...or is that soap for my soapbox? Anyway, I've been looking on the Internet, and it's a nice to see statements you've read in one place supported somewhere else, sort of like a cross-reference. As you may know, I've been referring to the wealth of information here: https://www.savecfcinhalers.org/
Today I read similar information here:
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/nov/22/the-inhaler-squeeze/
A quote from the article caught my eye:
"Ironically, the amount of CFCs released by inhalers has been comparatively tiny: about 1,200 tons a year, out of the 1.8 million tons released into the atmosphere when the Montreal Protocol environmental treaty was drafted in 1987."
Did you catch that?
The amount of CFCs released by inhalers: 1,200 tons per year.
The amount of CFCs from all other sources: 1.8 MILLION tons per year.
For a drop in the bucket we have lost our right to breathe.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
Feeling better today!
At last my sore throat is going away and my chest isn't getting congested after all. I did go back to using my old inhaler, but at this point I don't know if the XOPENEX HFA caused the sore throat but I do think it was only a cold. My lungs were getting congested, though, and the old albuterol CFC cleared them right up.
I have been busy writing letters. I heard back from Senator Lugar and from a reporter from the local newspaper. There are a lot of people who are in a real bad way because of this new propellant in asthma spray. The word needs to be gotten out and people need to be encouraged to register their complaints. The FDA says "asthmatics will just have to get used to it." WHAT!!! They say you need to inhale the medicine harder because the spray is softer. I was sucking my freakin' brains out to get the medicine in and look where it got me!!!
I now have a spacer which I use with my inhalers. It works like this: the mouthpiece of the inhaler plugs into one end of the tube. You shake the inhaler (extra, extra, extra well for the new HFA ones). While holding the spacer in front of you, exhale and press the inhaler. Watch the mist fill the tube (you can see it). Now put your mouth on the opposite end of the spacer and slowly draw in until your lungs are full. Hold as long as you can. This way you draw all of the medicine into your lungs. It doesn't squirt on the back of your mouth or your tongue or your throat.
My lungs were still not clear with the HFA inhaler attached to the spacer. If you are having similar problems, please register a complaint here (bottom of page): http://www.consumeraffairs.com/health/hfa_inhalers.html
And read the story here: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/02/asthma_hfa.html
Remember, not all people are sensitive/allergic to the new propellant. For them an HFA inhaler may be fine. But for those of us who ARE sensitive/allergic, the FDA has taken away our right to breathe. WE CAN FIGHT THIS AND WIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dinner tonight was leftover roast beef, shredded and simmered with pepperoncini peppers and served on homemade buns with homemade oven baked fries. AND we opened the Asti! A toast to Christmas in southern Indiana! We hope we are moved before then!
I have been busy writing letters. I heard back from Senator Lugar and from a reporter from the local newspaper. There are a lot of people who are in a real bad way because of this new propellant in asthma spray. The word needs to be gotten out and people need to be encouraged to register their complaints. The FDA says "asthmatics will just have to get used to it." WHAT!!! They say you need to inhale the medicine harder because the spray is softer. I was sucking my freakin' brains out to get the medicine in and look where it got me!!!
I now have a spacer which I use with my inhalers. It works like this: the mouthpiece of the inhaler plugs into one end of the tube. You shake the inhaler (extra, extra, extra well for the new HFA ones). While holding the spacer in front of you, exhale and press the inhaler. Watch the mist fill the tube (you can see it). Now put your mouth on the opposite end of the spacer and slowly draw in until your lungs are full. Hold as long as you can. This way you draw all of the medicine into your lungs. It doesn't squirt on the back of your mouth or your tongue or your throat.
My lungs were still not clear with the HFA inhaler attached to the spacer. If you are having similar problems, please register a complaint here (bottom of page): http://www.consumeraffairs.com/health/hfa_inhalers.html
And read the story here: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/02/asthma_hfa.html
Remember, not all people are sensitive/allergic to the new propellant. For them an HFA inhaler may be fine. But for those of us who ARE sensitive/allergic, the FDA has taken away our right to breathe. WE CAN FIGHT THIS AND WIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dinner tonight was leftover roast beef, shredded and simmered with pepperoncini peppers and served on homemade buns with homemade oven baked fries. AND we opened the Asti! A toast to Christmas in southern Indiana! We hope we are moved before then!
