacing things.
8. Changes in mood or behavior.
9. Changes in personality.
10. Loss of initiative.

Four years ago, she could no longer compute numbers easily and was forgetting normal household chores. A neurologist suspected she was in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease.

By the time of her recent evaluation, at the Memory Disorders Clinic of the University of Pittsburgh's Alzheimer Disease Research Center, the 59-year-old woman could no longer tell the time of year or what city she was in. Her ability to add two numbers or write a coherent sentence had vanished, just like her job, her retirement plans and her role as equal spouse to Jim Lewellyn, her husband for 18 years.

Jim, patient and mild-mannered, told clinic coordinator Lori Smith Macedonia at the end of Mary's test of mental functioning that she seemed healthy as could be in some ways -- dancing at a wedding, roller-skating with relatives, singing songs from "Oklahoma" loudly in good pitch as he played them on a Hammond organ at home.

Mary scored but 8 out of 30 points, however, on the 30-minute Mini-Mental State Examination, a key tool to monitor dementia patients' ability to think, memorize and follow instructions. She had correctly answered twice as many questions a year earlier. That explains why Jim has to tend to most of her needs, from helping her dress to preparing her meals.

"A lot of people seriously impaired have very good physical states," Macedonia, a physician's assistant, explained afterward. "She could get up and run a race but she is very severely impaired."

Macedonia and Jim agreed to increase Mary's dosage of Exelon, a new drug intended to help preserve cognition, but there was no certainty it would help. The three drugs approved specifically for treatment of Alzheimer's sometimes help treat symptoms and sometimes don't. They are far from a cure even for the patients who respond best.

The Lewellyns will continue periodic visits to the memory clinic, but they hold no illusions it will free Mary of the disease.

Deciphering the signs

The first sign of Alzheimer's can be imperceptible.

Forgetting a name, misplacing car keys or unintentionally missing an appointment happens to most people from time to time, especially as they age. It doesn't mean they're diseased.

The time to be concerned is when short-term memory problems occur frequently. If a family member recognizes a pattern of forgetfulness in a parent or spouse, a medical evaluation may be in order if the person hasn't volunteered for one.

In Mary Lewellyn's case, Jim realizes now, the first signal was when he was working in the back yard on hot days, and Mary would offer to get him a drink. She'd go into the house, and he wouldn't see her again for hours as she busied herself with other tasks, forgetting about him sweating outside.

"I wasn't being mean," she says now, with a laugh, though she'd give anything to relive those days when she could accomplish menial chores.

For some people, the first difficulty they notice is disorientation while driving. Others with a lifelong hobby requiring concentration, such as bridge, can no longer grasp the key details. Husbands telegraph the problem by repeatedly forgetting to mow the lawn, and wives lose track of where they parked the car while shopping.

Donald Helton remembers the day in 1993 his grandmother left the stove on unattended in their Elizabeth Township home, a wake-up call that she had a problem requiring attention in order to avert a disaster such as the house burning down.

"Oh, boy, wouldn't that be awful," 86-year-old Mary Gonzales says while listening now, as though her grandson were talking about some other person. "God forbid."

Short-term memory is the first casualty of Alzheimer's, but it takes more than memory loss to be diagnosed with the disease. Someone with that difficulty alone is usually considered to have mild cognitive impairment, which is often but not always a sign that Alzheimer's is ahead.

By the time they are diagnosed with Alzheimer's, individuals typically will have also lost some reasoning ability or language skills or undergone changes in behavior, such as apathy or agitation. That's often several years after the appearance of the memory problems, which may take on significance only in retrospect.

People with early Alzheimer's often hide it, even from themselves, by sticking to a familiar routine and avoiding new, uncertain situations. They and relatives laugh off some of the potential warning signs and attribute them to age rather than disease, a form of denial thought to be more common among men than women.

Jim and Mary Lewellyn can still enjoy musical evenings at home. (Andy Starnes, Post-Gazette)

"There is more undetected Alzheimer's than you would imagine" said Dr. James T. Becker, a University of Pittsburgh neuropsychologist. "Some of that may still be related to the way we think about the elderly. Part of that is from how people earlier in the disease adapt. You very quietly change your lifestyle, and even your family may not notice."

Diagnosing the disease

I.G., an 80-year-old woman visiting the Memory Disorders Clinic, is able to spell, count and draw without hesitation but is stumped by the most telling part of the exam: a request that she recall three words given to her several minutes earlier.

