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Toxins

Alternative News:

• Chemicals in Household Plastics May Raise Risk for Fibroids - WebMD, 11/15/22 - “We detected the phthalate DEHP and its breakdown products in much higher quantities in the urine of women who also happen to have symptomatic uterine fibroid tumors. Then we asked the question whether this association was causal. And the answer was yes,”
• Potentialities of Ginkgo extract on toxicants, toxins, and radiation: a critical review - Food Funct 2022 Jul 8 - "Exposure to toxins is a severe threat to human health and life in today's developing and industrialized world. Therefore, identifying a protective chemical could be valuable and fascinating in this case. The purpose of this article was to bring together thorough review of studies on Ginkgo biloba to aid in the creation of ways for delivering its phytoconstituents to treat toxicants and radiation. This review gathered and evaluated studies on the defensive impact of Ginkgo biloba extract (GBE) against toxicities caused by toxic chemical agents (such as lead, cadmium, and aluminum), natural toxins (for example, lipopolysaccharide-induced toxicity and damage, gossypol, latadenes, and lotaustralin), and radiation (for example, gamma, ultra-violet, and radio-frequency radiation). According to this review, GBE has a considerable therapeutic effect by influencing specific pathophysiological targets. Furthermore, GBE has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic, and antigenotoxicity properties against various toxicities. These are due to flavone glycosides (primarily isorhamnetin, kaempferol, and quercetin) and terpene trilactones (ginkgolides A, B, C, and bilobalide) that aid GBEs' neutralizing effect against radiation and toxins by acting independently or synergistically" - See Ginkgo biloba at Amazon.com.
• Is your long-lasting makeup toxic? Study raises concerns about PFAS in cosmetics - Washington Post, 8/11/21 - "waterproof, sweatproof and long-wearing cosmetics — so popular at this time of year — contain higher levels of a potentially toxic class of thousands of chemicals called perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances or (PFAS) ... PFAS aren’t used only in cosmetics; they can be found in products such as nonstick cookware, waterproof clothing, carpet, and fast-food containers. “You are not just exposed in one place or one source, they are everywhere,” ... these chemicals don’t naturally degrade and are known to accumulate in the body as well as in our soil and water, making them a potential risk to consumer health and the environment ... The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has linked the chemicals to serious kidney, liver, immunological, developmental and reproductive issues. And, recently, it said that there is evidence that PFAS affect the antibody response to vaccines such as those for covid-19 ... They are added to make lotions, cosmetics and hair products more water-resistant, durable and spreadable. And small amounts not listed on ingredient labels can be found in many more products, acknowledges the Personal Care Products Council (PCPC)"
• How one of the oldest natural insecticides keeps mosquitoes away - Science Daily, 5/11/21 - "One of the oldest insecticides known, pyrethrum comes from the dried, crushed flowers of certain chrysanthemum species. Pyrethrum breaks down quickly in sunlight and isn't readily absorbed through the skin, so the insecticide has long been considered one of the safer options for use around children and pets ... What makes pyrethrum toxic to mosquitoes has been known for some time. It works by binding to tiny pores in the insects' nerve cells and paralyzing them on contact. But it has another property whose mode of action is more of a mystery. At lower concentrations it protects not by killing mosquitoes but by preventing them from getting close enough to land and bite in the first place" - See pyrethrum at Amazon.com.
• Protective effect of supplementation with Ginseng, Lilii Bulbus and Poria against PM 2 .5 in air pollution-induced cardiopulmonary damage among adults - Phytother Res 2020 Sep 6 - "This randomized, double-blinded and placebo-controlled trial among 120 healthy adults in Wuhan, China, was conducted to evaluate whether the supplementation of herbal product composed of Ginseng, Lilii Bulbus and Poria (GLP) which have been shown to have anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant activity offers protective effects on PM2.5 -induced damage to cardiopulmonary health ... Compared to the placebo group, the GLP group showed significant increased antioxidant biomarkers such as superoxide dismutase (SOD) and paraoxonase1 (PON1). What is more, interleukin-6 (IL-6), an inflammatory biomarker, was significantly decreased in the GLP group. In addition, nitric oxide and club cell secretory protein (CC16) were increased but heart rate was decreased in the GLP group. As for pulmonary function indicators, significantly increased fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) was observed in the GLP group. Taken together, we concluded that GLP supplementation is associated with decreased inflammatory biomarker and increased antioxidant biomarkers suggesting cardiopulmonary benefits against PM2.5 exposure among young adults in China" - See ginseng at Amazon.com and iHerb.
• Growing Evidence Links Air Pollution Exposure to Risk of Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementia - Medscape, 3/11/20 - "Alzheimer's disease and related dementia (ADRD) ... Within the context of the existing literature, the Younan et al. paper in this issue of Brain provides additional support for the hypothesis that higher exposure to PM2.5 is related to increased risk of ADRD and related outcomes, and suggests that this is mediated by observable changes to the grey matter. However, the implications of this investigation and the growing body of similar work on air pollution and late-life cognitive health go beyond whether air pollution is a modifiable risk factor for ADRD and related outcomes. As a class, environmental exposures represent an understudied set of potential risk factors for neurological conditions. Further consideration of the impact of an expanded set of exposures on the brain is warranted"
• New houseplant can clean your home's air - Science Daily, 12/19/18 - "some hazardous compounds are too small to be trapped in these filters. Small molecules like chloroform, which is present in small amounts in chlorinated water, or benzene, which is a component of gasoline, build up in our homes when we shower or boil water, or when we store cars or lawn mowers in attached garages. Both benzene and chloroform exposure have been linked to cancer ... Now researchers at the University of Washington have genetically modified a common houseplant -- pothos ivy -- to remove chloroform and benzene from the air around it. The modified plants express a protein, called 2E1, that transforms these compounds into molecules that the plants can then use to support their own growth" - I see pothos ivy sold online.  Here's a variety of pothos at Amazon that claims to clean the air.
• NASA’s List Of The 18 Best Air-Filtering Houseplants - shareably.net - "Luckily, there is a simple solution for cleaner air – house plants. They act as natural air filters, and they brighten up the room ... Chrysanthemum ... Spider Plant ... Cornstalk Dracaena ... Ficus ... Peace Lily ... Boston Fern ... Snake Plant ... Bamboo Palm ... Aloe Vera ... Dwarf Date Palm ... Chinese Evergreen ... Devil’s Ivy ... Flamingo Lily ... Lilyturf ... Broadleaf Lady Palm ... Barberton Daisy ... English Ivy ... Red-Edged Dracaena"
• Vitamin B an unlikely weapon in the war against pollution, new study suggests - CNN, 3/14/17 - "The experiment was then repeated, with each volunteer taking a B vitamin supplement daily -- made up of 2.5 mg of folic acid, 50 mg of vitamin B6, and 1 mg of vitamin B12 ... The researchers found that four weeks of B vitamin supplements reduced the damage of PM2.5 exposure by 28-76%"
• Dietary Supplementation with Olive Oil or Fish Oil and Vascular Effects of Concentrated Ambient Particulate Matter Exposure in Human Volunteers - Environ Health Perspect; DOI:10.1289/ehp.1408988 - "Exposure to ambient particulate matter (PM) induces endothelial dysfunction, a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Olive oil (OO) and fish oil (FO) supplements have beneficial effects on endothelial function ... particulate matter (PM). ... Forty-two participants (58 ± 1 years of age) received either 3 g/day of OO or FO, or no supplements (naive) for 4 weeks prior to undergoing 2-hr exposures to filtered air and concentrated ambient particulate matter ... Short-term exposure to CAP induced vascular endothelial dysfunction. OO supplementation attenuated CAP-induced reduction of FMD and changes in blood markers associated with vasoconstriction and fibrinolysis, suggesting that OO supplementation may be an efficacious intervention to protect against vascular effects of exposure to PM" - [Nutra USA]
• Coenzyme Q10 helps veterans battle gulf war illness symptoms - Science Daily, 11/3/14 - "Roughly one-third of the 700,000 United States troops who fought in the 1990-1991 Persian Gulf War have subsequently developed a distinct set of chronic health problems, dubbed Gulf War illness ... a high quality brand of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) -- a compound commonly sold as a dietary supplement -- provides health benefits to persons suffering from Gulf War illness symptoms ... Evidence instead links Gulf War illness to chemical exposures ... These chemicals can damage mitochondria, which generate the energy our cells need to do their jobs ... 80 percent of those who received 100mg of CoQ10 had improvement in physical function. The degree of improvement correlated to the degree in which CoQ10 levels in the blood increased ... Gulf War illness symptoms like headaches, fatigue with exertion, irritability, recall problems and muscle pain also improved" - See ubiquinol products at Amazon.com and MitoQ at Amazon.com.
• Induction of Human Breast Cell Carcinogenesis by Triclocarban and Intervention by Curcumin - Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2013 Aug 10 - "More than 85% of breast cancers are sporadic and attributable to long-term exposure to environmental carcinogens and co-carcinogens. To identify co-carcinogens with abilities to induce cellular pre-malignancy, we studied the activity of triclocarban (TCC), an antimicrobial agent commonly used in household and personal care products. Here, we demonstrated, for the first time, that chronic exposure to TCC at physiologically-achievable nanomolar concentrations resulted in progressive carcinogenesis of human breast cells from non-cancerous to pre-malignant ... Using TCC-induced transient and constitutive endpoints as targets will likely help identify non-cytotoxic preventive agents, such as curcumin, effective in suppressing TCC-induced cellular pre-malignancy" - See curcumin products at Amazon.com.
• Arecoline N-Oxide: Its Mutagenicity and Possible Role as Ultimate Carcinogen in Areca Oral Carcinogenesis - J Agric Food Chem. 2011 Mar 3 - "The areca nut is the most widely consumed psychoactive substance in Taiwan, India, and Southeast Asia. It is considered to be an environmental risk factor for the development of oral submucous fibrosis and cancer. Arecoline, the major alkaloid of areca nut, has been known to cause cytotoxicity and genotoxicity in various systems. However, the active compound accounting for arecoline-induced damage in normal human oral cells is still uncharacterized. The present study was undertaken to identify the active metabolite of arecoline that might induce damage in human oral tissues and cause mutagenicity in Salmonella typhimurium tester strains TA 100 and TA 98. It is interesting to find that the major metabolite of arecoline, arecoline N-oxide, is moderately mutagenic to these Salmonella tester strains. This mutagenicity was potently inhibited by sulfhydryl compounds, namely, glutathione, N-acetylcysteine, and cysteine, whereas methionine is inactive in this inhibition. The mutagenicity of arecoline N-oxide was strongly inhibited by the N-oxide reducing agent titanium trichloride. The possible role of arecoline N-oxide in the induction of oral carcinogenesis by areca nut chewing is discussed"
• HEPA filters reduce cardiovascular health risks associated with air pollution, study finds - Science Daily, 1/12/11 - "portable HEPA filters reduced the average concentrations of fine particulates inside homes by 60% and woodsmoke by 75%, and their use was associated with improved endothelial function (a 9.4% increase in reactive hyperemia index) and decreased inflammation (a 32.6% decrease in C-reactive protein)"
• Antioxidants Can Reduce The Toxic Effects Of Lead, Study Suggests - WebMD, 10/31/08 - "administering natural antioxidants can reduce the effects of lead poisoning in animals during the gestation and lactation periods"
• High Levels Of Toxic Metals Found In Herbal Medicine Products Sold Online - Science Daily, 8/27/08 - "Overall, 20.7 percent of Ayurvedic medicines contained detectable lead, mercury and/or arsenic. U.S. and Indian manufactured products were equally likely to contain toxic metals. Rasa shastra compared with non-rasa shastra medicines were more than twice as likely to contain metals and had higher concentrations of lead and mercury. Among products containing metals, 95 percent were sold by U.S. Web sites and 75 percent claimed Good Manufacturing Practices or testing for heavy metals. All metal-containing products exceeded one or more standards for acceptable daily intake of toxic metals"
• Fish Oil Prevents Potentially Deadly Heart Rate Variability - Science Daily, 12/15/05 - "In this randomized controlled trial, fish oil supplementation prevented the reduction in heart rate variability associated with the same-day exposure to indoor particulate matter" - See Mega Twin EPA at Amazon.com.
