my fire troupe likes to joke that our motto is “safety third”, even though we take safety pretty seriously. i daresay that part of the mystique of playing with fire is the perceived danger involved. in my experience, being mindful and proactive in terms of your own safety needs can go a long way to minimize the potential hazards.
that being said, there is one safety topic that i haven’t seen discussed anywhere, probably because most hoopers are simply not aware of the dangers involved. at the risk of opening a big ‘ole can of worms, which seems sometimes to be my purpose in life, i’d like to express some concerns about using pvc as hoop tubing, particularly for firehoops.
before i dive in, let me say that my purpose in bringing this up is to build awareness, to protect all of you, and to encourage innovation, not to mess with those wonderful peeps who make and sell hoops. also, i am not a chemist or biologist. what i want to share is based on info from other sources. if i’ve gotten something wrong, please let me know. i want accurate info available to everyone. lastly, i realize that the fuel we use is toxic as hell, but it is obviously toxic- you know when you see a gallon of white gas that you probably shouldn’t be inhaling it or bathing in it. a piece of hoop tubing simply does not look like something inherently dangerous.
alright. grabbing my can opener….
one of the things that i really liked about hooping from the get go was that making a hoop is so easy. all you need to do is go to your local hardware store and grab some irrigation tubing, a connector, and tape. heat up the ends with a hairdryer, slam the connector in, tape to your hearts content, and, bingo, hoop! simple. accessible. given the flexibility, weight, cheapness and availability of pvc, it seems pretty ideal for our collective hoop needs.
unfortunately, pvc, or polyvinyl chloride (aka vinyl), is one of the most toxic compounds on the planet. it is made with stuff toxic to us (like chlorine), gives off stuff toxic to us (like mercury and lead), and either poisons our land and water as it stays alive forever offgassing in landfills or creates poisons when it is incinerated (like hydrocholric acid). i am not exaggerating when i say that we are putting our bodies and our environment at risk by using this plastic. given the mounting evidence linking severe health issues with pvc production and use, countries around the world are severely restricting or banning it altogether.
and, yes, pvc is everywhere, in computers, food containers, toys, clothes, etc. we are all exposed to it with alarming regularity, unaware that this stuff is offgassing all around us. to give an example, a study referenced in the story of stuff found that 108 volatile chemicals were released from a pvc shower curtain over the course of 28 days. 108! from a shower curtain! brings a whole new meaning to the term “bath”. and, if your shower curtain is that dangerous, what about that gaggle of hoops hanging out next to your closet? i know they don’t look too dangerous covered in sparkly, multi-colored tape and all, but unfortunately, pvc offgases. so, hoops offgas, too.
that’s probably enough to make anyone take pause, but the main problem i want to address here is that when pvc is burned it releases dioxins. ever hear of agent orange, the defoliant used in the vietnam war? yep, that’s a dioxin, the use of which resulted in the killing or maiming of 400,000 people and 500,000 birth defects. dioxins are the nastiest of the nasties. these poisons build up primarily in fatty tissues over time, and have been linked to all kinds of serious health problems, including cancer and the disruption of hormonal systems.
now think about those flames licking your firehoop while you take a deep breath…. pretty scary.
so, what do we do? i’m not about to give up firehooping, but i’m also not anxious for any of us to get cancer, or for any of us to poison our unborn children. so, here are some of my thoughts on minimizing the risks:
1. don’t store your hoops in close proximity to a heat source. really, you shouldn’t be doing this anyway with a firehoop given the possibility of fuel residue igniting, but this goes for all hoops. when i first became aware of the evil that is pvc, i realized to my horror that i was storing my hoops directly across from my heater.
2. pay particular attention to the well-being of your firehoop. is the spine size or a damaged wick making the flame come into constant contact with the body of the hoop when you spin? are you giving yourself a dose of dioxin every time you light up? it’s time to fix that wick or consider a different spine size.
3. wear gloves when firehooping. this is going to cramp some people’s style, but do you really want your skin in direct contact with this crap?
4. don’t use the hairdryer method for hoop building. i’ve found the hot water method faster and easier, anyway.
5. help us all figure out another material to use as the basis for our hoops. this is a very creative community- i’m sure we can collectively think of something else that has similar properties without wrecking the environment and our bodies. is there a rubber that can be used? or bamboo? or some kind of super-intelligent textile/metal combo? there must be something else that will work. people began hooping long before pvc was concocted.
the more we all become aware of how bad these compounds are, the more we can protect ourselves and our loved ones from the toxic soup that is increasingly all around us. here is a source of info on pvc. i recommend the books, the story of stuff (leonard/conrad) and dodging the toxic bullet (boyd), as starting points. please don’t just trust me on this. do your own research.
again, i know lots of wonderful, health conscious, natural-fiber wearing peeps who are able to make some cash from making and selling great hoops. i’m not interested in destroying their livelihood, but we need to facilitate change. now. the sooner we get pvc out of our art, the better.
discuss;-)