"Heh, heh, you're kidding," she says with a chuckle. "I forget what they were. I forget very easily. ... Was 'table' one?"

Yes, it was. So were "apple" and "penny," words that evaporated quickly in a mind clogged by the mild-to-moderate stage of Alzheimer's.

By the time she is asked to write a complete sentence, the very dignified I.G., who did not want to be identified publicly, acts put off by this process of assessing her mental functioning. She writes clearly: "I think it's about time to go home."

The first medical visit where Alzheimer's is discussed can be deadly uncomfortable.

If it is in the office of an Alzheimer's specialist, usually the patient himself is the last one who wants to be there, noted Dr. Michael Usman, who operates the private, non-profit Alzheimer Center of Pittsburgh in Robinson. It's one disease with an ironic twist -- the fact that you have it makes you among the least likely to recognize it.

"Usually, if I ask flat-out, 'Why are you here?' the response is 'Because she brought me,'" Usman said, pointing to where a patient's daughter would sit in his office.

Specialists such as Usman say they may spend four hours on an initial examination in order to determine whether Alzheimer's is present. A team approach is used in which the patient may get physical, neurological and psychiatric or psychological evaluations, as well as interviews done by a social worker with the patient and family members. Sometimes, a brain imaging scan is ordered to rule out stroke or other illnesses that could be affecting the mind.

Such full-court scrutiny can diagnose Alzheimer's with 90 percent or more accuracy, but absolute certainty can only be provided by a brain autopsy. Because it's so dreaded a disease, it's essential that physicians avoid bludgeoning people with references to it and instead focus on helping them, said Richard Besdine, director of the Brown University Center for Gerontology and Health Care Research.

"With mention of the word Alzheimer's, the listening capacity [of patients and relatives] falls off dramatically," Besdine said.

Most people with Alzheimer's and other dementia are cared for by their own physicians, which can pose a problem in the managed-care world. Doctors are reimbursed better for brief stints of hands-on medical treatment than the more leisurely conversation and assessments necessary to manage a person's dementia by monitoring medications and advising caregivers.

Alzheimer's specialists routinely gripe that primary care physicians don't diagnose dementia quickly enough, which could be a carryover from days when treatment options were unavailable to them and a diagnosis mattered little. Now the drugs Aricept and Exelon can delay effects of the disease for up to a year in some patients.

Doctors say the population is becoming better educated every year about the disease and the possibility of getting help for it. New patients at Pitt's Alzheimer Disease Research Center are more commonly arriving within a couple of years after symptoms first appear, when it used to take four or five years, said neurologist Dr. Daniel Kaufer.

Sometimes, he can tell families that the patient has only mild cognitive impairment, a relief to them, but one followed by the warning that half of the people in that state are likely to have Alzheimer's within five years.

Less than 20 percent of the time, the extensive team examination determines the dementia of a loved one is caused by a disease other than Alzheimer's. Kaufer said that news can be even worse for families than a diagnosis of Alzheimer's, because less progress has been made in researching vascular, frontotemporal and other dementias. And often, one of those other dementias overlaps with Alzheimer's.

A different path for everyone

The Alzheimer's course can run as long as 20 years from the first symptoms until death, though it's more typically half that. It's usually a shorter, swifter decline for the fewer than 10 percent who, like Mary Lewellyn, get the "early-onset" version of the disease between their 40s and early 60s.

Each person's experience with the disease is different. Each patient carries a different level of awareness of what is taking place inside their troubled brain. Some know they have Alzheimer's, some just know things seem different from before, and some are clueless that there's anything wrong.

Their lack of insight and loss of language skills make it hard for the victims to discuss the disease, even when they know they're being affected.

"It was gradual," Mary Lewellyn says on her home's back deck one day, quietly deferring to her husband until she is asked point blank how she has been affected. "I don't know, really. ... Something happened -- I have no clue."

At a support group of the local Alzheimer's Association, individuals in the early stages of the disease are better able to discuss the turmoil in their heads and lives. Each month, they share insecurities about strange situations, mishaps at home and hardships they create for relatives.

"I don't think anybody can understand what you're going through. It's like somebody dropped a bomb on you, and it blew up," Phyllis Herrup, 71, of McKeesport, said at one meeting as some of the seven other heads around the table nodded.

One day, her husband found her taking apart pieces of the washing machine. She didn't know why. Her memory's been slipping since 1994, and it's a source of daily frustration for the college graduate who has served on McKeesport's school board and development authority.

"If I put down a book or magazine and then look for it, I can't find it," she said. "It just drives me up the wall."