• Air Cleaner Dust-up - WashingtonPost.com, 10/4/05 - "Our air-cleaning tests show that the Ionic Breeze with OzoneGuard does a poor job of removing smoke, dust and pollen particles from the air when new and after 500 hours of continuous use"
• Best Way to Clear the Air? - Dr. Weil, 11/6/03 - "The health benefits of these negative ion machines are debatable because some may produce ozone as they operate ... Ozone is beneficial in the upper atmosphere where it protects the Earth from the damaging effects of ultraviolet light, but you don’t want it in your living room or sleeping area"
• Sunscreen: Dangerous Chemicals? - Dr. Weil, 7/17/03
• Is There Poison in Potatoes? - Dr. Weil, 5/15/03
• Michael Janson, M.D.: Newsletters - Dr. Janson, 6/02 - "Dietary supplements are critical to the treatment of metal overload. They not only promote excretion, but they decrease the damaging effects. Extra selenium and sulfur (in the form of methylsulfonyl methane, or MSM, 2 to 6 gms), may be essential in addition to food sources. Alpha lipoic acid (200 to 1000 mg) is both a sulfur source and an excellent antioxidant for the brain, protecting against degenerative brain disorders ... Vitamin C (2 to 6 gms) is not only an antioxidant, but it is also a metal chelator, binding with metals and removing them from the system and decreasing free-radical damage. Magnesium and calcium in food or supplements help to block toxic metal accumulation"
• In The Health News - Dr. Janson, 4/02 - "To reduce the consequences of pollution, and arterial spasms, take antioxidants and arterial relaxants, such as vitamins C and E, magnesium, ginkgo biloba, and arginine, and exercise regularly"
• Detoxification for the Body & Mind - Nutrition Science News, 2/00

News & Research:

• Are Your Clothes Dripping in ‘Forever Chemicals’? - WebMD, 4/4/23 - "The group points to research demonstrating that fabrics with that type of PFAS, called side-chain fluorinated polymers, emit volatile chemicals into the air and, when washed, into the water. “What you can expect is that a raincoat that has this surface treatment, over time, is releasing PFAS to the environment,” said Erika Schreder, Toxic-Free Future’s science director"
• California bill could ban the sale of Skittles, Hot Tamales, and more - Hill, 3/22/23 - "Introduced by Assemblymembers Jesse Gabriel and Buffy Wicks, AB 418 proposes that California stop manufacturing, selling, or distributing foods that contain Red Dye No. 3, Titanium Dioxide, Potassium Bromate, Brominated Vegetable Oil, or Propyl Paraben ... These chemicals can cause significant health problems like increased risk of cancer, damage to the immune system and behavioral issues in children, Gabriel’s office said in a news release"
• Common Chemical Linked to Parkinson’s Disease - WebMD, 3/21/23 - "The roots of Lindberg’s disease likely lie in a 4-year period when she was exposed to trichloroethylene (TCE), a common chemical that’s found in gun cleaners, cleaning products, and many other commercial products. According to a new paper by an international team of scientists, TCE may be associated with as much as a 500% increased risk for Parkinson’s disease."
• Male fertility crash accelerating worldwide: study - Hill, 11/15/22 - "The rate of decline since 2000 has been a striking, the study found, with an observed 2.64 percent fall each year in the number of sperm per milliliter of semen — more than twice as large of a decline as that observed since 1978, according to The Guardian ... These compounds — found in everything from personal care products to food packaging — have particularly dire impacts on reproductive function, Swan noted. She specifically called out phthalates and bisphenols (BPA), compounds used as linings in products like water bottles and takeout containers"
• Rainwater Unsafe to Drink Amid ‘Forever Chemicals’: Study - Medscape, 8/15/22 - "the levels of PFOA and PFOS in rainwater often “greatly exceed” U.S. guidelines for drinking water, as well as guidelines across Europe. Atmospheric spread has led to soil being “ubiquitously contaminated” across the globe and the safe “planetary boundary for chemical pollution being exceeded,”"
• PFAS 'Forever Chemicals' Are Linked With Liver Cancer - WebMD, 8/10/22 - "The strongest link was between PFOS and liver cancer. People with PFOS levels in the top 10% were 4.5 times more likely to develop liver cancer than those with the lowest levels"
• Exposure to 'forever chemicals' costs US billions in health costs - Science Daily, 7/26/22 - "The new work revolves around per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a group of over 4,700 humanmade chemicals that experts have detected for decades in the blood of millions of people. The chemicals are used, for example, in the production of water- and oil-resistant clothing, electronics, and nonstick cookware, and people are thought to ingest them as food comes into contact with packaging. The substances are believed to disrupt the function of hormones, signaling compounds that influence many bodily processes ... Among the findings, the investigation revealed that childhood obesity was the largest contributor to the overall economic toll of PFAS exposure, costing about $2.7 billion. Hypothyroidism in women, a condition in which the thyroid cannot release enough hormones into the bloodstream, was the next highest contributor at $1.26 billion ... The study investigators also expanded the scope of their economic estimates to include eight other conditions with preliminary links to PFAS exposure, including endometriosis, obesity in adults, and pneumonia in children. When such diseases were considered, the total costs reached as high as $63 billion"
• 3 Reasons to Avoid Farmed Salmon - Time, 7/21/22 - "This new fish is an industrialized imposter that risks our health and damages our planet. Farmed salmon are bred to grow fast in cages so crammed that they are rife with parasites and disease. The fish eat pellets of fishmeal, vegetables, and animal byproducts; they are doused regularly with pesticides and antibiotics"
• Prenatal exposure to chemicals in consumer and industrial products is associated with rising liver disease in children - Science Daily, 7/6/22 - "researchers measured 45 chemicals in the blood or urine of 1,108 pregnant women from 2003 to 2010. The chemicals included endocrine-disrupting chemicals such as PFAS, organochlorine and organophosphate pesticides, plasticizers (phenols, phthalates), PBDEs, and parabens. When the children reached the ages of 6 to 11 years old, scientists measured the levels of enzymes and cytokeratin-18 that indicate risk for liver disease in the children's blood"
• Toxic ‘forever chemicals’ found in Florida oysters - Hill, 7/7/22 - "When researchers from Florida International University recently tested for the chemicals in 156 oysters from Biscayne Bay, Marco Island, and Tampa Bay, they found detectable levels in every single oyster ... Because oysters are filter feeders, meaning they obtain food by filtering matter and organisms from water that passes through them, the species can reveal a lot about an ecosystem’s overall health ... The findings confirm the pollutants are in multiple water sources and have infiltrated the food chain. The chemicals have been found in human and animal blood and in the natural environment."
• EPA warns toxic ‘forever chemicals’ more dangerous than once thought - Washington Post, 6/15/22 - "Agency officials assessed two of the most common ones, known as PFOA and PFOS, in recent human health studies and announced Wednesday that lifetime exposure at staggeringly low levels of 0.004 and 0.02 parts per trillion, respectively, can compromise the immune and cardiovascular systems and are linked to decreased birth weights ... Those drinking-water concentrations represent “really sharp reductions” from previous health advisories set at 70 parts per trillion in 2016 ... The advisories’ levels are so low that they are difficult to detect with today’s technology ... ather than wait for the outcome of this peer review, EPA has announced new Advisories that are 3,000 to 17,000 times lower than those released by the Obama Administration in 2016 ... Already in the United States, manufacturers have largely replaced PFOA and PFOS with other fluorinated compounds. The EPA determined that two of those alternatives — dubbed GenX and PFBS — also are dangerous to ingest even at relatively low levels, according to a review of recent research on mice."
• Forever Chemicals' Linked to Liver Damage - Medscape, 5/4/22 - ""Meta-analyses of human studies found that higher levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) were significantly associated with exposure to three of the older chemicals — PFOA, PFOS, and PFNA"
• Endocrine-disrupting chemicals may impair bone health in male teens - Science Daily, 5/3/22 - "Endocrine-disrupting chemicals are chemicals or mixtures of chemicals that interfere with the way the body's hormones work. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are synthetic chemicals used in nonstick cookware, clothing and food packaging, and are increasingly being found in U.S. water supplies. Phthalates are used in personal care products, food processing and children's toys ... The researchers leveraged urine and blood samples from 453 boys and 395 girls from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and found higher levels of PFAS and phthalates may be associated with lower bone mineral density in adolescent males. The researchers did not find the same effect in girls"
• High levels of hazardous chemicals found in Canadian nail salons - Science Daily, 2/14/22 - "These chemicals have been associated with adverse health effects including neurological and reproductive effects, with some evidence that in utero exposure may be important" - Note: But is the U.S. any different?
• Cleanup on Aisle PFAS - Bulwark, 12/17/21 - "Although the original PFAS chemical used to make Teflon has been taken off the market, PFAS chemicals are widely used in a variety of ways: coated paper and cardboard packaging for fast-food takeouts; stain-resistant chemicals for furniture and carpets; water-repellent outdoor hiking clothing (like Gore-Tex); as a base in many personal care products and cosmetics; and firefighting foam ... Tap-water samples tested by the Environmental Working Group in 2020 from 44 sites in 31 states and Washington, D.C. found that only three had PFAS readings below EPA standard ... So PFAS is in our water. The key question we must then ask is this: “What is the provable danger?” This is where it gets tricky. Health concerns resulting from PFAS contamination are more speculative than certain. A recent Harvard University review of PFAS health-care issues came to the conclusion it could possibly be causing some increases in cancer, liver damage, decreased fertility, increased risk of asthma, and thyroid disease. But is the level of certainty sufficient to act upon?" - See reverse osmosis systems at Amazon.com.
• Dirty Air, Higher Dementia Risk? - WebMD, 8/6/21 - "an increase of 1 microgram per cubic meter of exposure corresponded to a 16% greater hazard of all-cause dementia"
• Exposure to pollutants, increased free-radical damage speeds up aging - Science Daily, 6/21/21 - "When we are exposed to a pollutant, such as radiation for cancer treatment, energy is transferred to the water in our body, breaking the water apart. This creates highly reactive molecules -- free radicals -- that will quickly interact with another molecule in order to gain electrons. When these free radicals interact with important biomolecules, such as a protein or DNA, it causes damage that can keep that biomolecule from working properly ... Some exposure to pollutants is unavoidable, but there are several lifestyle choices that increase exposure to pollution and thus increase free radicals in the body. Smoking, drinking and exposure to pesticides and other chemicals through occupational hazards all significantly increase free radicals"
• Several persistent chemicals found in fetal organs - Science Daily, 6/16/21 - "The researchers studied concentrations of 22 persistent organic pollutants (POPs). These are toxic chemicals that remain in the environment for long periods of time and accumulate in humans through food, drinking water and air particles ... the researchers examined samples of fetal fat tissue, liver, heart, lung and brain from 20 pregnancies that for various reasons had ended in stillbirth in the third trimester in 2015-2016. The researchers identified at least 15 of the 22 POPs in every organ. Four chemicals were found in all tissues in all fetuses. The most pervasive chemicals were: HCB, a pesticide previously used to protect food crops from fungi; ... DDE, a metabolite of DDT, an insect killer used in the mid-1900s; ... Variants of PCBs, chemicals formerly used in a range of electrical products ... Thirteen of the pregnancies also had data from an earlier study on PFAS (chemicals used in frying pans, food packaging and firefighting foam). By combining these data, the researchers were able to assess the proportion of chemicals in each type of tissue. While pesticides and PCBs were significantly overrepresented in fat tissue, more than half of the chemicals in the fetal lung, brain, liver and heart was due to PFAS"
• Toxic Chemicals Found in Many Cosmetics - Medscape, 6/15/21 - "Researchers found high fluorine levels in most of the waterproof mascara, liquid lipsticks, and foundations they tested, indicating the probable presence of what’s known as PFAS -- per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. Many of these chemicals were not included on the product labels, making it difficult for consumers to consciously avoid them ... The CDC says some of the potential health effects of PFAS exposure includes increased cholesterol levels, increased risk of kidney and testicular cancer, changes in liver enzymes, decreased vaccine response in children, and a higher risk of high blood pressure or preeclampsia in pregnant women ... PFAS are a large class of chemicals. In humans, exposure to some of these chemicals has been associated with impaired immune function, certain cancers, increased risks of diabetes, obesity and endocrine disruption ... They appear to be harmful to every major organ system in the human body"
• Rates of Parkinson’s disease are exploding. A common chemical may be to blame - Guardian, 4/7/21 (it just showed up on Facebook) - "researchers increasingly believe that one factor is environmental exposure to trichloroethylene (TCE), a chemical compound used in industrial degreasing, dry-cleaning and household products such as some shoe polishes and carpet cleaners"
• Senate bill would ban ‘forever chemicals’ in makeup, which new study shows are widespread and often not labeled - Washington Post, 6/15/21 - "Over the last three years, researchers tested 231 cosmetics products in North America for fluorine, an indicator of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. The study found fluorine in 56 percent of foundations and eye products, 48 percent of lip products and 47 percent of mascaras ... The researchers ran a more extensive PFAS test on 29 products and found the toxins in all of the them, with the highest concentrations in mascaras, lipsticks and foundations. But in only one case was a PFAS chemical listed among the ingredients ... Long-term exposures to PFAS have been associated with health problems that include certain cancers, infertility risks, thyroid disease and weakened immunity. A recent study in the journal PLOS One linked PFAS exposure to worse covid-19 outcomes. And because PFAS do not break down in the environment, they have become known as “forever chemicals.”" - Note: You watch.  They'll find the same problems with fabric softener.  Why people use it for a cheap perfume smell is beyond me.
• Even 'safe' ambient carbon monoxide levels may harm health, study finds - Science Daily, 4/13/21 - "even slight increases in ambient carbon monoxide levels from automobiles and other sources are associated with increased mortality ... Overall, a 1 mg/m³ increase in the average CO concentration of the previous day was associated with a 0.91% increase in daily total mortality, the study found. This suggests considerable public health benefits could be achieved by reducing ambient CO concentrations through stricter control of traffic emissions and other measures ... The U.S. National Ambient Air Quality Standard for ambient CO (approximately 7 mg/m³ for the daily average) was established in 1971 and has not been revisited for the past five decades. The same air quality guideline for CO has been applied in other regions such as Europe, whereas a lower value of 4 mg/m³ was established as China's air quality standard."
