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Written by, Samuel K. Burlum, Investigative Reporter and author of The Green Lane, a syndicated column Published on 4/30/16, a SamBurlum.com Exclusive Source: As we take a look at the poor water quality issues that have hit major metro centers such as Flint, Michigan and Newark, New Jersey, we examine the source of these issues and what some are doing to rush in protecting the most important natural resource vital to the existence of the human race. As our world's population grows and our available sources of clean drinkable freshwater dwindle, the race to find ways to preserve and protect our current water supplies have rapidly increased; while other alternatives on how to clean up used and polluted water supplies are explored. Schools of thought and tech companies are eager to find ways to filter recycled water for reuse; fresh water supplies continue to be maxed out. According to the U.S. Geological Survey; only 2.5% of the Earth's water supply is fresh water. The main sources of available drinkable freshwater supply mainly come from glaciers and ice caps; ground ice and permafrost, and lakes and ground water. It is so surprising that with this natural resource being so scarce, we as a society don't do more to preserve and protect it. And so as a society, we continue to sabotage ourselves by contributing to actions and behaviors that increase pollution of our rivers and lakes. Only about half of the world's population has access to clean drinking water, leaving the other 3 billion people to fight for a source of quality water. In addition to that, according to United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO); 783 Million people have no access to any clean water sources. They must rely on "dirty" water or no water at all. This seems like a problem that would only plague impoverished countries, countries without infrastructure and societies without developed economies; however that stereo-typical outlook has been crushed by

Written by, Samuel K. Burlum, Investigative Reporter and author of The Green Lane, a syndicated column Published on 4/30/16, a SamBurlum.com Exclusive Source: As we take a look at the poor water quality issues that have hit major metro centers such as Flint, Michigan and Newark, New Jersey, we examine the source of these issues and what some are doing to rush in protecting the most important natural resource vital to the existence of the human race. As our world's population grows and our available sources of clean drinkable freshwater dwindle, the race to find ways to preserve and protect our current water supplies have rapidly increased; while other alternatives on how to clean up used and polluted water supplies are explored. Schools of thought and tech companies are eager to find ways to filter recycled water for reuse; fresh water supplies continue to be maxed out. According to the U.S. Geological Survey; only 2.5% of the Earth's water supply is fresh water. The main sources of available drinkable freshwater supply mainly come from glaciers and ice caps; ground ice and permafrost, and lakes and ground water. It is so surprising that with this natural resource being so scarce, we as a society don't do more to preserve and protect it. And so as a society, we continue to sabotage ourselves by contributing to actions and behaviors that increase pollution of our rivers and lakes. Only about half of the world's population has access to clean drinking water, leaving the other 3 billion people to fight for a source of quality water. In addition to that, according to United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO); 783 Million people have no access to any clean water sources. They must rely on "dirty" water or no water at all. This seems like a problem that would only plague impoverished countries, countries without infrastructure and societies without developed economies; however that stereo-typical outlook has been crushed by th

ncident invasive breast cancer, geographic location of residence, and reported average time spent outside. Millen AE, Pettinger M, Freudenheim JL, Langer RD, Rosenberg CA, Mossavar-Rahmani Y, Duffy CM, Lane DS, McTiernan A, Kuller LH, Lopez AM, Wactawski-Wende J. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2009 Feb;18(2):495-507. Epub 2009 Feb 3. PMID: 19190147 doi: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-08-0652 In conclusion, region of residence and geographic solar irradiance are not consistently related to risk of breast cancer and may not be sufficient proxy measures for sunlight/vitamin D exposure. The observed association between time spent outside and breast cancer risk support the hypothesis that vitamin D may protect against breast cancer.