Irene Vellella of Bellevue, who also attends the support group, doesn't see herself as handicapped. Diagnosed with Alzheimer's a year ago, the 77-year-old woman still lives in her own apartment but has given up driving and control of her financial affairs to her children. She says those decisions weren't necessary but make life easier for her, and she faults the memories of friends and relatives as much or more than her own.

"[Patients] often don't understand what's happening, even at the early stage," said Dr. Amelia Gennari, the UPMC Shadyside geriatrician who diagnosed Vellella and encouraged her to give her checkbook to her son. Doctors often take on the "bad guy" role for families and deliver tough advice to patients in denial of their shortcomings.

"The biggest problem often in the early stage is depression, and fortunately, we do have good treatment for that," Gennari said.

About one-fourth of Alzheimer's patients suffer depression, studies suggest. At least that many have delusions or paranoia, and twice as many become easily agitated. Managing Alzheimer's long term often involves treating such personality difficulties with specific drugs and with advice to caregivers, just as much as addressing the patient's loss of memory and reasoning.

A final, debilitating decline

The physician's assistant testing Mary Gonzales' abilities at the Memory Disorders Clinic taps the wrinkled woman's knee, soliciting her attention.

"Mary, what year is it?"

"Oh, 19-about-53 or something, I don't know," the 86-year-old woman responds. "I usually know, but I've had all these things on my mind."

Those things are the pigs and cows that surrounded her in childhood, the two deceased daughters she thinks are still alive, and her parents' origins in Czechoslovakia, all of which she discusses repeatedly without prompting.

Hers is a restless, nonsensical mind masked by a pleasant demeanor and fit body. When leading Gonzales out the door after a half hour, her gentle interrogator is careful to mention she did very well.

"Oh, did I?" Gonzales says sweetly, quite willing to believe it.

Researchers are still trying to identify all of the environmental and biological factors that target some individuals for Alzheimer's and spare others. One thing they have deduced is that education and intelligence help delay the effects of the disease.

Smart people aren't spared the mental mayhem of Alzheimer's, but they appear to have reserves of brain power that help them function close to normal for longer periods.

"If you have a big vocabulary and you can't think of the word you need to use, you'll think of another one easier," said Dr. Judith Saxton, a University of Pittsburgh neuropsychologist. "It doesn't stop you from getting the disease, but maybe intelligence does what the medication is designed to do -- it slows things down."

At a recent Alzheimer Disease Research Center consensus conference where the staff collectively reviewed the status of patients, the doctors commented on the mental tenacity of a 57-year-old teacher with a master's degree. She was diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment nearly two years ago, but she kept awakening three hours early to prepare herself for classes so she could continue working.

Last month, the doctors downgraded her to Alzheimer's status, based on declining test scores and functioning. She has quit teaching. She's given up control of the family finances and can't drive 150 miles to visit relatives.

"I'm amazed she's hung on this long," a neurologist commented, recalling how the woman seemed on the verge of Alzheimer's in 1998.

Dr. Steven DeKosky, the center's director, recognized when he started seeing patients in the 1980s that his more educated patients held steady longer. "If the disease strikes you at 75 and you're highly educated, the sanding from the disease may never get down to the bare wood before you die," he said.

More commonly, however, someone goes from Irene Vellella's stage of functioning independently within a careful routine, to Mary Lewellyn's helpless status, to Mary Gonzales' ignorance of her helplessness, which is accompanied by an urge to wander away from home.

A nursing home is often the final stop. More than half of nursing home patients carry some sort of dementia, most commonly Alzheimer's.

Most are oblivious to their condition by that stage, which enables them to focus on activities that give them pleasure for the moment rather than the depressing fate awaiting them, said Dr. Jules Rosen, a Western Psychiatric Institute & Clinic geriatric psychiatrist. On his visits to institutions, he sees end-stage Alzheimer's patients retreat to a fetal position in bed, unable to care for themselves or take directions from others.

"Most people, given a good, supportive environment with caregivers who understand the situation, and with proper medications, their quality of life can persist for many, many years," Rosen said. "Eventually, they just become so debilitated, and the last few years are bad."

Related:

Part One: Researchers race to beat scourge of aging

Part Three: Burden of illness often heaviest for caregivers

Diagnosis & Treatment of Mild to Moderate Alzheimer's Disease

UCLA on Alzheimer's Disease - young or old should read

Alzheimer’s Disease - Caregiver Tips

Diagnosis & Treatment of Mild to Moderate Alzheimer's Disease

Final Stages of Alzheimer’s

Advances for Alzheimer's, Outside the Lab

Warning Signs: A New Test to Predict Alzheimer's

Super Spice Secrets: Can This Miracle Spice Stop Cancer, Alzheimer's and Arthritis?

