Time to Collect the Salt Shakers

The reduction of factors contributing to cardiovascular disease would make any workplace a lot healthier. Recently, Mayor Bloomberg equated the deadly effects of asbestos exposure with salt intake.

Now comes a recent study reported in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) that illustrates that even a minor reduction of salt intake would produce a significant reduction in cardiovascular events.

NEJM states in an editorial, "The large potential benefits of reducing salt intake observed by Bibbins-Domingo and colleagues may even represent an underestimate. Salt reduction is associated with reduced blood pressure in children and an attenuated age-related rise in blood pressure in adults. Neither of these benefits was modeled in the present analysis. There is also evidence that salt reduction may reduce the risk of gastric cancer, end-stage kidney disease, left ventricular hypertrophy, congestive heart failure, and osteoporosis."

As employers have eliminated other co-exisitng contributing factors such as tobacco smoke, they would be indeed wise to also consider the reduction of other factors, such as salt intake. Such action could only make the workplace a healthier environment.

Click here to read more about salt intake and possible workers' compensation consequences.

Meso for Miles - Supporting Mesothelioma Research

A Walk/Run in support of research to treat and cure mesothelioma was successfully held in South Florida today. Hundreds were in attendance to support the research effort and demonstrate to ban the use of asbestos in the United States.

The legacy of disease caused by the innocent exposure to asbestos exposure continues in epidemic proportion. Asbestos, a known carcinogen, exposure results in asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma.

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Click here to read more about asbestos and workers compensation.

No Free Lunch For Salty Foods

Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York City may have put a a focus a new compensable event.  A long proponent of a healthier living environment, Bloomberg has proposed reducing salt content in food in the Big Apple by 25%.


While emphasizing the seriousness of the health hazards of salt intake, he compared the consumption of salt to asbestos and smoking, "Salt and asbestos, clearly both are bad for you," Bloomberg continued. "Modern medicine thinks you shouldn't be smoking if you want to live longer. Modern medicine thinks you shouldn't be eating salt, or sodium."


There is no free lunch in the adoption of this scenario. If an employee is exposed to salty foods in the course of the employment and suffers a medical event associated with the intake of salt, then compensability may follow.

"The New York City Health Department is coordinating a nationwide effort to prevent heart attacks and strokes by reducing the amount of salt in packaged and restaurant foods.Americans consume roughly twice the recommended limit of salt each day – causing widespread high blood pressure and placing millions at risk of heart attack and stroke. This is not a matter of choice. Only 11% of the sodium in our diets comes from our own saltshakers; nearly 80% is added to foods before they are sold. The National Salt Reduction Initiative is a coalition of cities, states and health organizations working to help food manufacturers and restaurants voluntarily reduce the amount of salt in their products. The goal is to reduce Americans’ salt intake by 20% over five years. This will save tens of thousands of lives each year and billions of dollars in health care costs."


More than 40 cities, states and national health organizations have joined the National Salt Reduction Initiative. The goal is to reduce the salt intake of Americans by 20% over the next five years.

Click here to read more about asbestos and workers' compensation. 

Shifting Occupational Claim Responsibility to Social Security

Recent Workers' Compensation reforms enacted in the 1990's are more likely to effect older workers  who are then more likely to to apply for Social Security Disability Benefits (SSDI). The reforms are now causing an enormous increase in number of denials of workers' compensation claims. At a recent conference hosted by NASI (National Academy of Social Insurance), Professor John F. Burton Jr. reported on the results of his recent study that has been submitted for publication.

Professor Burton reported that in 1999 between 80% to 93.8% of occupationally disease medical costs were not considered compensable and the costs were being shifted to the SSDI program. He concluded that, "...a substantial infusion of research funds are necessary to clarify the relationships between the Workers' Compensation and SSDI Programs."

To read more about Professor Burton and workers' compensation on the blog, click here.

A New Test for Mesothelioma Reported

A team of scientists at Oxford University have reported a more accurate and less invasive test to diagnose mesothelioma. The findings have been reported in a recent edition of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

The test is claimed to be quicker and more accurate in testing for mesothelioma. Since it involves pleural fluid cytology the serum mesothelium is utilized as a bio marker to establish a diagnosis of mesothelioma.

The scientists indicate that the quick test will allow injured workers to file claims with greater reliability. Dr. Helen Davies, who participated in the research project stated, "Claims for worker's compensation may also be instigated once the diagnosis is confirmed."

Mesothelioma is a fatal disease that is associated with exposure to asbestos fiber. It is tumor that grows on the linings of the lungs or abdomen. Many workers have been exposed over the decades to asbestos and have developed mesothelioma in epidemic proportions.

Exposure to asbestos may occur as a result of both direct exposure to asbestos in the workplace or though a secondary exposure as a bystander or even a household contact of an asbestos workers. The disease has a very long latency period of the date of exposure to the date of manifestation. Asbestos, a known human carcinogen, use has not yet been banned in the United States.

For more information about treatment options, potential claims for benefits and the history of asbestos production, please visit out web site www.gelmans.com.

President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate David Michaels Assistant Secretary for the OSHA

President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate David Michaels, Assistant Secretary for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Department of Labor.

David Michaels, PhD, MPH, is an epidemiologist and is currently Research Professor at the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health at the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services. He has conducted numerous studies of the health effects of occupational exposure to toxic chemicals, including asbestos, metals and solvents, and has written extensively on science and regulatory policy.

From 1998 to 2001, Dr. Michaels served as Assistant Secretary of Energy for Environment, Safety and Health, responsible for protecting the health and safety of workers, neighboring communities and the environment surrounding the nation’s nuclear weapons facilities. In that position, he was the chief architect of the historic initiative to compensate nuclear weapons workers who developed occupational illnesses as a result of exposure to radiation, beryllium and other hazards.

In 2006, Dr. Michaels received the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s Scientific Freedom and Responsibility Award for his work on behalf of nuclear weapons workers and for his advocacy for scientific integrity. He is also the recipient of the 2009 John P. McGovern Science and Society Award given by Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society.

David Michaels, former Assistant Secretary of Energy for Environment, Safety, and Health during the Clinton administration contends that corporations hire their own scientists to skew the safety records of certain products. He recently spoke at an event was hosted by the Center for American Progress in Washington, DC. The speech was broadcast by C-Span TV. in 2006. Michael authored Doubt is Their Product: How Industry's Assault on Science Threatens Your Health.