Long-term effects of giving nursing home residents bread fortified with 125 {micro}g (5000 IU) vitamin D3 per daily serving. Mocanu V, Stitt PA, Costan AR, Voroniuc O, Zbranca E, Luca V, Vieth R. Am J Clin Nutr. 2009 Feb 25. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 19244376

Differences in vitamin D status between countries in young adults and the elderly. McKenna MJ. Am J Med. 1992 Jul;93(1):69-77. PMID: 1385673 PURPOSE: To compare vitamin D status between countries in young adults and in the elderly. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Reports on vitamin D status (as assessed by serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D) from 1971 to 1990 were reviewed. Studies were grouped according to geographic regions: North America (including Canada and the United States); Scandinavia (including Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden); and Central and Western Europe (including Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, The Netherlands, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom). RESULTS: Vitamin D status varies with the season in young adults and in the elderly, and is lower during the winter in Europe than in both North America and Scandinavia. Oral vitamin D intake is lower in Europe than in both North America and Scandinavia. Hypovitaminosis D and related abnormalities in bone chemistry are most common in elderly residents in Europe but are reported in all elderly populations. CONCLUSIONS: The vitamin D status in young adults and the elderly varies widely with the country of residence. Adequate exposure to summer sunlight is the essential means to ample supply, but oral intake augmented by both fortification and supplementation is necessary to maintain baseline stores. All countries should adopt a fortification policy. It seems likely that the elderly would benefit additionally from a daily supplement of 10 micrograms of vitamin D.

Broe KE, Chen TC, Weinberg J, Bischoff-Ferrari HA, Holick MF, Kiel DP. \nA higher dose of vitamin d reduces the risk of falls in nursing home residents: a randomized, multiple-dose study.\nJ Am Geriatr Soc. 2007 Feb;55(2):234-9.\nPMID: 17302660 [PubMed -

Long-term effects of giving nursing home residents bread fortified with 125 microg (5000 IU) vitamin D(3) per daily serving. Mocanu V, Stitt PA, Costan AR, Voroniuc O, Zbranca E, Luca V, Vieth R. Am J Clin Nutr. 2009 Apr;89(4):1132-7. Epub 2009 Feb 25. PMID: 19244376 doi:10.3945/ajcn.2008.26890

Suominen MH, Hosia Randell HM, Muurinen S, Peiponen A, Routasalo P, Soini H, Suur Uski I, Pitkala KH.

Geographic variation of prostate cancer mortality rates in the United States: Implications for prostate cancer risk related to vitamin D. Grant WB. Int J Cancer. 2004 Sep 1;111(3):470-1; author reply 472. No abstract available. PMID: 15221981 10.1002/ijc.20220 The implications of our results and those of Tuohimaa et al.[1] include the following. Vitamin D supplementation should be undertaken in wintertime, a period when it is impossible to produce vitamin D by solar UVB exposure in northeastern states.[13] Given these new results, the optimal vitamin D intake and production and serum 25(OH)-vitamin D3 levels for prostate cancer appear to be lower than for other cancers. However, when developing guidelines for vitamin D fortification, many factors should be included in the analysis, including all of the potential health benefits and possible risks of vitamin D, as well as age, sex, residence, child-bearing status, etc.[14] Also, the suggestion that daily vitamin D3 supplement doses of 100 g (4,000 IU)/day are safe[15] should be reexamined. Finally, in terms of preventing prostate cancer, more attention should be given to diet, which has the greatest environmental impact on risk of prostate cancer, with animal products being important risk factors and vegetable products, especially onions and other allium family members, being important risk-reduction factors.[16]