Drinking Coffee Slashes Risk of Alzheimer’s

Stop Using 'Natural' Deodorants Until You Read This

Alzheimer’s Disease and Inappropriate Sexual Behavior

Pet Therapy

Animals Helping the Ailing, the Elderly, and the Young

Pets are way better than Therapy!

Low-Carb Diet May Slow Alzheimer’s Disease

Final Stages of Alzheimer’s

Activities for Alzheimer’s Patients

7 Alzheimer's Triggers by Dr. Blaylock – definitely worth listening to!!

Find Dementia Care

Games for Alzheimer's

Alzheimer's Homes

Buttered Popcorn Flavoring Linked to Alzheimer’s

Stop Using 'Natural' Deodorants Until You Read This

Warning Signs: A New Test to Predict Alzheimer's

Super Spice Secrets: Can This Miracle Spice Stop Cancer, Alzheimer's and Arthritis?

The Secret; Care Givers are the ‘Silent’ Boss

The Hoax at the Bottom of Autism and Alzheimer’s

Remember 'The Girls' - Views by Ann Hood

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

CPS Gives Toddlers PSYCHOTROPIC DRUGS

Houston CPS force 3-year-old to take over prescribed psychotropic drugs

Alex Jones reports - A version of this column originally appeared in donnellyjustice.me

Video:  CPS: The Criminal Institution

Annette Funicello; Original Mouseketeer and 'Beach Blanket Bingo' star Dead at 70 From Complications of Multiple Sclerosis

VIDEO: ANNETTE FUNICELLO DIED

Fox News: Legendary Disney Mouseketeer Annette Funicello died on Monday, 04.08.12, from complications due to Multiple Sclerosis, a degenerative neurological disease she battled for more than 25 years. She was 70 years old.

Annette suffered from chronic progressive, multiple sclerosis, that she battled for two decades before effective treatments were possible.

"She's on her toes dancing in heaven... no more MS," Funicello's daughter Gina Gilardi said in a prepared statement. "My brothers and I were there, holding her sweet hands when she left us."

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory neurological disease in which myelin, the protective layer that insulates neuron cells in the nervous system, gradually degenerates. As myelin degrades in different parts of the brain, people with MS can experience varying symptoms like fatigue and tingling sensations, and develop sensory, muscle coordination, and memory problems.

Most people do not experience severe symptoms, though in progressive cases like Funicello's, muscle paralysis can lead to a debilitating decline in quality of life.

"MS does not directly shorten the lifespan," explained Dr. Rhonda Voskuhl, director of the MS program at UCLA, to Today.com. "It doesn't kill people directly. If you've had a very severe form for a very, very long time you can have the same complications that anyone has who is immobilized. You can get pneumonia. You can get bed sores. You can have difficulty eating."

At least one in 1,000 have multiple sclerosis, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, and most people develop their first symptoms between the ages of 20 and 40. There is no cure, though promising therapies can limit relapses and slow down the condition's progression if it is diagnosed in early stages. Unfortunately for Funicello, such MS treatments were not developed early enough to prevent her decline.

She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1987 at the age of 50, and kept her illness private until publicly disclosing it in 1992, when she established The Annette Funicello Research Fund for Neurological Diseases. The charity, which funds research into the cause, treatment, and cure of neurological disorders like multiple sclerosis, is still active.

Funicello's autobiography, A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes, chronicled her struggle with multiple sclerosis and was made into a TV movie in 1995.

Video:  A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes: The Annette Funicello Story (TV 1995) 6/7

Funicello, who began her acting career at age 12, became "America's Sweetheart" as an original Disney Mouseketeer, and went on to star in the teen-oriented Beach Party films and record a series of hit singles throughout the 1960s.

"Annette was and always will be a cherished member of the Disney family, synonymous with the word Mousketeer, and a true Disney Legend," Bob Iger, Chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company, said in a statement. "She will forever hold a place in our hearts as one of Walt Disney's brightest stars, delighting an entire generation of baby boomers with her jubilant personality and endless talent."

Funicello died peacefully at Mercy Southwest Hospital in Bakersfield, Calif., the Disney company said.

Funicello stunned fans and friends in 1992 with the announcement about her ailment. Yet she was cheerful and upbeat, grappling with the disease with a courage that contrasted with her lightweight teen image of old.