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Resting
I still have a sore throat. Chest is a bit congested, so I'm switching back to the albuterol CFC, just in case. I think it's a cold, but not sure. Still didn't open the Asti. Watched a good movie on TV, "Deja Vu" with Denzel Washington. It was good. I think I saw part of it before but it's one of those you need to really pay close attention to because of all the weird stuff that happens. Dinner was a yummy pot roast.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Bummer
Dad bought me a bottle of Asti and I'm too sick to drink it. Well, not terribly sick, a cold with a sore throat. So we're saving the bottle for when I feel better. Then on top of that I bought a room purifier and I don't like it. It smells like plastic and it's noisy. I'm suppose the plastic smell would go away but the fan rattles for cryin' out loud and it wasn't cheap. I expected a fan noise, as in a whooshing sound of air moving, but not an actual rattle. On top of that is makes a faint growling noise that reminds me of the cheap timers I use to run my plant lights. So back it goes.
So now I'm trying to find room air purifier reviews. I don't want one of those ozone machines. I thought this one would be good because it has a lot of bells and whistles. It has a UV light that you can turn on or off, plus an ionizer that you can turn on or off, and 12 fan speeds. Even on the lowest speed I hear the fan rattle and the faint grumble growl thing. If we were using it in the living room or something it would be ok but it's too noisy for the bedroom.
Dinner was going to be fish but we decided on chicken soup because of my cold. The movie we watched was The Red Violin, which I think we need to watch again because when you click "play" there are no captions and most of the movie is in other languages. There must be another option that gives you captions. Oh well, we probably won't bother because we figured it out even without captions. It was a pretty good movie and I do recall seeing parts of it before on TV some time ago.
So now I'm trying to find room air purifier reviews. I don't want one of those ozone machines. I thought this one would be good because it has a lot of bells and whistles. It has a UV light that you can turn on or off, plus an ionizer that you can turn on or off, and 12 fan speeds. Even on the lowest speed I hear the fan rattle and the faint grumble growl thing. If we were using it in the living room or something it would be ok but it's too noisy for the bedroom.
Dinner was going to be fish but we decided on chicken soup because of my cold. The movie we watched was The Red Violin, which I think we need to watch again because when you click "play" there are no captions and most of the movie is in other languages. There must be another option that gives you captions. Oh well, we probably won't bother because we figured it out even without captions. It was a pretty good movie and I do recall seeing parts of it before on TV some time ago.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Getting back to normal, still on my Soap Box
I had my follow-up appointment with a cardiologist on Wednesday. He said:
"There is nothing wrong with your heart!"
He also told me to stop taking the Lopressor (heart medicine).
I understood my heart was ok when I followed up with the internist last Wednesday. What I didn't understand was why I was having chest pain with exertion. So I asked the cardiologist. He said I was having bronchial spasms.
Now, I have had asthma since I was 3 years old, but I don't ever recall having chest pains that mimicked angina. Nor do I recall having episodes of dizziness and sweating along with it. However I have run across some other people reporting the same symptoms with the use of the ProAir inhaler. By the way, I seem to be doing ok on the XOPENEX HFA. I am using a spacer, which is much better than trying to inhale directly from the mouthpiece.
So what is different about the ProAir, you may wonder. It's the propellant. ProAir contains ethanol along with the HFA propellants. Apparently some people are sensitive to ethanol.
Ok, back on my soap box for a moment, while I'm thinking about it. So, what is it about CFC (freon propellent)? Why was it removed from asthma spray? Here are three common but incorrect arguments:
(1) CFCs are absorbed into the body when inhaled and are not released into the atmosphere, so how can CFC MDIs (metered-dose inhalers) threaten the ozone layer?
FACT: They DON'T threaten the ozone layer, but the argument is INCORRECT. After you inhale the CFC propellant, you exhale almost all of it intact into the air, immediately. The CFCs are NOT broken down in your body.
But there is a NATURAL PRODUCTION AND DESTRUCTION OF OZONE ALL THE TIME- and the thing to remember is that CFC MDIs release such tiny amounts of CFC cumulatively, over time, that the impact they have on the constant natural creation and destruction of the earth's ozone is insignificant.
And not only have stratospheric CFC levels been dropping since 1994, but in addition, ozone concentrations have stabilized in key areas of the stratosphere since 1997- and these positive developments have occurred while global CFC emissions were MUCH GREATER than peak CFC MDI emissions EVER WERE, strongly confirming the fact that CFC emissions from MDIs do not pose a threat to the ozone layer.
(2) There are still CFCs in hair sprays, deodorants, air conditioners, spray paints, and refrigerators, so why don't they remove the CFCs from these things before they ban CFC MDIs?
FACT: They already took CFCs out of the above products, many years ago.
(3) Greenhouse gases, CO2, pollution, car and truck exhaust, smog, power plant and factory emissions represent serious risks to ozone depletion (and to our health), why don't they clean these major threats to the ozone layer up first before they ban CFC MDIs?