• Air pollution kills millions every year, like a ‘pandemic in slow motion’ - National Geographic, 3/16/21 - "Dirty air, his committee reported, affects nearly all the body’s essential systems. It may cause about 20 percent of all deaths from strokes and coronary artery disease, triggering heart attacks and arrhythmias, congestive heart failure and high blood pressure. It’s linked to lung, bladder, colon, kidney, and stomach cancers and to childhood leukemia. It harms kids’ cognitive development and raises older people’s risk of contracting dementia or dying of Parkinson’s disease. It’s been credibly tied to diabetes, obesity, osteoporosis, decreased fertility, miscarriage, mood disorders, sleep apnea—the list goes on ... Climate change and air pollution have the same cause and the same solution, but they play out on different time scales. One of the most striking things about air pollution is how quickly health improves when it clears. The economic shutdowns triggered by COVID-19 last year temporarily slowed the world’s carbon emissions, but the total amount of carbon in the atmosphere continued to rise, and the long-term threat from climate change got that much worse. In contrast, every incremental and local decline in pollutants such as PM2.5 or nitrogen dioxide translates immediately into fewer asthma attacks, heart attacks, and deaths"
• Strawberries, Spinach, Kale Top ‘Dirty Dozen’ List Again - WebMD, 3/17/21 - "Strawberries, spinach, and kale top this year's "Dirty Dozen" list, released annually by the Environmental Working Group as a shopper's guide to avoid pesticide in produce ... Nearly 70% of the non-organic fresh produce sold in the U.S. has residues of potentially harmful pesticides, the latest report found"
• Long-term exposure to low levels of air pollution increases risk of heart and lung disease - Science Daily, 2/22/21 - "Researchers examined hospitalization records for more than 63 million Medicare enrollees in the contiguous Unites States from 2000 to 2016 to assess how long-term exposure to air pollution impacts hospital admissions for specific cardiovascular and respiratory issues. The study measured three components of air pollution: fine particulate matter (PM2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and ozone (O3). Using hundreds of predictors, including meteorological values, satellite measurements and land use to estimate daily levels of pollutants, researchers calculated the study participants' exposure to the pollutants based upon their residential zip code ... Data also showed there were surges in hospital admissions for all of the health outcomes studied with each additional unit of increase in particulate matter. Specifically, stroke rates increased by 2,536 for each additional ug/m3 (micrograms per cubic meter of air) increase in fine particulate matter each year ... There was an increased risk of stroke and atrial fibrillation associated with long-term exposure to nitrogen dioxide"
• Air pollution poses risk to thinking skills in later life - Science Daily, 2/2/21 - "Findings showed exposure to air pollution in childhood had a small but detectable association with worse cognitive change between the ages of 11 and 70 years"
• Plastics pose threat to human health, report shows - Science Daily, 12/15/20 - "Plastics contain and leach hazardous chemicals, including endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) that threaten human health ... EDCs are chemicals that disturb the body's hormone systems and can cause cancer, diabetes, reproductive disorders, and neurological impairments of developing fetuses and children ... EDC exposure is a universal problem. Testing of human samples consistently shows nearly all people have EDCs in their bodies"
• Air Pollution Linked to Brain Amyloid Pathology - Medscape, 12/2/20 - "For the current study, the researchers analyzed data from the Imaging Dementia – Evidence for Amyloid Scanning (IDEAS) Study, which included more than 18,000 US participants with cognitive impairment who received an amyloid positron-emission tomography (PET) scan between 2016 and 2018 ... Results showed that those living in an area with increased air pollution, as determined using concentrations of predicted fine particulate matter (PM2.5), had a higher probability of a positive amyloid PET scan. This association was dose dependent and statistically significant after adjusting for demographic, lifestyle, and socioeconomic factors as well as medical comorbidities. The association was seen in both periods; the adjusted odds ratio was 1.10 in 2002–2003 and 1.15 in 2015–2016 ... Every unit increase in PM2.5 in 2002–2003 was associated with an increased probability of positive amyloid findings on PET of 0.5%. Every unit increase in PM2.5 in for the 2015–2016 period was associated with an increased probability of positive amyloid findings on PET of 0.8%"
• Air pollution spikes linked to lower test scores for Salt Lake County third graders - Science Daily, 12/1/20 - "more frequent peak air pollution exposure was associated with reduced math and English language arts (ELA) test scores for third graders in all primary public schools in Salt Lake County during the 2016-2017 year. The minimum peak pollution levels in this study are below what the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) determines are "safe" levels of PM2.5. The results stress the need for legislators to enact policies that reduce the number of peak pollution days, and to advocate for lower federal pollution standards"
• Air Pollution Linked to Brain Amyloid Pathology - Medscape, 12/2/20 - "For the current study, the researchers analyzed data from the Imaging Dementia – Evidence for Amyloid Scanning (IDEAS) Study, which included more than 18,000 US participants with cognitive impairment who received an amyloid positron-emission tomography (PET) scan between 2016 and 2018 ... Results showed that those living in an area with increased air pollution, as determined using concentrations of predicted fine particulate matter (PM2.5), had a higher probability of a positive amyloid PET scan. This association was dose dependent and statistically significant after adjusting for demographic, lifestyle, and socioeconomic factors as well as medical comorbidities. The association was seen in both periods; the adjusted odds ratio was 1.10 in 2002–2003 and 1.15 in 2015–2016 ... Every unit increase in PM2.5 in 2002–2003 was associated with an increased probability of positive amyloid findings on PET of 0.5%. Every unit increase in PM2.5 in for the 2015–2016 period was associated with an increased probability of positive amyloid findings on PET of 0.8%"
• Air pollution spikes linked to lower test scores for Salt Lake County third graders - Science Daily, 12/1/20 - "more frequent peak air pollution exposure was associated with reduced math and English language arts (ELA) test scores for third graders in all primary public schools in Salt Lake County during the 2016-2017 year. The minimum peak pollution levels in this study are below what the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) determines are "safe" levels of PM2.5. The results stress the need for legislators to enact policies that reduce the number of peak pollution days, and to advocate for lower federal pollution standards"
• Even 'Safe' Levels of Air Pollution Tied to Brain Shrinkage - Medscape, 11/23/20 - "AD pattern similarity (AD-PS) scores ... Longitudinal analysis of participants who completed the full 5-year study (n = 712; aged 77.4 ± 3.5 years) showed that each interquartile range increase in PM2.5 (2.82 μg/m3) was associated with a 24% increase in AD-PS score (hazard ratio, 1.24; 95% CI, 1.14 – 1.34) at the end of the 5 years."
• Drivers who keep their windows down are exposed to 80 percent more air pollution - Science Daily, 8/5/20 - "According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year and nine out of 10 people breathe air with high levels of pollutants ... a windows-open setting showed the highest exposure, followed by fan-on and recirculation. Pollutionexposure for windows-open during off-peak hours was 91 percent and 40 percent less than morning and evening peak hours, respectively. The study also found that the windows-open setting exposed car passengers to hotspots of air pollution for up to a third of the total travel length ... The study found that commuters who turn on the recirculation are exposed to around 80 percent less harmful particles than those who open their car windows. Car cabin filters were more effective in removing pollution than fine particles, suggesting that if new cars had more efficient filters, it could reduce the overall exposure of car commuters"
• Increased global mortality linked to arsenic exposure in rice-based diets - Science Daily, 8/4/20 - "there is a significant association between elevated cardiovascular mortality, recorded at a local authority level, and the consumption of inorganic arsenic bearing rice."
• Exposure to air pollution impairs cellular energy metabolism - Science Daily, 6/15/20 - "particulate matter exposure causes critical impairment in the metabolism of olfactory mucosal cells. These functions of mitochondria, the cellular organelles responsible for energy production, are disturbed by air pollutants. The researchers also identified the mitochondria-targeted NPTX1 gene, which has been shown previously to be associated with brain disorders, as a key driver of mitochondrial dysfunction upon particulate matter exposure"
• Association Between Exposure to Ambient Air Pollution and Thyroid Function in Korean Adults - J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2020 Jun 3 - "The annual average exposure to NO2 and CO was significantly associated with an elevated TSH and reduced FT4 concentration after adjusting for possible confounding factors (all p < 0.05). In men, in addition to these two pollutants, PM10 exposure was positively associated with TSH level (p = 0.03). Age-stratified analysis showed stronger effects of NO2 and CO exposure in older than in younger adults. Exposure to these air pollutants was related to serum TSH and FT4 concentrations in people with overweight or obesity but not in those of normal weight"
• High Serum Levels of 'Forever Chemicals' Tied to Earlier Menopause - Medscape, 6/4/20 - "PFAS have been widely used in many consumer and industrial products such as nonstick cookware, stain-repellent carpets, waterproof rain gear, microwave popcorn bags, and firefighting foam ... These have been dubbed "forever chemicals" because they do not degrade. Household water for an estimated 110 million Americans (one in three) may be contaminated with these chemicals, according to an Endocrine Society press release ... PFAS are everywhere. Once they enter the body, they don't break down and [they] build up over time"
• US Calls Ingredients in Some Ethanol-Based Hand Sanitizers Unsafe - Medscape, 5/1/20 - "The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on April 15 issued limits on certain chemicals permitted in alcohol-based hand sanitizer, updating temporary guidance it adopted last month as the health crisis deepened and more manufacturers registered to produce hand sanitizer ... Since then, the FDA has notified several fuel ethanol companies that their product does not meet safety standards, forcing them to halt production and cancel supply agreements ... In one case, the FDA said it had found significant levels of the carcinogen acetaldehyde in ethanol supplied by a company for use in hand sanitizer ... FDA has reviewed your ethanol data and determined that it is not acceptable as an ingredient under the Agency's temporary hand sanitizer policies" - See the write-up in my 3/18/20 newsletter about using 120 proof Vodka (Everclear at BevMo) with 1-ounce spray bottles from Amazon because of the concerns about it being absorbed into the bloodstream.
• Air pollution linked to dementia and cardiovascular disease - Science Daily, 3/30/20 - "Interestingly, we were able to establish harmful effects on human health at levels below current air pollution standards ... Our findings suggest air pollution does play a role in the development of dementia, and mainly through the intermediate step of cardiovascular disease and especially stroke"
• Air pollution impacts can be heart-stopping - Science Daily, 1/28/20 - "out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) ... more than 90 percent of OHCAs occurred at PM2.5 levels lower than the WHO guideline (and Australian standard level), a daily-average of 25 micrograms per cubic metre (?g/m3). As well, 98 percent of OHCAs happened at levels lower than the Japanese or American daily standard level of 35 ?g/m3 ... Our study supports recent evidence that there is no safe level of air pollution -- finding an increased risk of cardiac arrest despite air quality generally meeting the standards ... There are two main sources of PM2.5 worldwide: 1. Traffic/motor vehicles 2. Bushfires"
• Mortality costs of air pollution in US - Science Daily, 1/22/20 - "members of the most vulnerable group -- those with a life expectancy of less than one year -- are over 30 times more likely to die from pollution than the typical Medicare beneficiary ... By exploiting the daily variation in acute fine particulate pollution exposure driven by changes in wind direction, the researchers found significant effects of exposure on mortality, hospitalizations and medical spending ... The scholars also found that increases in particulate matter lead to more emergency room visits, hospitalizations and higher patient spending ... "Mortality is only one of many potential costs of air pollution," Molitor said. "The elderly who aren't dying may engage in other costly activities such as going to the hospital for preventive or emergency care. Those steps may help them avoid death, but it doesn't mean that pollution has no cost to their health or finances.""
• Living near major roads linked to risk of dementia, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and MS - Science Daily, 1/23/20 - "living less than 50 metres from a major road or less than 150 metres from a highway is associated with a higher risk of developing dementia, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and MS -- likely due to increased exposure to air pollution"
• Toxic ‘forever chemicals’ more common in tap water than thought, report says - National Geographic, 2/24/20 - "In tests of 44 different taps in 31 states, the EWG found that 43 exceeded a limit they deem safe by their own standards"
• Human exposure to aluminum linked to familial Alzheimer's disease - Science Daily, 1/21/20 - "Researchers found significant amounts of aluminum content in brain tissue from donors with familial AD. The study also found a high degree of co-location with the amyloid-beta protein, which leads to early onset of the disease ... The results were striking. The aluminum content of the brain tissue from donors with the genetic mutation was universally high, with 42% of tissues having a level considered pathologically significant, and the levels were significantly higher than those in the control set ... Either way, the new research confirms my resolve that within the normal lifespan of humans, there would not be any AD if there were no aluminum in the brain tissue. No aluminum, no AD"
• Pot-Using Drivers Still Impaired When High Fades - WebMD, 1/14/20 - "Compared to nonusers, heavy marijuana users had worse driving performance during the test. For example, they hit more simulated pedestrians, went over the speed limit more often, made fewer stops at red lights, and crossed the center line more often ... The researchers also found that the start of marijuana use before age 16 was associated with worse performance on the driving simulator."
• Air pollution in childhood linked to schizophrenia - Science Daily, 1/7/20 - "the higher the level of air pollution, the higher the risk of schizophrenia. For each 10 ?g/m3 (concentration of air pollution per cubic metre) increase in the daily average, the risk of schizophrenia increases by approximately twenty per cent. Children who are exposed to an average daily level above 25 ?g/m3 have an approx. sixty per cent greater risk of developing schizophrenia compared to those who are exposed to less than 10 ?g/m3"
• Air Pollution Exposure in Utero Tied to Childhood HbA1c Levels - Medscape, 1/11/20 - "air pollution causes a great deal of inflammation, and we know that other inflammatory exposures can affect organ development and function (such as brain, pancreas, liver, muscle and fat - all of which participate in blood sugar regulation) in ways that have long-lasting effects"
• Dramatic health benefits following air pollution reduction - Science Daily, 12/6/19 - "It looked for outcomes and time to achieve those outcomes in several settings, finding that the improvements in health were striking. Starting at week one of a ban on smoking in Ireland, for example, there was a 13 percent drop in all-cause mortality, a 26 percent reduction in ischemic heart disease, a 32 percent reduction in stroke, and a 38 percent reduction in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Interestingly, the greatest benefits in that case occurred among non-smokers." -  It's one reason we don't need to add pot to the list of problems.