Current impediments to acceptance of the ultraviolet-B-vitamin D-cancer hypothesis. Grant WB, Boucher BJ. Anticancer Res. 2009 Sep;29(9):3597-604. PMID: 19667154 The ultraviolet-B (UVB)-vitamin D-cancer hypothesis was proposed in 1980. There have been numerous ecological, observational and other studies of the hypothesis. There are about 14 types of cancer for which it seems to apply: bladder, breast, colon, endometrial, esophageal, gallbladder, gastric, ovarian, pancreatic, rectal, renal and vulvar cancer and both Hodgkin's and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Nonetheless, the hypothesis has not yet been accepted by public health agencies. Some of the reasons for this include a distrust of ecological studies, some mistrust of observational studies, and the existence of just one positive randomized controlled trial, an analysis of a vitamin D and calcium supplementation study involving post-menopausal women in Nebraska. Paradigm shifts such as this generally take time, in part due to opposition from those content with the status quo. In this paper, results of ecological studies in the United States using summertime solar UVB as the index of vitamin D production, which is highly asymmetrical with respect to latitude, and indices for other cancer risk-modifying factors (air pollution, alcohol consumption, dietary iron and zinc, ethnic background, socioeconomic status, smoking and urban/rural residence) are discussed in terms of supporting the hypothesis. These studies were not considered while other ecological studies were examined in recent critiques of the hypothesis. While additional randomized controlled trials would, of course, be helpful, the current evidence seems to satisfy the criteria for causality as outlined by A. Bradford Hill.

The role of vitamin D in cancer prevention. Garland CF, Garland FC, Gorham ED, Lipkin M, Newmark H, Mohr SB, Holick MF. Am J Public Health. 2006 Feb;96(2):252-61. Epub 2005 Dec 27. Review. PMID: 16380576 DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2004.045260 Vitamin D status differs by latitude and race, with residents of the northeastern United States and individuals with more skin pigmentation being at increased risk of deficiency. A PubMed database search yielded 63 observational studies of vitamin D status in relation to cancer risk, including 30 of colon, 13 of breast, 26 of prostate, and 7 of ovarian cancer, and several that assessed the association of vitamin D receptor genotype with cancer risk. The majority of studies found a protective relationship between sufficient vitamin D status and lower risk of cancer. The evidence suggests that efforts to improve vitamin D status, for example by vitamin D supplementation, could reduce cancer incidence and mortality at low cost, with few or no adverse effects.

The role of vitamin D in cancer prevention. Garland CF, Garland FC, Gorham ED, Lipkin M, Newmark H, Mohr SB, Holick MF. Am J Public Health. 2006 Feb;96(2):252-61. Epub 2005 Dec 27. Review. PMID: 16380576 DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2004.045260 Vitamin D status differs by latitude and race, with residents of the northeastern United States and individuals with more skin pigmentation being at increased risk of deficiency. A PubMed database search yielded 63 observational studies of vitamin D status in relation to cancer risk, including 30 of colon, 13 of breast, 26 of prostate, and 7 of ovarian cancer, and several that assessed the association of vitamin D receptor genotype with cancer risk. The majority of studies found a protective relationship between sufficient vitamin D status and lower risk of cancer. The evidence suggests that efforts to improve vitamin D status, for example by vitamin D supplementation, could reduce cancer incidence and mortality at low cost, with few or no adverse effects

"(NaturalNews) Regularly eating high levels of tofu may increase the risk of the memory loss associated with dementia, according to a new study conducted by researchers from Loughborough University in the United Kingdom, and published in the journal Dementias and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders. Prior research has found that women over the age of 65 who receive hormone therapy may double their risk of dementia. This may occur because estrogen promotes cell growth, which may actually do damage to the aging brain, Hogervorst said. Alternately, high levels of estrogen might enhance the cell-damaging effects of free radicals. Hogervorst also noted that much of tofu consumed by study participants might have been preserved with formaldehyde, a common practice in Indonesia. Formaldehyde has been strongly linked to various forms of cell damage, and might be responsible for the memory effects observed. Prior research has found that older Japanese-American men who consumed high levels of tofu are also at an elevated risk for dementia, however. Researchers investigated the connection between memory loss and diet for 719 elderly urban and rural residents of Java, Indonesia. The found that those who ate tofu at least once per day performed significantly worse on memory tests than those who ate tofu less frequently. The effect was particularly strong among those over the age of 68."

Bodnar LM, Simhan HN, Powers RW, Frank MP, Cooperstein E, Roberts JM.