FACT: These things all apply to the issue of man-made GLOBAL WARMING, NOT to the issue of man-made STRATOSPHERIC OZONE DEPLETION, which are actually two separate issues. The Montreal Protocol deals with man-made OZONE DEPLETION, the Kyoto Protocol (which the U.S. has not yet signed, but undoubtedly soon will) deals with man-made GLOBAL WARMING.
(Those were copied from https://www.savecfcinhalers.org)
Ok, off soap box for now.
"There is nothing wrong with your heart!"
He also told me to stop taking the Lopressor (heart medicine).
I understood my heart was ok when I followed up with the internist last Wednesday. What I didn't understand was why I was having chest pain with exertion. So I asked the cardiologist. He said I was having bronchial spasms.
Now, I have had asthma since I was 3 years old, but I don't ever recall having chest pains that mimicked angina. Nor do I recall having episodes of dizziness and sweating along with it. However I have run across some other people reporting the same symptoms with the use of the ProAir inhaler. By the way, I seem to be doing ok on the XOPENEX HFA. I am using a spacer, which is much better than trying to inhale directly from the mouthpiece.
So what is different about the ProAir, you may wonder. It's the propellant. ProAir contains ethanol along with the HFA propellants. Apparently some people are sensitive to ethanol.
Ok, back on my soap box for a moment, while I'm thinking about it. So, what is it about CFC (freon propellent)? Why was it removed from asthma spray? Here are three common but incorrect arguments:
(1) CFCs are absorbed into the body when inhaled and are not released into the atmosphere, so how can CFC MDIs (metered-dose inhalers) threaten the ozone layer?
FACT: They DON'T threaten the ozone layer, but the argument is INCORRECT. After you inhale the CFC propellant, you exhale almost all of it intact into the air, immediately. The CFCs are NOT broken down in your body.
But there is a NATURAL PRODUCTION AND DESTRUCTION OF OZONE ALL THE TIME- and the thing to remember is that CFC MDIs release such tiny amounts of CFC cumulatively, over time, that the impact they have on the constant natural creation and destruction of the earth's ozone is insignificant.
And not only have stratospheric CFC levels been dropping since 1994, but in addition, ozone concentrations have stabilized in key areas of the stratosphere since 1997- and these positive developments have occurred while global CFC emissions were MUCH GREATER than peak CFC MDI emissions EVER WERE, strongly confirming the fact that CFC emissions from MDIs do not pose a threat to the ozone layer.
(2) There are still CFCs in hair sprays, deodorants, air conditioners, spray paints, and refrigerators, so why don't they remove the CFCs from these things before they ban CFC MDIs?
FACT: They already took CFCs out of the above products, many years ago.
(3) Greenhouse gases, CO2, pollution, car and truck exhaust, smog, power plant and factory emissions represent serious risks to ozone depletion (and to our health), why don't they clean these major threats to the ozone layer up first before they ban CFC MDIs?
FACT: These things all apply to the issue of man-made GLOBAL WARMING, NOT to the issue of man-made STRATOSPHERIC OZONE DEPLETION, which are actually two separate issues. The Montreal Protocol deals with man-made OZONE DEPLETION, the Kyoto Protocol (which the U.S. has not yet signed, but undoubtedly soon will) deals with man-made GLOBAL WARMING.
(Those were copied from https://www.savecfcinhalers.org)
Ok, off soap box for now.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Rabbit-Proof Fence
Ever once in awhile we get lucky and rent one of those surprisingly unforgettable movies, totally unexpected, yet so touching and so well done that you wonder how long before you can enjoy another movie that much. Tonight's movie was filmed in South Australia around Adelaide, and is also a true story, Rabbit-Proof Fence.
While we are on the subject of truly well-done and touching movies, another little-known gem is I Am David. And yes, I cried buckets at the end of both of these!
Today was a beautiful day, got up to 61 degrees!! It's nice to have a break after all the cold. Dinner was homemade pizza.
While we are on the subject of truly well-done and touching movies, another little-known gem is I Am David. And yes, I cried buckets at the end of both of these!
Today was a beautiful day, got up to 61 degrees!! It's nice to have a break after all the cold. Dinner was homemade pizza.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Stuff...
I had a follow-up appointment today, got a new asthma medicine prescribed. I'll let you know how it is after I pick it up. Next Wednesday I follow up with a cardiologist. I'm feeling fine now.
Dinner was leftover spaghetti and garlic toast made from homemade bread that dad made. For salad, since I didn't have a tomato, dad suggested cutting up some pickled beets and adding some green olives to the lettuce. I also had some feta cheese, which made it extra yummy.
Dinner was leftover spaghetti and garlic toast made from homemade bread that dad made. For salad, since I didn't have a tomato, dad suggested cutting up some pickled beets and adding some green olives to the lettuce. I also had some feta cheese, which made it extra yummy.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)