• Permanent Hair Dyes and Chemical Straighteners May Be Linked to Breast Cancer, Study Says - Time, 12/4/19 - "Overall, using permanent dye was associated with a 9% higher risk of developing breast cancer, compared to non-use. But black women who used permanent dye had a 45% higher risk of breast cancer, compared to non-users, and those who used these products every eight weeks or more often had a 60% higher risk ... Black women were also far more likely to report using chemical straighteners—74% had, compared to 3% of white women—which were associated with an 18% higher risk of breast cancer in the study population as a whole"
• Chemicals in consumer products during early pregnancy related to lower IQ, especially in boys - Science Daily, 10/24/19 - "Scientists measured 26 chemicals in the blood and urine of 718 mothers during the first trimester of their pregnancies in the study of Swedish mothers and children, known as SELMA ... Researchers later followed up with the children at age 7 and found that those whose mothers had higher levels of the chemicals in their system during pregnancy had lower IQ scores -- particularly boys, whose scores were lower by two points. Within the mixture, bisphenol F (BPF), a BPA-replacement compound, made the highest contribution to lowering children's IQ, suggesting that BPF is not any safer for children than BPA ... The study found that other chemicals of concern in the mixture were the pesticide chloropyrifos; polyfluoroalkyl substances, which are found in cleaning products; triclosan, a chemical found in antibacterial soaps; and phthalates, which are found in soft polyvinyl chloride plastics and cosmetics. Many of the chemicals only stay in the body a short time, meaning that even a short-term exposure may be detrimental, so researchers believe this indicates that preventing exposures to pregnant women or women trying to become pregnant is critical to preventing neurological harm to children."
• Why You Should Always Wash New Clothes Before Wearing Them - Time, 7/23/19 - "Nedorost says that sweating and friction can cause disperse dye to leach out of clothing. Synthetic workout gear—the shiny, stretchy, water-repelling materials that are so popular nowadays—are often the culprit when she treats people for allergic contact dermatitis. “If a patient comes in and has a rash around the back of the neck and along their sides around their armpits, the first question I ask is what they wear when they work out,” she says ... Allergic rashes aren’t the only health issue associated with clothing chemicals. In a 2014 study, a group of researchers from Stockholm University in Sweden tested 31 clothing samples purchased at retail stores, and that were “diverse in color, material, brand, country of manufacture, and price, and intended for a broad market.” They found a type of chemical compound called “quinoline” (or one of its derivatives) in 29 of the 31 samples, and the levels of this chemical tended to be especially high in polyester garments. Quinoline is used in clothing dyes, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has classified it as a “possible human carcinogen” based on some studies linking it to “tumor-initiating activity” in mice—though the agency also states that no human studies have been conducted to assess the cancer-causing potential of quinoline."
• Are Paint Fumes a Health Concern? Here's What the Latest Science Says - Time, 7/5/19 - "water-based low- or zero-VOC paints—which are now easy to find—may be safer than older generations of pain. “However, paints may contain other chemicals such as binders, corrosion inhibitors and preservatives that may contribute to their toxicological properties,” she says. And research has found that even zero-VOC paints still emit chemical gasses ... So, even if you’re using these, Weisel says it’s a good idea to open windows and doors and turn on a fan. This can increase ventilation and carry away any potentially harmful fumes. Once paint has fully dried—something that happens more quickly in warm, dry conditions—the risk of inhaling harmful emissions is greatly reduced. “Airing a room out for a couple days is usually sufficient,” Weisel says ... The EPA also warns against storing paint in your home. Paint cans may release chemicals gases or fumes even if they’re closed, and so a basement or closet full of old paint cans is bad news. “If you’re following all these precautions, exposure should not be reaching a level that would cause a lot of concern,” Weisel says."
• Could a popular food ingredient raise the risk for diabetes and obesity? - Science Daily, 4/24/19 - "For this study, the researchers focused on propionate, a naturally occurring short-chain fatty acid that helps prevents mold from forming on foods. They first administered this short chain fatty acid to mice and found that it rapidly activated the sympathetic nervous system, which led to a surge in hormones, including glucagon, norepinephrine, and a newly discovered gluconeogenic hormone called fatty acid-binding protein 4 (FABP4). This in turn led the mice to produce more glucose from their liver cells, leading to hyperglycemia -- a defining trait of diabetes. Moreover, the researchers found that chronic treatment of mice with a dose of propionate that was equivalent to the amount typically consumed by humans led to significant weight gain in the mice, as well as insulin resistance ... people who consumed the meal containing propionate had significant increases in norepinephrine as well as increases in glucagon and FABP4 soon after eating the meal. The findings indicate that propionate may act as a "metabolic disruptor" that potentially increases the risk for diabetes and obesity in humans. The researchers noted that while propionate is generally recognized as safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, these new findings warrant further investigation into propionate and potential alternatives that could be used in food preparation"
• Researchers see health effects across generations from popular weed killer - Science Daily, 4/23/19 - "But writing in the journal Scientific Reports, the researchers say they saw "dramatic increases" in several pathologies affecting the second and third generations. The second generation had "significant increases" in testis, ovary and mammary gland diseases, as well as obesity. In third-generation males, the researchers saw a 30 percent increase in prostate disease -- three times that of a control population. The third generation of females had a 40 percent increase in kidney disease, or four times that of the controls ... More than one-third of the second-generation mothers had unsuccessful pregnancies, with most of those affected dying. Two out of five males and females in the third generation were obese ... Skinner and his colleagues call this phenomenon "generational toxicology" and they've seen it over the years in fungicides, pesticides, jet fuel, the plastics compound bisphenol A, the insect repellant DEET and the herbicide atrazine. At work are epigenetic changes that turn genes on and off, often because of environmental influences" - Note: Glyphosate is the one in Round-Up.

• Pesticide exposure contributes to faster ALS progression - Science Daily, 2/28/19 - "While exact causes of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) remain unknown, new research shows pesticides and other environmental pollutants advance the progression of the neurodegenerativedisease" - Note:  There is always some new guy in our neighborhood asking what to do about ants.  Most people recommend a specific exterminator.  My response is always 'Terro' which is made with borax because I worry about things like ALS and Parkinson's.  I put them the large size around the outside and inside of the house in the spring.  The ants bring it back to their nest and it kills the queen ant.

  • Letter of Recommendation: Terro Liquid Ant Bait - NYT, 12/31/15 - "But one thing seems to: Terro Liquid Ant Bait. This is not your usual trap — those black plastic ant yurts no self-respecting ant would ever enter. Terro comes in a plastic rectangle with two compartments, which together make up a minimalist slaughterhouse. One side is filled with a syrupy liquid, a sugar solution with borax. The other forms a small ramp leading into the solution"
  • Getting to the Bottom of Borax: Is it Safe or Not? - crunchybetty.com, 1/8/19 - "Not one single natural ingredient has me quite as verklempt as borax"
• Chemical added to consumer products impairs response to antibiotic treatment - Science Daily, 2/21/19 - "Triclosan exposure may inadvertently drive bacteria into a state in which they are able to tolerate normally lethal concentrations of antibiotics -- including those antibiotics that are commonly used to treat urinary tract infections (UTIs)"
• Even low levels of air pollution linked with serious changes in the heart, according to new UK research - Science Daily, 8/3/18 - "The team found a clear association between those who lived near loud, busy roads, and were exposed to nitrogen dioxide (NO2) or PM2.5 -- small particles of air pollution -- and the development of larger right and left ventricles in the heart. The ventricles are important pumping chambers in the heart and, although these participants were healthy and had no symptoms, similar heart remodelling is seen in the early stages of heart failure "
• Stores Urged to Pull Products With Deadly Chemical - WebMD, 3/29/18 - "methylene chloride has been killing workers and do-it-yourselfers for decades ... Wynne’s death was at least the third that has come to light since the EPA proposed banning the chemical. He was using the product Goof Off"
• In a surprising study, scientists say everyday chemicals now rival cars as a source of air pollution - Washington Post, 2/15/18 - "The authors argued that previous source apportionment studies have underestimated [volatile chemical product] emissions as sources of urban VOCs, as those studies did not include many species found in chemical products. Here, they constrained the emission inventory with both outdoor and indoor measurement data, as well as a more extensive chemical speciation than prior studies."
• Women who clean at home or work face increased lung function decline - Science Daily, 2/16/18 - "The study found that compared to women not engaged in cleaning: Forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1), or the amount of air a person can forcibly exhale in one second, declined 3.6 milliliters (ml)/year faster in women who cleaned at home and 3.9 ml/year faster in women who worked as cleaners ... Forced vital capacity (FVC), or the total amount of air a person can forcibly exhale, declined 4.3 ml/year faster in women who cleaned at home and 7.1 ml/year faster in women who worked as cleaners ... The authors found that the accelerated lung function decline in the women working as cleaners was "comparable to smoking somewhat less than 20 pack- years.""
• Air Pollution Contributes to More Than 20,000 Deaths a Year - NYT, 12/27/17 - "This amounts to more deaths per year than caused by AIDS"
• A better way to wash pesticides off apples - Science Daily, 10/25/17 - "The researchers applied two common pesticides -- the fungicide thiabendazole, which past research has shown can penetrate apple peels, and the insecticide phosmet -- to organic Gala apples. They then washed these apples with three different liquids: tap water, a 1 percent baking soda/water solution, and a U.S.-EPA-approved commercial bleach solution often used on produce. The baking soda solution was the most effective at reducing pesticides. After 12 and 15 minutes, 80 percent of the thiabendazole was removed, and 96 percent of the phosmet was removed, respectively"
• Health Problems from Common Chemicals Cost $340 Billion Per Year: Study - Time, 10/17/16 - "Diseases related to household chemicals cost $217 billion, or 1.28% of GDP, in Europe, compared to $340 billion, or 2.33% of GDP, in the U.S. These chemicals have been linked to obesity, intellectual disabilities, endometriosis, autism and heart disease"
• 5 Things Wrong With Your Deodorant - Time, 7/5/16 - "You wouldn’t swallow a spoonful of toxic cosmetic ingredients. But in some ways, smearing them under your arms in the form of deodorant or antiperspirant may be worse ... When you eat something, it’s broken down by your liver and digestive system ... But when you put something on your skin, there are times when it can enter your bloodstream without being metabolized"
• Study: Up to 90 percent of cancers not ‘bad luck,’ but due to lifestyle choices, environment - Washington Post, 12/17/15 - "Led by a team at Stony Brook, the research used four approaches, including stem cell experiments, computer modeling and molecular "fingerprinting" of cancers, to conclude that 70 to 90 percent of your lifetime cancer risk could be due to external factors"
• WHO adds one of world’s most popular weedkillers to list linked to cancer - The Washington Post, 6/23/15 - "The addition of 2,4-D to the WHO group's cancer list is especially significant because it is so widespread in our environment today. The chemical, made by Dow AgroSciences and contained in products such as Ortho Weed B Gone Max and Bayer Advanced Lawn Weed & Crabgrass Killer, has been found on golf courses, in parks and other grassy areas and in waters used by recreational swimmers and treated for aquatic weeds. Low-level residue has also been documented in crops and drinking water"
• Women Put an Average of 168 Chemicals on Their Bodies Each Day, Consumer Group Says - ABC News - ABC News, 4/27/15 - "From shampoo to lotion, the use of personal care products is widespread, however, there are very few protections in place to ensure their safety ... women use an average of 12 products a day, containing 168 different chemicals. Men use fewer products, but still put 85 chemicals on their bodies. Teens on average use 17 personal care products a day, according to the group, which tested 20 teens' blood and urine seven years ago to find out which chemicals from these products were ending up in their bodies. They said they found 16 hormone-altering chemicals, including parabens and phthalates" - See chemical free shampoos at Amazon.com, chemical free cosmetics at Amazon.com, chemical free makeup at Amazon.com, chemical free soap at Amazon.com, chemical free moisturizer at Amazon.com and chemical free detergent at Amazon.com.
• Chemical Phthalates in Food Packaging Linked With Lower IQ in Kids - NBC News.com, 12/10/14 - "While the study doesn't show for sure that the phthalates damaged the kids' brains during development, the researchers say they did everything they could to filter out other possible effects and they still found the link between some — but not all — of the phthalates and IQ ... Phthalates (pronounced "THAL-ates") are a group of chemical compounds used to keep other products flexible. They make plastics bendier and are used almost everywhere, from plastic toys and bottles to vinyl flooring and dryer sheets ... The children of moms with the highest levels of those two chemicals scored on average four points lower on the IQ test than kids whose mothers had the lowest levels" - Note:  I never did understand the point of dryer sheets.  It's hard to get around many chemicals but do people really need those dryer sheets?  Plus they make your clothes spell like cheap perfume.  Personally I don't even use the dryer, I use three dryer racks.