The pretty, dark-haired Funicello was just 13 when she gained fame on Walt Disney's television kiddie "club," an amalgam of stories, songs and dance routines that ran from 1955 to 1959.

Cast after Walt Disney himself saw her at a dance recital, she soon began receiving 8,000 fan letters a month, 10 times more than any of the 23 other young performers.

Her devotion to Walt Disney remained throughout her life.

"He was the dearest, kindest person, and truly was like a second father to me," she remarked. "He was a kid at heart."

“She’s the perfect girl next door,” Avalon once said.“She doesn’t have a mean bone in her body. She’s the sweetest girl I know, and nothing’s ever changed.”

In her 1994 memoir, “A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes, My Story”, Funicello wrote that the carefully scrubbed innocence of “The Mickey Mouse Club” was “an honest if exaggerated reflection of an America that, sadly, has faded into history.”

When "The Mickey Mouse Club" ended, Annette (as she was often billed) was the only club member to remain under contract to the studio. She appeared in such Disney movies as "Johnny Tremain," ''The Shaggy Dog," ''The Horsemasters," ''Babes in Toyland," ''The Misadventures of Merlin Jones" and "The Monkey's Uncle."

She also became a recording star, singing on 15 albums and hit singles such as "Tall Paul" and "Pineapple Princess."

Outgrowing the kid roles by the early '60s, Annette teamed with Frankie Avalon in a series of movies for American-International, the first film company aimed at the burgeoning teen market.

The filmmakers weren't aiming for art, and they didn't achieve it. As Halliwell's Film Guide says of "Beach Party": "Quite tolerable in itself, it started an excruciating trend."

But the films had songs, cameos by older stars and a few laughs and, as a bonus to latter-day viewers, a look back at a more innocent time. The 1965 "Beach Blanket Bingo," for example, featured subplots involving a mermaid, a motorcycle gang and a skydiving school run by Don Rickles, and comic touches by silent film star Buster Keaton.

Among the other titles: "Muscle Beach Party," ''Bikini Beach," ''Beach Blanket Bingo," ''How to Stuff a Wild Bikini" and "Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine." [Full Collection]

The shift in teen tastes begun by the Beatles in 1964 and Funicello's first marriage the following year pretty much killed off the genre.

But she was somehow never forgotten though mostly out of the public eye for years. She and Avalon staged a reunion in 1987 with "Back to the Beach." It was during the filming that she noticed she had trouble walking — the first insidious sign of MS.

When it was finally diagnosed, she later recalled, "I knew nothing about (MS), and you are always afraid of the unknown. I plowed into books."

Her symptoms were relatively mild at first, but gradually she lost control of her legs, and she feared people might think she was drunk. So she went public with her ordeal in 1992.

She wrote of her triumphs and struggles in her 1994 autobiography, "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes" — the title taken from a Disney song. In 1995, she appeared briefly in a television docudrama based on her book. And she spoke openly about the degenerative effects of MS.

"My equilibrium is no more; it's just progressively getting worse," she said. "But I thank God I just didn't wake up one morning and not be able to walk. You learn to live with it. You learn to live with anything, you really do."

"I've always been religious. This just makes me appreciate the Lord even more because things could always be worse. I know he will see me through this."

Funicello was born Oct. 22, 1942, in Utica, N.Y., and her family moved to Los Angeles when she was 4. She began taking dance lessons the following year and won a beauty contest at 9. Then came the discovery by Disney in 1955.

"I have been blessed to have a mentor like Walt Disney," she said 40 years later. "Those years were the happiest of my life. I felt that back then. I feel the same today."

Asked about the revisionist biographies that have portrayed Disney in a negative light, she said, "I don't know what went on in the conference rooms. I know what I saw. And he was wonderful."

In 1965, Funicello married her agent, Jack Gilardi, and they had three children, Gina, Jack and Jason. The couple divorced 18 years later, and in 1986 she married Glen Holt, a harness racehorse trainer. After her film career ended, she devoted herself to her family. Her children sometimes appeared on the TV commercials she made for peanut butter.

The beach films featured ample youthful skin. But not Funicello's.

She remembered in 1987: "Mr. Disney said to me one day, 'Annette, I have a favor to ask of you. I know all the girls are wearing bikinis, but you have an image to uphold. I would appreciate it if you would wear a one-piece suit.' I did, and I never regretted it."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Video:  Annette Funicello at Disneyland

Annette dances with Bobby Burgess, fellow Mousekateer who became a permanent member of the Lawrence Welk Show cast

Video: Mickey Mouse Club: "The Annette Sound"

Sunday, April 7, 2013

DANGER: do you really know what is placed in infant formula?

