When his fellow firefighters kept facing battles with cancer, St. Paul Fire Captain Mark Munson went looking for answers. He found inspiration in the hoods that firefighters use that cover the head and neck. Why not, he thought, a protective piece of clothing for other areas of the body that are quick to absorb environmental contaminants, such as the groin and underarms?
That’s the idea behind Munson’s company Under Guardian, which produces shorts and shirts designed to be worn under turnout gear. The microfiber fabric used in the product is designed to block tiny particles of environmental contaminants from reaching the skin, and hopefully reduce the risk of the cancers they cause.
With firefighters facing a 14 percent higher cancer death rate than the general population, Munson says his work will have been a success if he can just help bring that rate down a little, WCCO reports.