• The 'dirty' side of soap: Triclosan, a common antimicrobial in personal hygiene products, causes liver fibrosis and cancer in mice - Science Daily, 11/17/14 - "Triclosan is an antimicrobial commonly found in soaps, shampoos, toothpastes and many other household items ... triclosan disrupted liver integrity and compromised liver function in mouse models. Mice exposed to triclosan for six months (roughly equivalent to 18 human years) were more susceptible to chemical-induced liver tumors. Their tumors were also larger and more frequent than in mice not exposed to triclosan ... Triclosan is perhaps the most ubiquitous consumer antibacterial. Studies have found traces in 97 percent of breast milk samples from lactating women and in the urine of nearly 75 percent of people tested. Triclosan is also common in the environment: It is one of the seven most frequently detected compounds in streams across the United States"
• Toxins in the environment might make you older than your years - Science Daily, 5/28/14 - "Why are some 75-year-olds downright spry while others can barely get around? ... Part of the explanation, say researchers writing in the Cell Press journal Trends in Molecular Medicine on May 28, is differences from one person to the next in exposure to harmful substances in the environment, chemicals such as benzene, cigarette smoke, and even stress"
• Brain may never fully recover from exposure to paint, glue, degreasers - Science Daily, 5/12/14 - "The study involved 2,143 retirees from the French national utility company. Researchers assessed the workers' lifetime exposure to chlorinated solvents, petroleum solvents, and benzene, including the timing of last exposure and lifetime dosage ... people with high, recent exposure to solvents were at greatest risk for memory and thinking deficits. For example, those with high, recent exposure to chlorinated solvents were 65 percent more likely to have impaired scores on tests of memory and visual attention and task switching than those who were not exposed to solvents ... The people with high exposure within the last 12 to 30 years showed impairment in almost all areas of memory and thinking, including those not usually associated with solvent exposure ... But what was really striking was that we also saw some cognitive problems in those who had been highly exposed much longer ago, up to 50 years before testing" - See paint masks at Amazon.com.
• Improving air quality in NYC would boost children's future earnings by increasing IQ - Science Daily, 5/8/14 - "polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), a family of chemicals created by burning fossil fuels ... Gains in IQ related to the hypothetical 25% reduction in PAH translated to increased lifetime earnings of $215 million ... The researchers previously reported that children born to nonsmoking mothers exposed to higher levels of airborne PAH during pregnancy had IQs three points lower at age 5 than children whose mothers had lower PAH exposures. The IQ reduction was modest but in the range of that seen with low-level lead ... IQ affects academic performance and earnings" - Note:  Sometimes it just seems like priorities are out of sync.  On the one hand you've got marijuana showing an eight point decrease in IQ and the media seems to be supporting it and that's nearly three times what pollution causes and it's difficult to get rid of cars, heating, manufacturing, etc.  If a three point decline in IQ results in $215 million decrease in lifetime earnings, then an eight point decrease in IQ would interpolate to a $573 million decrease in lifetime earnings assuming it was linear.
• In lab tests, the antimicrobial ingredient triclosan spurs growth of breast cancer cells - Science Daily, 4/23/14 - "hormonal imbalances seem to play a role in the development of breast cancer ... endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), which are compounds that act like hormones ... two EDCs -- triclosan, an antimicrobial ingredient in many products, including soaps, cosmetics and cutting boards; and octylphenol, which is in some paints, pesticides and plastics -- have accumulated in the environment. Additionally, triclosan is reportedly in the urine of an estimated 75 percent of Americans ... both agents interfered with genes involved with breast cancer cell growth, resulting in more cancer cells. Mice that were exposed to the two compounds had larger and denser breast cancer tumors than the control group"
• An answer to the perennial question: Is it safe to pee in the pool? - Science Daily, 3/26/14 - "as people swim, splash, play -- and pee -- in the pool, chlorine mixes with sweat and urine and makes other substances. Two of these compounds, including trichloramine (NCl3) and cyanogen chloride (CNCl), are ubiquitous in swimming pools. The first one is associated with lung problems, and the second one can also affect the lungs, as well as the heart and central nervous system"
• Antibacterial agent boosts toothpaste effectiveness - Science Daily, 1/10/14 - "We are very confident that adding triclosan and copolymer to a fluoride toothpaste will lead to additional benefits, in terms of less plaque, inflammation, bleeding, and tooth decay" - Note:  You've got to be kidding me about putting triclosan in toothpaste.  I don't  even trust it in soap.  See:
  • Is hand sanitizer toxic? - CNN, 11/16/13 - "the main concern with hand sanitizers is triclosan, which is the main antibacterial ingredient in nonalcoholic hand sanitizers ... Triclosan-containing products don't provide any disease protection beyond what you get from washing with soap and water ... Research has shown that triclosan can disrupt the endocrine system, amplifying testosterone. In animal studies, it reduced muscle strength. It may also harm the immune system ... When you expose bacteria to triclosan, it can elicit antibiotic resistance ... The main concern with triclosan, however, is that it doesn't protect against viruses or fungi ... Colds are caused by viruses, not bacteria ... Hand sanitizers that are 60% alcohol are good at killing bacterial pathogens ... They can also kill some viruses, but not all of them -- such as the noroviruses that can cause cruise-ship outbreaks"
  • Chemical widely used in antibacterial hand soaps may impair muscle function - Science Daily, 8/13/12 - "Triclosan is found in virtually everyone's home and is pervasive in the environment ... Triclosan is commonly found in antibacterial personal-care products such as hand soaps as well as deodorants, mouthwashes, toothpaste, bedding, clothes, carpets, toys and trash bags ... Anesthetized mice had up to a 25-percent reduction in heart function measures within 20 minutes of exposure to the chemical ... We were surprised by the large degree to which muscle activity was impaired in very different organisms and in both cardiac and skeletal muscle"
• Poison lips? Troubling levels of toxic metals found in cosmetics - Science Daily, 5/2/13 - "Using acceptable daily intakes derived from this study, average use of some lipsticks and lip glosses would result in excessive exposure to chromium, a carcinogen linked to stomach tumors. High use of these makeup products could result in potential overexposure to aluminum, cadmium and manganese as well. Over time, exposure to high concentrations of manganese has been linked to toxicity in the nervous system"
• Proximity to coal-tar-sealed pavement raises risk of cancer, study finds - Science Daily, 3/28/13 - "The increased cancer risk associated with coal-tar-sealed asphalt (CSA) likely affects a large number of people in the U.S. Our results indicate that the presence of coal-tar-based pavement sealants is associated with significant increases in estimated excess lifetime cancer risk for nearby residents ... Exposure to these compounds in settled house dust is a particularly important source of risk for children younger than six years of age, as they are expected to ingest this material at higher rates"
• Hidden dangers in fragrances - Fox News Video, 1/15/13 - It's a five minute video on the hidden dangers of fragrances in things like laundry soap.  It's something that's been one of my pet peeves for a long time.  I just bought some Costco dishwater soap and not only does it make the kitchen smell bad for the next 24 hours but it gives me a headache yet Costco thinks they are doing you a favor with that cheap smell.
• Many flame retardants in house dust at unsafe levels - Science Daily, 11/28/12 - "Forty-four flame retardant chemicals were detected and 36 were found in at least 50% of the samples, sometimes at levels of health concern. The flame retardants found in house dust are in furniture, textiles, electronics, and other products and include hormone disruptors, carcinogens, and chemicals with unknown safety profiles ... This study complements a separate study, also being published in Environmental Science & Technology on Nov. 28, that found many potentially problematic flame retardants in couches ... When one toxic flame retardant is phased out, it's being replaced by another chemical we either know is dangerous or suspect may be"
• Potentially toxic flame retardants found in many US couches - Science Daily, 11/28/12 - "Tris was phased out from use in baby pajamas back in 1977 because of its health risks, but it still showed up in 41 percent of the couch foam samples we tested ... analyzed 102 polyurethane foam samples from couches purchased for home use in the United States between 1985 and 2010 ... In addition to finding Tris, the tests revealed that 17 percent of the foam samples contained the flame-retardant pentaBDE, which is banned in 172 countries and 12 U.S. states and was voluntarily phased out by U.S manufacturers in 2005 ... PentaBDEs are long-lasting chemicals that over time migrate into the environment and accumulate in living organisms. Studies show they can disrupt endocrine activity and affect thyroid regulation and brain development. Early exposure to them has been linked to low birth weight, lowered IQ and impaired motor and behavioral development in children"
• Certain jobs linked to increased breast cancer risk - Science Daily, 11/19/12 - "across all sectors, women in jobs with potentially high exposures to carcinogens and endocrine disrupters had an elevated breast cancer risk. Sectors with increased risk included agriculture, bar/gambling, automotive plastics manufacturing, food canning and metal-working. Importantly, premenopausal breast cancer risk was highest in the automotive plastics and food canning industries"
• Are Common Chemicals Affecting Your Fertility? - WebMD, 11/14/12 - "These chemicals, called persistent organochlorine pollutants, may persist in the environment for decades. Some, such as persistent lipophilic organochlorine pollutants, accumulate in fatty tissues in animals, while perfluorochemicals or PFCs are used in clothing, furniture, adhesives, food packaging, nonstick cooking surfaces, and electrical wire insulation ... The new study shows that men and women with high levels of these chemicals in their blood took longer to conceive than couples with lower levels"
• Possible association between cardiovascular disease, chemical exposure, study suggests - Science Daily, 9/3/12 - "PFOA (widely used in the manufacture of products such as lubricants, polishes, paper and textile coatings, and food packaging) is detectable in the blood of more than 98 percent of the U.S.population ... Compared with the reference level of PFOA in quartile 1, the multivariable odds ratio among participants in quartile 4 was 2.01 for CVD and 1.78 for PAD" - [Abstract] - They left out a few:
  • Household chemical linked to heart disease - CNN.com, 9/3/12 - "such as some food packaging, carpets, paint, and nonstick cookware"
• Chemical widely used in antibacterial hand soaps may impair muscle function - Science Daily, 8/13/12 - "Triclosan is found in virtually everyone's home and is pervasive in the environment ... Triclosan is commonly found in antibacterial personal-care products such as hand soaps as well as deodorants, mouthwashes, toothpaste, bedding, clothes, carpets, toys and trash bags ... Anesthetized mice had up to a 25-percent reduction in heart function measures within 20 minutes of exposure to the chemical ... We were surprised by the large degree to which muscle activity was impaired in very different organisms and in both cardiac and skeletal muscle"
• Chemicals in personal care products -- phthalates -- may increase risk of diabetes in women - Science Daily, 7/13/12 - "Phthalates are endocrine disrupting chemicals that are commonly found in personal care products such as moisturizers, nail polishes, soaps, hair sprays and perfumes. They are also used in adhesives, electronics, toys and a variety of other products ... women with higher levels of phthalates in their urine were more likely to have diabetes. Specifically:  Women who had the highest levels of the chemicals mono-benzyl phthalate and mono-isobutyl phthalate had almost twice the risk of diabetes compared to women with the lowest levels of those chemicals ... Women with higher than median levels of the chemical mono-(3-carboxypropyl) phthalate had approximately a 60 percent increased risk of diabetes ... Women with moderately high levels of the chemicals mono-n-butyl phthalate and di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate had approximately a 70 percent increased risk of diabetes"
• Air pollution linked to chronic heart disease - Science Daily, 6/5/12 - "Compared to patients who lived in areas with the lowest recorded levels of pollution, those in the most polluted environment were 43 percent more likely to have a second heart attack or suffer congestive heart failure and 46 percent more likely to suffer a stroke. The study also found that patients exposed to air pollution were 35 percent more likely to die in the almost 20 year period following their first heart attack than those who were exposed to lower levels of pollution"
• Flame Retardant Found in Some Common Foods - WebMD. 5/31/12 - "The levels we found are lower than what the government agencies currently think are dangerous ... But those levels were determined one chemical at a time ... Fifteen of the 36 samples, or 42%, had detectable levels of HBCDs"
• Phthalates in PVC floors taken up by the body in infants - Science Daily, 5/23/12 - "Phthalates are a group of chemical compounds that occur in construction materials and a great number of common consumer goods such as toys, cleaning solvents, packaging, etc. Phthalates are suspected of disrupting hormones and may be related to several chronic diseases in children, like asthma and allergies, as shown in earlier studies. Flooring materials using softened PVC contain phthalates and have previously been shown to be a significant source of phthalates in indoor dust ... The levels of certain phthalates (MBzP, a BBzP metabolite) proved to be higher in the urine of babies that had PVC materials on their bedroom floor. The levels of another phthalate metabolite related to DEHP were lower in two-month-old children if they were exclusively breastfed, with no supplements ... Earlier studies from the current group have shown that PVC flooring can be tied to the occurrence of phthalates in indoor dust, and that exposure for BBzP in indoor dust could be associated with allergic conditions in children"
• U.S. Lowers Cutoff for Lead Poisoning in Young Kids - US News and World Report, 5/16/12 - "The new standard announced Wednesday means that hundreds of thousands more youngsters could be diagnosed with high levels of lead" - Note:  It's just one more example of why I worry about the guidelines of anything the government comes up with such as minimum requirements for nutrition.
