The members said that the study demonstrates that ordinary citizens are also being poisoned by corporations without their knowledge and consent just like the victims of Bhopal. 

Presenting the conclusions and few facts from the study of 200 families, Satinath Sarangi said that the chemicals that people are exposed to on a daily basis can cause damage to the respiratory, digestive, immune, endocrinal, reproductive systems and especially organs such as liver, kidneys, skin, brain and eyes.

He said that there were 44 chemicals in products of daily use that can cause different cancers. There was at least one and maximum of 6 carcinogenic chemicals in each of the products found to be used on a daily basis, he said. All products included in our study are known to cause damage to the environment as well as human health, he added.

An interesting finding of this study was that people of all economic classes and ages were using hazardous home products. This is particularly so because of the range of packaging used by the manufactures.

Devendra Panchal, a volunteer who collected material for the study, said that products of Johnson & Johnson Company are mostly used for children. The talcum powder manufactured by this company was banned in April 2013. "A poisonous chemical, Ethyline Oxide known to cause cancer, damage to lungs, nausea and vomiting was reported to have been found in this talcum powder made especially for babies," he said. 

Tabasum Ara, a member of the study team said that in most families children carried water in plastic bottles to their schools. These bottles are known to contain chemicals like Polyethylene teripthalate and Bisphenol that cause cancers. Bisphenol is known to also cause damage to the male and female reproductive system, that causes birth defects, damage to the immune system, asthma, diabetes, heart and liver diseases. Many countries including Japan, France, Belgium, Denmark, Britain, Sweden & Canada have banned the use of this extremely toxic chemical.

Ritesh Pal who analyzed the data of the study said that 85% of the daily use products of the consumers were manufactured by Hindustan Unilever Limited. He said that this company not only manufactures these poisonous products it is also responsible for crimes against the environment.

Mahindra Kumari Soni, one of the members of the study team, said that though it appears that there are no alternatives to using harmful products on a daily basis but the fact is there are easy alternatives. There are indeed harmless and safer alternatives available around us. Containers of steel, copper and glass can be used to carry water, steel and clay pots can be used for storage of water at home.

There are herbal products such as Areetha, Shikakai and Anwla that are healthy alternatives to soaps and shampoos. White vinegar is a safe alternative to products used for toilet cleaning.

The members of the Sambhavna Trust clinic that has been providing free medical care to those affected by Union Carbide’s poisons for the last 17 years also presented information on other activities on the occasion of the 29th anniversary of the gas disaster. 

Credit: Wikipedia Commons (Creative Commons)