Why Is Pesticide Used As An Ingredient In Infant Formula?

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GreenMedInfo: Why is cupric sulfate -- a known herbicide, fungicide and pesticide -- being used in infant formula? And why is it displayed proudly on product labels as a presumably nutritious ingredient?

Used to kill fungus, aquatic plants and roots of plants, parasitic infections in aquarium fish and snails, as well as algae and bacteria such as Escherichia coli, cupric sulfate hardly sounds fit for human consumption, much less for infants.

Indeed, infants are all too often looked at as "miniature adults" from the perspective of toxicological risk assessments, rather than what they are: disproportionately (if not exponentially) more susceptible to the adverse effects of environmental exposures. Instead of reducing or altogether eliminating avoidable infant chemical exposures (the precautionary principle), the chemical industry-friendly focus is always on determining "an acceptable level of harm" – as if there were such at thing!

It boggles the imagination how cupric sulfate ended up in infant formula, as well as scores of other consumer health products, such as Centrum and One-A-Day vitamins?

After all, it is classified, according to the Dangerous Substance Directive (one of the main European Union laws concerning chemical safety), as "Harmful (Xn), Irritant (Xi) and Dangerous for the environment (N)."

Moreover, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires that the warning signal "DANGER" appear on the labels of all copper sulfate end-products containing 99% active ingredient in crystalline form.

The Material Safety Data Sheet for Cupric Sulfate clearly states, in 'Section 3: Hazards Identification," that it has the following adverse health effects:

"Potential Acute Health Effects: Hazardous in case of skin contact (irritant), of eye contact (irritant), of ingestion, of inhalation.
Potential Chronic Health Effects: CARCINOGENIC EFFECTS: Not available. MUTAGENIC EFFECTS: Mutagenic for mammalian somatic cells. TERATROGENIC EFFECTS: Not available. DEVELOPMENT TOXICITY: Not available. The substance may be toxic to kidneys, liver. Repeated or prolonged exposure to the substance can produce target organs damage."

In 'Section 7: Handling and Storage" the following precautions must be taken:

"Do not ingest. Do not breathe dust. Wear suitable protective clothing. In case of insufficient ventilation, wear suitable respiratory equipment. If ingested, seek medical advice immediately and show t he container or the label. Avoid contact with skin and eyes. Keep away from incompatibles such as metals, alkalis."

Cleary we have a problem here.  Cupric sulfate is used in most mass market infant formulas. Even Similac's "sensitive" formula contains the ingredient:

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Could this be one reason why infant formula has been linked to over 50 adverse health effects, both short and long term, in infants given it in place of breast milk? The common explanation/claim is that infant formula isn't intrinsically harmful, rather, breast milk and breastfeeding is just healthier.  I believe this perspective in untenable, given the problems with cupric sulfate, and dozens of other questionable ingredients being used in these products, such as petroleum-derived and chirally inverted dl-alpha tocopherol (synthetic vitamin E), zinc sulfate, sodium selenate, manganese sulfate, etc.

For additional research on the inherent problems associated with the use of chemicals in infant formula, take a look at our evaluation of another Similac product.

Or, take a look at the "Organic" infant formula by Earth's Best:, which is surprisingly not that much better.


Related Article

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Chemicals Used As "Nutrients" In "USDA Organic" Infant Formula

Additional Research

· Cupric Sulfate – Pesticide Information Profile

· Cupric Sulfate – Toxicology Research on GreenMedInfo.com

· Blog: Infant Formula For Disaster

· Blog: Is Your Multivitamin Toxic?

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Sayer Ji is the founder and chair of GreenMedInfo.com. His writings have been published in the Wellbeing Journal, the Journal of Gluten Sensitivity, and have been featured on numerous websites, including Mercola.com,NaturalNews.com, Infowars.com, Care2.com. His critically acclaimed essay series The Dark Side of Wheat opens up a new perspective on the universal, human-species specific toxicity of wheat, and is now available for PDF download.

Related:

Some Baby Foods are Worse Than Junk Food

The Evidence Against Soy

Traditional parenting 'leads to well-adjusted children'

Empowerment: Women Now Choose Objectification Over ‘Creepy’ Breastfeeding

Myth Busted: Vaccinations Are Not Immunizations