• Prenatal Pesticide Exposure May Harm Kids' Brains - WebMD, 4/30/12 - "Compared to children with low prenatal exposure, those with high exposure to the pesticide chlorpyrifos had abnormalities in the cortex (the outer area of the brain) ... The cortex helps govern intelligence, personality, muscle movement, and other tasks ... In 2001, the U.S. EPA banned the residential use of chlorpyrifos. It still allows it on crops. It can also be sprayed in public places such as golf courses ... Since the pesticide was registered by the EPA in 1965, its use has become common in more than 50 crops, according to Dow. Among them are citrus fruits, apples, soybeans, sweet corn, and peanuts ... Wash produce well before eating, she says. Buying organic produce is a good idea"
• High levels of phthalates can lead to greater risk for type-2 diabetes - Science Daily, 4/12/12 - "There is a connection between phthalates found in cosmetics and plastics and the risk of developing diabetes among seniors. Even at a modest increase in circulating phthalate levels, the risk of diabetes is doubled ... Most people come into daily contact with phthalates as they are used a softening agents in plastics and as carriers of perfumes in cosmetics and self-care products"
• Effects of environmental toxicants reach down through generations - Science Daily, 3/2/12 - "variety of environmental toxicants can have negative effects on not just an exposed animal but the next three generations of its offspring ... While Skinner's earlier research has shown similar effects from a pesticide and fungicide, this is the first to show a greater variety of toxicants -- including jet fuel, dioxin, plastics and the pesticides DEET and permethrin -- promoting epigenetic disease across generations"
• Organic food sweetener may be a hidden source of dietary arsenic - Science Daily, 2/16/12 - "Of the 17 toddler milk formulas tested, only two had listed organic brown rice syrup as the primary ingredient. These two formulas, one dairy-based and one soy-based, were extremely high in arsenic, more than 20 times greater than the other formulas. The amount of inorganic arsenic, the most toxic form, averaged 8.6 ppb for the dairy based formula and 21.4 ppb for the soy formula"
• Glass half empty: Is your tap water safe? - MSNBC, 2/15/12 - "Barium, chromium, copper, lead, nitrate, and other chemicals, as well as E. coli (E. coli!?), have been detected over the past year ... Antibiotics, hormones, a cancer drug, a chemical found in gasoline, antiseizure medication...research shows that hundreds of unregulated contaminants may be flowing from my tap ... a reverse-osmosis system filters out many EPA-regulated contaminants; and an ultraviolet filter kills bacteria and other microorganisms" - See water distillers at Amazon.com.
• Lipsticks, Perfumes May Be Hazardous to Health - ABC News, 2/14/12 - "400 lipsticks on the market tested positive for lead, according to the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a coalition that advocates for safer cosmetics and hygiene products ... Maybelline Color Sensation by L’Oreal USA was the worst-offending lipstick of the group tested ... There are no FDA standards in regulating the amount of chemicals in products ... Seventy-five percent of the time, fragrances contain phthalates, a known-carcinogen that causes reproductive issues in the body"
• First link between potentially toxic PFCs in office air and in office workers' blood - Science Daily, 1/18/12 - "the indoor air in offices is an important source of worker exposure to potentially toxic substances released by carpeting, furniture, paint and other items ... PFCs, used in water-repellent coatings on carpet and furniture, may have adverse effects on human health. The substances are widespread in the environment and in humans around the world. Scientists know that potential sources of exposure include food, water, indoor air, indoor dust and direct contact with PFC-containing objects ... They found concentrations of a PFC called fluorotelomer alcohol (FTOH) in office air that were 3-5 times higher than those reported in previous studies of household air"
• Are Fears That Deodorant Causes Breast Cancer Unfounded? - WebMD, 1/11/12 - "It has to do with certain underarm products that contain preservatives called parabens. These chemicals can act like the hormone estrogen in the body ... Parabens such as methylparaben, ethylparaben, propylparaben, butylparaben, isopropylparaben, and isobutylparaben are also found in makeup, moisturizers, and hair care and shaving products ... The new study included 40 women with breast cancer who chose to have a mastectomy. Researchers looked at four samples of breast tissue from each woman ... Fully 99% of the tissue samples had evidence of at least one paraben, and 60% showed evidence of five ... The study suggests that if there is a relationship between parabens and breast cancer, it may be a complex one"
• The Mercury Myth: How Much Mercury Do CFLs Actually Contain? - Txchnologist, 10/5/11 - "CFLs do contain mercury, but in quantities so small that breaking one exposes you, in most cases, to less mercury than eating tuna fish"
• Link shown between environmental toxicants and atherosclerosis - Science Daily, 10/11/11 - "Environmental toxicants such as dioxins, PCBs, and pesticides can pose a risk for cardiovascular disease ... The current study measured the circulating levels of the above group of compounds in about 1,000 Swedes living in Uppsala ... The findings show a clear connection between increasing levels of environmental toxicants and atherosclerosis"
• City cyclists are at increased risk from lung injury from inhaled soot, study finds - Science Daily, 9/25/11 - "cyclists inhale more black carbon than pedestrians, which may cause damage to the lungs ... The combustion of fossil fuels results in the generation of large numbers of inhalable particles of soot (black carbon). There is increasing evidence that inhalation of black carbon particles is associated with a wide range of health effects -- including heart attacks and reduced lung function ... in this small sample, cyclists have 2.3-times more black carbon in their lungs when compared with pedestrians"
• Scented laundry products emit hazardous chemicals through dryer vents - Science Daily, 8/24/11 - "air vented from machines using the top-selling scented liquid laundry detergent and scented dryer sheet contains hazardous chemicals, including two that are classified as carcinogens ... This is an interesting source of pollution because emissions from dryer vents are essentially unregulated and unmonitored ... Analysis of the captured gases found more than 25 volatile organic compounds, including seven hazardous air pollutants, coming out of the vents. Of those, two chemicals -- acetaldehyde and benzene -- are classified by the Environmental Protection Agency as carcinogens, for which the agency has established no safe exposure level" - Note:  All scented products have been one of my pet peeves. It’s been shown that they enter the bloodstream. I keep thinking of an old CNN segment where they tested a CNN reporter and found numerous chemicals in his blood.  Why go out of your way to add to that plus have that cheap smell.  I don’t get it.  As far as fabric softeners, I’d like to see a placebo test because I doubt if anyone could tell a difference.  I see it as a gimmick.
• High levels of potentially toxic flame retardants in California pregnant women - Science Daily, 8/10/11 - "the flame retardant chemicals, known as polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), have been widely used in furniture foam, plastics, carpets, consumer electronics, wire insulation, and other products since the 1970s. Although California banned manufacture and import of certain PBDEs in 2004, human exposure continues from old products, house dust, food, and other sources. Studies suggest that PBDE exposure during pregnancy may disrupt thyroid function, with adverse effects on normal development of the fetus's brain that persist throughout life, and also have adverse effects on the mother ... In their study of 25 second-trimester pregnant women in California, the researchers found the highest-ever levels of certain PBDEs among pregnant women worldwide. The high exposure most likely was the unintended consequence of California's furniture flammability standards, which manufacturers have met since 1975 by adding PBDE's to foam in upholstered furniture"
• First measurements of harmful haloacetic acids in urine of swimmers and pool workers - Science Daily, 7/27/11 - "elevated levels of HAAs in municipal drinking water supplies may be linked to birth defects and a higher incidence of some cancers ... Gallego and Cardador measured HAA levels in the urine of 49 volunteers who swam in or worked around an indoor and outdoor pool. "The results showed that HAAs appeared 20-30 minutes after exposure and were eliminated [from the body] within three hours," they note. Over 90 percent of the exposures probably occurred as a result of swallowing pool water. Far fewer HAAs were inhaled or taken in through the skin. Children were more likely than adults to have a high concentration of HAAs after swimming and swimmers accumulated HAAs almost four times as fast as people working around the pool"
• Cancer-causing mineral found in U.S. road gravel: Erionite in roads may increase risk of mesothelioma - Science Daily, 7/25/11
• Heavy metal: Titanium implant safety under scrutiny - Science Daily, 7/25/11 - "Titanium implants are routinely used for bone fractures as well as dental work. It has recently been shown that titanium-based implants both corrode and degrade, generating metallic debris. There is some concern over the increased concentrations of circulating metal-degradation products derived from these implants, and their potential harmful biological effects over a period of time, including hepatic injury and renal lesions"
• Mercury vapor released from broken compact fluorescent light bulbs can exceed safe exposure levels for humans, study finds - Science Daily, 7/6/11 - "Once broken, a compact fluorescent light bulb continuously releases mercury vapor into the air for weeks to months, and the total amount can exceed safe human exposure levels in a poorly ventilated room"
• Hair dye use and risk of bladder cancer in the new england bladder cancer study - Int J Cancer. 2011 Jun 15 - "Women who used permanent dyes and had a college degree, a marker of socioeconomic status, had an increased risk of bladder cancer (OR=3.3, 95% CI: 1.2, 8.9). Among these women, we found an increased risk of bladder cancer among exclusive users of permanent hair dyes who had NAT2 slow acetylation phenotype (OR=7.3, 95% CI: 1.6, 32.6) compared to never users of dye with NAT2 rapid/intermediate acetylation phenotype. While we found no relation between hair dye use and bladder cancer risk in women overall, we detected evidence of associations and gene-environment interaction with permanent hair dye use; however, this was limited to educated women" - Note:  France wants to ban Actos because of two studies showing a 22% and 40% increase in bladder cancer yet hair dye can cause a 330% to 730% increase in bladder cancer.  Maybe they should change their priorities but then again banning hair die would probably cause riots.
• Apples Top 12 Foods With Most Pesticide - WebMD, 6/13/11 - "worst overall pesticide scores: 1.Apples 2.Celery 3.Strawberries 4.Peaches 5.Spinach 6.Nectarines (imported) 7.Grapes (imported) 8.Sweet bell peppers 9.Potatoes 10.Blueberries (domestic) 11.Lettuce 12.Kale/collard greens"
• Eight substances added to U.S. Report on Carcinogens, including formaldehyde, may increase cancer risk - Science Daily, 6/10/11 - "formaldehyde are at increased risk for certain types of rare cancers, including nasopharyngeal (the nasopharnyx is the upper part of the throat behind the nose), sinonasal, as well as a specific cancer of the white blood cells known as myeloid leukemia. Formaldehyde is a colorless, flammable, strong-smelling chemical that is widely used to make resins for household items, such as composite wood products, paper product coatings, plastics, synthetic fibers, and textile finishes. Formaldehyde is also commonly used as a preservative in medical laboratories, mortuaries, and some consumer products, including some hair straightening products ... The largest use of general purpose glass wool is for home and building insulation, which appears to be less durable and less biopersistent, and thus less likely to cause cancer in humans ... Styrene is a synthetic chemical used worldwide in the manufacture of products such as rubber, plastic, insulation, fiberglass, pipes, automobile parts, food containers, and carpet backing. People may be exposed to styrene by breathing indoor air that has styrene vapors from building materials, tobacco smoke, and other products. The greatest exposure to styrene in the general population is through cigarette smoking"
• High risk of Parkinson's disease for people exposed to pesticides near workplace: Pesticide ziram implicated as possible cause for disease - Science Daily, 5/26/11 - "a follow-up study adds two new twists. Once again the researchers returned to California's fertile Central Valley, and for the first time have implicated a third pesticide, ziram, in the pathology of Parkinson's disease. Second, instead of looking just at whether people lived near fields that were sprayed, they looked at where people worked, including teachers, firefighters and clerks who worked near, but not in, the fields ... They found that the combined exposure to ziram, maneb and paraquat near any workplace increased the risk of Parkinson's disease (PD) threefold, while combined exposure to ziram and paraquat alone was associated with an 80 percent increase in risk"
• Chlorine and childhood cancer - Science Daily, 5/25/11 - "A significant positive association between the risk of childhood leukemia and levels of chlorine-containing chemicals in the atmosphere has been found by researchers in Portugal ... potential emissions from paper-related industry, forest fires, pesticides manufacturing, heavy chemical industry and fossil fuel power stations may lead to higher levels of chlorine-containing carcinogens in the air ... lichens have been used as accurate biomarkers of pollution levels since the 1970s. Lichens are excellent biomonitors because they depend largely on atmospheric depositions for their nutrient supply, thus showing elemental compositions which reflect the gaseous, dissolved and/or particulate elements in the atmosphere, the team explains"
• Prenatal pesticide exposure tied to lower IQ in children, study finds - Science Daily, 4/21/11 - "every tenfold increase in measures of organophosphates detected during a mother's pregnancy corresponded to a 5.5 point drop in overall IQ scores in the 7-year-olds. Children in the study with the highest levels of prenatal pesticide exposure scored seven points lower on a standardized measure of intelligence compared with children who had the lowest levels of exposure"
• Espresso makers: Coffee in capsules contains more furan than the rest - Science Daily, 4/13/11 - "Coffee made in espresso makers, above all that made from capsules, contains more furan -- a toxic, carcinogenic compound -- than that made in traditional drip coffee makers, although the levels are still within safe health limits ... The reason for these higher levels is due to the fact that hermetically-sealed capsules prevent furan, which is highly volatile, from being released, while the coffee makers used to brew this coffee use hot water at higher pressures"
• Vehicle pollution significantly damages mouse brain - Science Daily, 4/7/11 - "after short-term exposure to vehicle pollution, mice showed significant brain damage -- including signs associated with memory loss and Alzheimer's disease ... The mind-numbing toxin is not an exhaust gas, but a mix of tiny particles from burning of fossil fuel and weathering of car parts and pavement ... The freeway particles measured between a few dozen to 200 nanometers -- roughly one-thousandth the width ... You can't see them, but they are inhaled and have an effect on brain neurons that raises the possibility of long-term brain health consequences of freeway air ... Even an all-electric car culture would not solve the problem on its own ... It would certainly sharply decrease the local concentration of nanoparticles, but then at present electrical generation still depends upon other combustion processes -- coal -- that in a larger environment contribute nanoparticles anyway"
• Exposure to chemicals in environment associated with onset of early menopause - Science Daily, 3/23/11 - "In this study of 25,957 women aged 18 to 65 years, researchers ascertained menopausal status of participants and then measured their serum concentration levels of PFCs and estradiol. They found that there was an association between PFC exposure, decreased estradiol and early menopause in women over age 42. There was also an inverse association between PFC levels and estradiol in women of child bearing age but this association was not statistically significant"
• Sperm quality and counts worsening in Finland - Science Daily, 3/3/11 - "A new study published in the International Journal of Andrology reveals that semen quality has significantly deteriorated during the last ten years in Finland, a country that previously was a region with high sperm counts. At the same time, the incidence of testis cancer in the Finnish population showed a remarkable increase, following the worrying trends observed in several countries in Europe and the Americas ... The underlying cause for these simultaneously occurring adverse trends remains unknown. However, the rapid change strongly points to environmental reasons. Endocrine disrupting compounds acting during development have been hypothesized to be a cause"
• Two pesticides -- rotenone and paraquat -- linked to Parkinson's disease, study suggests - Science Daily, 2/14/11 - "People who used either pesticide developed Parkinson's disease approximately 2.5 times more often than non-users"
• Common insecticide used in homes associated with delayed mental development of young children - Science Daily, 2/10/11 - "When the EPA phased out the widespread residential use of chlorpyrifos and other organophosphorus (OP) insecticides in 2000-2001 because of risks to child neurodevelopment, these compounds were largely replaced with pyrethroid insecticides ... scientists of the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health found a significant association between piperonyl butoxide (PBO), a common additive in pyrethroid formulations, measured in personal air collected during the third trimester of pregnancy, and delayed mental development at 36 months ... While the results demonstrate that a significant prenatal exposure to permethrin in personal air and/or plasma was not associated with performance scores for the Bayley Mental Developmental Index or the Psychomotor Developmental Index at 36 months, children who were more highly exposed to PBO in personal air samples (≥4.34 ng/m3) scored 3.9 points lower on the Mental Developmental Index than those with lower exposures ... This drop in IQ points is similar to that observed in response to lead exposure"
• 99% of pregnant women in US test positive for multiple chemicals including banned ones, study suggests - Science Daily, 1/14/11
• Study finds toxic chemicals in pregnant womens' bodies - USATODAY.com, 1/13/11 - "These chemicals include certain pesticides, flame retardants, PFCs used in non-stick cookware, phthalates (in many fragrances and plastics), pollution from car exhaust, perchlorate (in rocket fuel) and PCBs, toxic industrial chemicals banned in 1979 that persist in the environment ... BPA — an estrogen-like ingredient in plastic found in 96% of pregnant women — affects the development of the brain, prostate and behavior in children exposed both before and after birth. Lead and mercury are known to cause brain damage ... some of these chemicals may act together to cause more damage than they would alone"
• How studded winter tires may damage public health, as well as pavement - Science Daily, 1/5/11 - "studded tires grind away at the road surface, generating the kind of dust particles believed to contribute to heart and respiratory disease when inhaled into the lungs ... In the new research, the scientists pinpointed specific changes in proteins in cells related to the road dust exposure. Dust exposure resulted in significant increases in three proteins associated with increased inflammation and decreased levels of seven proteins, including some involved in fighting inflammation and maintaining normal metabolism"
• Dangerous chemicals in food wrappers likely migrating to humans - Science Daily, 11/8/10 - "PAPs are applied as greaseproofing agents to paper food contact packaging such as fast food wrappers and microwave popcorn bags ... We found the concentrations of PFOA from PAP metabolism to be significant and concluded that the metabolism of PAPs could be a major source of human exposure to PFOA, as well as other PFCAs ... In this study we clearly demonstrate that the current use of PAPs in food contact applications does result in human exposure to PFCAs, including PFOA. We cannot tell whether PAPs are the sole source of human PFOA exposure or even the most important, but we can say unequivocally that PAPs are a source and the evidence from this study suggests this could be significant"
• Tap Water’s Lead Levels Rise in New York City Homes - NYTimes.com, 11/4/10 - "New York City health and environmental officials on Thursday advised residents to run their tap water for at least 30 seconds before drinking or cooking with it after testing showed a rise in the percentage of homes with elevated levels of lead ... about 14 percent — exceeded allowable lead levels"
• Air pollution linked to breast cancer, study suggests - Science Daily, 10/6/10 - "We found a link between post-menopausal breast cancer and exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2), which is a 'marker' for traffic-related air pollution ... Across Montreal, levels of NO2 varied between 5 ppb to over 30 ppb. We found that risk increased by about 25 per cent with every increase of NO2 of five parts per billion. Another way of saying this is that women living in the areas with the highest levels of pollution were almost twice as likely to develop breast cancer as those living in the least polluted areas" - SUVs!!!
• Chemicals in indoor swimming pools may increase cancer risk - Science Daily, 9/13/10 - "Swimming in indoor chlorinated pools may induce genotoxicity (DNA damage that may lead to cancer) as well as respiratory effects, but the positive health effects of swimming can be maintained by reducing pool levels of the chemicals behind these potential health risks"
• Widely used chemicals linked to ADHD in children - Science Daily, 7/20/10 - "PFCs are highly stable compounds used in industrial and commercial products like stain-resistance coatings, food packaging, and fire-fighting foams. In a 2003-2004 survey, NHANES examined 2,094 blood samples taken from the U.S. population and found more than 98 percent of the sample had detectable serum levels of PFCs, according to the study. Once absorbed into the body, it can take years for some types of PFCs to be partially eliminated ... children with this outcome tend to have higher levels of PFCs in their blood." Because the PFC measurements were collected at the same time as the parental report of ADHD diagnosis, Hoffman said it is unknown whether children with ADHD engage in behavior leading to increased PFC exposure or if higher serum PFC levels in children result in ADHD"
• Do cleaning products cause breast cancer? - Science Daily, 7/20/10 - "Women who reported the highest combined cleaning product use had a doubled risk of breast cancer compared to those with the lowest reported use. Use of air fresheners and products for mold and mildew control were associated with increased risk. To our knowledge, this is the first published report on cleaning product use and risk of breast cancer"
• Painters at significantly increased risk of bladder cancer, study finds - Science Daily, 7/19/10 - "Painters are at significantly increased risk of developing bladder cancer ... plasterers, glaziers, wallpaper hangers, artists and decorators were classified as "painters" in some studies"
• Early-life exposure to BPA may affect testis function in adulthood - Science Daily, 6/21/10 - "Exposure to environmental levels of the industrial chemical bisphenol A, or BPA, in the womb and early life may cause long-lasting harm to testicular function"
• Women with polycystic ovary syndrome have higher BPA blood levels, study finds - Science Daily, 6/21/10 - "Excessive secretion of androgens -- masculinization-promoting hormones -- occurs in PCOS. The syndrome raises the risk of infertility, obesity, Type 2 diabetes and heart disease ... Blood levels of BPA, compared with those of controls, were nearly 60 percent higher in lean women with PCOS and more than 30 percent higher in obese women with the syndrome ... Additionally, as the BPA blood level increased, so did the concentrations of the male sex hormone testosterone and androstenedione, a steroid hormone that converts to testosterone"
• Most cans of food contain controversial BPA - MSNBC, 6/9/10 - "BPA, or bisphenol A, is ubiquitous. Simply put, just about anything you eat that comes out of a can — from Campbell's Chicken Soup and SpaghettiOs to Diet Coke and BumbleBee Tuna — contains the same exact chemical ... The exposure to BPA from canned food "is far more extensive" than from plastic bottles, said Shanna Swan, a professor and researcher at the University of Rochester in New York. "It's particularly concerning when it's lining infant formula cans.""
• Increasing BPA levels in urine associated with worsening male sexual function, study finds - Science Daily, 5/26/10 - "Increasing urine BPA level is associated with decreased sexual desire, more difficulty having an erection, lower ejaculation strength and lower level of overall satisfaction with sex life" - See stainless steel water bottles at Amazon.com.
• Bisphenol A and other endocrine-disrupting chemicals pose cancer risk, study suggests - Science Daily, 5/25/10 - "endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) .. ample evidence already supports changing public health and environmental policies to protect the public from exposure to EDCs ... The strength and breadth of existing research on the negative effects of EDCs, including bisphenol A, warrants immediate action to reduce EDC exposure, particularly among the developing fetus and women of reproductive age"
• Canned Food May Expose People to BPA - WebMD, 5/18/10 - "A study conducted by a coalition of consumer and food safety groups found detectable levels of BPA in 46 of 50 grocery store cans tested. The results suggest BPA routinely leaches from can linings into food ... The highest BPA level detected was 1,140 parts per billion, found in a can of Del Monte French Style Green Beans"
• Does Perfume Have Hidden Health Risks? - WebMD, 5/12/10 - "The fragrance mixture itself can be comprised of dozens, even hundreds, of individual chemicals, and those don't have to be listed on the label"
• Environmental Cancer Risk 'Grossly Underestimated'? - WebMD, 5/6/10 - "The Panel urges you most strongly to use the power of your office to remove the carcinogens and other toxins from our food, water, and air that needlessly increase health care costs, cripple our nation's productivity, and devastate American lives ... The presidential panel says this greatly underestimates the problem because it does not fully account for synergistic interactions between environmental contaminants, an increasing number and amount of pollutants, and the fact that all avoidable causes of cancer are not known ... Remove shoes before entering the house ... Filter home tap or well water. Prefer filtered water to commercially bottled water ... Store and carry water in stainless steel, glass, or BPA- and phthalate-free containers ..."
• Lung Cancer Risk in Painters: A Meta-Analysis - Medscape, 4/21/10 - "Although there was not enough information in the studies provided to assess the association of lung cancer with specific chemical agents encountered in painting, the robustness of the estimates in the subgroup analyses (by sex, region, study design, and controlling for smoking and other occupational exposures) and the stronger associations seen in specific subgroups (by duration of exposure) support the conclusion that occupational exposures in painters are causally associated with the risk of lung cancer. Because several million people are employed as painters worldwide and because lung cancer is the most common cancer in painters, even a modest increase in the relative risk is remarkable"
• FDA Reviewing Antibacterial Chemical Widely Used in Soaps and Body Washes - Medscape, 4.12.10 - "In animal studies, triclosan has been found to interfere with hormones crucial for normal brain development and function and reproductive system development and function"
• The Perils of Plastic - Environmental Toxins - Time Magazine, 4/1/10 - "The levels observed are considered well below the federal safety threshold of 50 micrograms per kg of body weight per day. But that recommendation was made 22 years ago, and in the time since, scientists have learned more about the effects of even a bit of BPA. In 1998, Patricia Hunt, a geneticist at Washington State University, found that female mice dosed with BPA had serious reproductive problems, including defective eggs. More recently, she published a study showing that the offspring of mice exposed to BPA while pregnant can end up with corrupted eggs, a situation that leads to trouble for their offspring ... As a synthetic estrogen, BPA can mimic hormones, those powerful chemicals, like testosterone and adrenaline, that run the body. Tiny amounts of hormones produce immense biological and behavioral changes" -See Stainless Steel Water Bottles at Amazon.com.
• EPA: Bisphenol A Is a 'Chemical Concern' - WebMD, 3/31/10 - "Some experts are concerned that exposure to BPA and its weak estrogen-like effects during critical periods of human development may be associated with a wide range of health problems, including behavioral effects, reproductive problems, cancer, heart disease, and diabetes" -See Stainless Steel Water Bottles at Amazon.com.
• Diesel exhaust associated with lethargy in offspring - Science Daily, 3/23/10 - "The researchers speculate that certain components, such as ultrafine particles, in the diesel exhaust may be translocated into the offspring of mice, disturbing the normal timetable of development in offspring and leading to the behavioral and physiological abnormalities seen in this study. Alternatively, or additionally, diesel exhaust exposure may affect the mother's behavior toward the pups after birth, which could also cause lethargy and altered brain chemistry"
• Why BPA leached from 'safe' plastics may damage health of female offspring - Science Daily, 2/25/10 - "Here's more evidence that "safe" plastics are not as safe as once presumed: New research published online in The FASEB Journal suggests that exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA) during pregnancy leads to epigenetic changes that may cause permanent reproduction problems for female offspring. BPA, a common component of plastics used to contain food, is a type of estrogen that is ubiquitous in the environment"
• BPA Not Linked With Ill Effects in 2 Studies - WebMD, 2/19/10
• Dry Cleaning Chemical 'Likely' Causes Cancer - WebMD, 2/9/10 - "PERC is a chemical known as perchloroethylene or tetrachloroethylene. It's the solvent used by about 85% of U.S. dry cleaners ... In 2008, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) suggested that PERC be classified as a "likely human carcinogen." Moreover, the EPA found that PERC's most dangerous noncancer toxicity is brain and nervous system damage -- and set safe exposure levels well below levels that cause such damage"
• FDA on BPA: 'Some Concern,' No Ban - WebMD, 1/15/10
• BPA May Be Linked to Heart Disease Risk - WebMD, 1/12/10 - "Nearly everyone in the U.S. carries the plastics chemical BPA in their bodies ... high BPA levels were linked to a higher risk of heart disease, diabetes, and elevated liver enzymes"
• Toxic goo tracked from parking lots into homes - MSNBC, 1/11/10 - "Chemicals in a cancer-causing substance used to seal pavement, parking lots and driveways across the U.S. are showing up at alarming levels in dust in homes, prompting concerns about the potential health effects of long-term exposure" - Note:  Another good reason to be a no shoes house.
• Small amounts of lead may damage children's kidneys - Science Daily, 1/11/10
• Common plastics chemicals -- phthalates -- linked to ADHD symptoms - Science Daily, 11/19/09 - "Researchers found a significant positive association between phthalate exposure and ADHD, meaning that the higher the concentration of phthalate metabolites in the urine, the worse the ADHD symptoms and/or test scores"
• Phthalate exposure linked to less-masculine play by boys - Science Daily, 11/16/09
• Study: High Bisphenol A ( BPA) Linked to Sex Problems in Men - Science Daily, 11/11/09 - "Compared to the unexposed factory workers in the study, BPA-exposed workers were four times more likely to report erectile dysfunction, low sexual desire, and less than optimal satisfaction with their sex lives. They were seven times more likely to report problems with ejaculation ... BPA has been used for more than three decades to make plastic bottles and other products shatter resistant and clear. It is also used in the lining of many canned foods and a wide range of other commercial goods"
• On-the-job Pesticide Exposure Associated With Parkinson's Disease - Science Daily, 9/14/09 - "Among the patients with Parkinson's disease, 44 (8.5 percent) reported pesticide exposure compared with 27 (5.3 percent) of controls, such that occupational pesticide exposure was associated with an increased risk of the disease"
• Daily Bathroom Showers May Deliver Face Full Of Pathogens, Says Study - Science Daily, 9/14/09 - "increases in pulmonary infections in the United States in recent decades from so-called "non-tuberculosis" mycobacteria species like M. avium may be linked to people taking more showers and fewer baths ... Water spurting from showerheads can distribute pathogen-filled droplets that suspend themselves in the air and can easily be inhaled into the deepest parts of the lungs ... Symptoms of pulmonary disease caused by M. avium can include tiredness, a persistent, dry cough, shortness of breath, weakness and "generally feeling bad," ... mmune-compromised people like pregnant women, the elderly and those who are fighting off other diseases are more prone to experience such symptoms ... plastic showerheads appear to "load up" with more pathogen-enriched biofilms, metal showerheads may be a good alternative"
• Homes Pollute: Linked To 50 Percent More Water Pollution Than Previously Believed - Science Daily, 8/19/09 - "scientists are reporting some unsettling news about homes in the residential areas of California. The typical house there — and probably elsewhere in the country — is an alarming and probably underestimated source of water pollution ... current models may underestimate the amount of pollution contributed by homes by up to 50 percent ... Pollutants detected in outdoor runoff included ant-control pesticide products"
• Popular Insect Repellent Deet Is Neurotoxic - Science Daily, 8/4/09 - "The active ingredient in many insect repellents, deet, has been found to be toxic to the central nervous system"
• Parkinson's Disease Associated With Pesticide Exposure In French Farm Workers - Science Daily, 6/5/09 - "PD patients had been exposed to pesticides through their work more frequently and for a greater number of years/hours than those without PD. Among the three main classes of pesticides (insecticides, herbicides, fungicides), researchers found the largest difference for insecticides: men who had used insecticides had a two-fold increase in the risk of PD"
• BPA, Chemical Used To Make Plastics, Found To Leach From Polycarbonate Drinking Bottles Into Humans - Science Daily, 5/21/09 - "The study is the first to show that drinking from polycarbonate bottles increased the level of urinary BPA, and thus suggests that drinking containers made with BPA release the chemical into the liquid that people drink in sufficient amounts to increase the level of BPA excreted in human urine"
• Pesticide Exposure Found To Increase Risk Of Parkinson's Disease - Science Daily, 4/22/09 - "In a new epidemiological study of Central Valley residents who have been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, researchers found that years of exposure to the combination of these two pesticides increased the risk of Parkinson's by 75 percent. Further, for people 60 years old or younger diagnosed with Parkinson's, earlier exposure had increased their risk for the disease by as much as four- to six-fold"
• Air Pollution Dangerous, but Deadly? - WebMD, 3/11/09 - "the risk of dying from respiratory problems is more than 30% greater in metropolitan areas with the highest ozone concentrations than areas where ozone levels were the lowest ... ozone at ground level is produced when exhaust from cars, power plants, and other sources reacts chemically in sunlight ... ground-level ozone can irritate breathing, decrease lung function, inflame airways, and worsen lung conditions such as asthma and emphysema"
• Bisphenol A May Linger in Body - WebMD, 1/28/09 - "Now there's evidence that BPA might be in our water as well as in our food, and that it lingers in our fat tissues ... people with higher urinary BPA levels have more medical disorders. Another intriguing study from 2008 showed that BPA -- at normal levels of exposure -- disrupts a hormone involved in insulin sensitivity and diabetes. And a 2007 study showed that obese people are much more likely to suffer insulin resistance if they have high fat levels of organic pollutants ... Imagine if what we think is caused by obesity is actually caused by persistent organics in the fat of obese people ... If they don't have the organics, they don't have the diabetes. That would be huge"
• Mercury in Some High Fructose Corn Syrup? - WebMD, 1/27/09 - "we found detectable mercury in 17 of 55 samples, or around 31%"
• Life Expectancy Up, Thanks to Cleaner Air - WebMD, 1/21/09 - "Americans were living 2.72 years longer, on average, at the end of a two-decade study period. Up to five months of that was because of reduced air pollution"
• Declining Male Fertility Linked To Water Pollution - Science Daily, 1/18/09 - "The study identified a new group of chemicals that act as ‘anti-androgens’. This means that they inhibit the function of the male hormone, testosterone, reducing male fertility. Some of these are contained in medicines, including cancer treatments, pharmaceutical treatments, and pesticides used in agriculture. The research suggests that when they get into the water system, these chemicals may play a pivotal role in causing feminising effects in male fish" - See water distillers at Amazon.com.
• Hotel, Restaurant And Carpentry Trades Are Among Professions Posing Highest Risks For Cancer Of The Esophagus - Science Daily, 12/17/08 - "For the squamous cell variety, a significant increase in risk was detected among those who worked in the hotel and restaurant trade, mining (stone cutters) and wood-working workshops. With the adenocarcinoma type, the risk rose among those working as carpenters or animal handlers ...The study revealed a significant risk of squamous cell cancer resulting from exposure to ionising radiation, and for adenocarcinoma from serious exposure to volatile sulphur and lead compounds. Exposure to other substances such as asbestos could also triple the overall risk of oesophageal cancer, depending upon the level of exposure"
• Mould Toxins More Prevalent And Hazardous Than Thought - Science Daily, 12/9/08 - "toxins produced by mould are more potent than was previously thought. It has now been shown, for instance, that mould toxins (mycotoxins) not only directly kill cells but can also affect immune cells in a way that increases the risk of allergies. Even incredibly tiny amounts of these toxins can do this, as little as a few picograms (a picogram is one millionth of a millionth of a gram)"
• Hazardous Levels Of Metal Ions Found In Many Commercial Table Wines, Study Suggests - Science Daily, 10/29/08 - "An analysis of reported levels of metals in wines from sixteen different countries found that only those from Argentina, Brazil and Italy did not pose a potential health risk owing to metals"
• How Toxic Environmental Chemical DBT Affects The Immune System - Science Daily, 10/29/08
• Higher Urinary Levels Of Commonly Used Plastic Compound, BPA, Linked To Cardiovascular Disease, Diabetes - Science Daily, 9/16/08 - "Higher levels of urinary Bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical compound commonly used in plastic packaging for food and beverages, is associated with cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and liver-enzyme abnormalities ... Widespread and continuous exposure to BPA, primarily through food but also through drinking water, dental sealants, dermal exposure, and inhalation of household dusts, is evident from the presence of detectable levels of BPA in more than 90 percent of the U.S. population ... participants in the highest BPA concentration quartile had nearly three times the odds of cardiovascular disease compared with those in the lowest quartile. Similarly, those in the highest BPA concentration quartile had 2.4 times the odds of diabetes compared with those in the lowest quartile ... higher BPA concentrations were associated with clinically abnormal concentrations for three liver enzymes"
• Rice bran contains high arsenic levels, study - Nutra USA, 8/26/08 - "rice bran and rice bran solubles contain inorganic arsenic levels of around 1mg/kg dry weight, which is around 10-20 times the concentration found in bulk grain ... The tests were conducted on four bran solubles, one defatted bran, one riceo-ex and three bran products ... Out of the bran solubles, testing found the highest inorganic arsenic level of 0.86mg/kg in a sample from Holistic Enterprises, Santa Ana, USA. A sample from NutraCea, USA was found to contain 0.82mg/kg. A sample from Pure Planet Products, Long Beach, CA, USA, contained 0.71mg/kg and one from Integris, RiSO Triene, USA, contained 0.61mg/kg ... The rice bran products tested were from: General Dietary, UK & Eire; The Barry Farm, Ohio, USA; and Tsuno Rice Fine Chemicals Co, Japan. They contained levels of 0.48, 0.64 and 1.65mg/kg respectively ... The defatted bran and the riceo-ex products were again sourced from Japan’s Tsuno Rice, and contained 1.16 and 1.88mg/kg respectively" - That doesn't help me out much.  I've been getting the Tinkyada brown rice noodles at Henry's.
• Burning incense linked to respiratory cancers - MSNBC, 8/25/08 - "Constant users were 80 percent more likely to develop disease"
• Moisturizers Up Skin Cancer in Mice - WebMD, 8/14/08 - "Five days a week, for 17 weeks, the researchers rubbed moisturizer into the animals' skin. The result: ... Dermabase increased the total number of tumors by 69% ... Dermovan increased the total number of tumors by 95% ... Eucerin increased the total number of tumors by 24% ... Vanicream increased the total number of tumors by 58%"
• Air Pollution May Hurt the Heart - WebMD, 8/13/08 - "Air pollution -- even at levels deemed "acceptable" by the Environmental Protection Agency -- leads to short- and long-term injury to the heart and blood vessels, increases rates of heart disease-related hospitalizations, and can even cause death"
• Fragrances May Emit Potential Toxins - WebMD, 7/25/08
• Long-term Pesticide Exposure May Increase Risk Of Diabetes - Science Daily, 6/4/08 - "Licensed pesticide applicators who used chlorinated pesticides on more than 100 days in their lifetime were at greater risk of diabetes, according to researchers from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The associations between specific pesticides and incident diabetes ranged from a 20 percent to a 200 percent increase in risk"
• Even Low Levels Of Air Pollution May Pose Stroke Risk - Science Daily, 5/29/08 - "Although the magnitude of elevated risk of stroke/TIA due to PM2.5 exposure was relatively small, the vast majority of the public is exposed to ambient air pollution at the levels observed in this community or greater every day, suggesting a potentially large public health impact" - SUVs!!!
• Male Painters And Decorators Exposed To Fertility Damaging Chemicals, Study Shows - Science Daily, 5/23/08 - "Men working as painters and decorators who are exposed to glycol ethers are more likely to have poor semen quality"
• Baby Shampoo Awash in Chemicals? - WebMD, 2/4/08 - "the strong association between use of the baby products and higher phthalate levels suggests that the products may be an important source of exposure ... We don't know the long-term health effects of (phthalate) exposure, but if parents are concerned they need to decrease their exposure to these products" - I worry about stuff like that so much that I use vodka instead of deodorant on my arm pits after showering to kill the bacteria.  It might sound weird but it seems to work.  I can get a full day out of a shirt instead of half a day. There was a segment on CNN where they tested one of the anchormen and found a huge about of chemicals in his blood.  They claimed it was probably from the studio makeup.  He even joked that it might be grounds for a lawsuit against CNN. - Ben
• Carbon Monoxide May Cause Long-lasting Heart Damage - Science Daily, 1/29/08
• Studies Link Other Ills to Mercury, Too - New York Times, 1/23/08 - "evaluated more than 100 patients who had vague, unexplained symptoms. Of them, 89 percent had mercury in their blood that exceeded the level considered acceptable by the Environmental Protection Agency ... The symptoms included memory lapses, hair loss, fatigue, sleeplessness, tremors, headaches, muscle and joint pain, trouble thinking, gastrointestinal disturbances and an inability to do complex tasks"
• High Mercury Levels Are Found in Tuna Sushi - New York Times, 1/23/08 - "Sushi from 5 of the 20 places had mercury levels so high that the Food and Drug Administration could take legal action to remove the fish from the market"
• Some Wood Floor Finishes Are A Likely Source Of PCB Exposure - Science Daily, 1/17/08
• Acrylamide In Food May Increase The Risk Of Breast Cancer - Science Daily, 1/11/08 - "Acrylamide is a chemical formed when frying, roasting, grilling or baking carbohydrate-rich foods at temperatures above 120°C. Acrylamide is thus found in a number of foods, such as bread, crisps, French fries and coffee. Tobacco smoking also generates substantial amounts of acrylamide ... The risk of breast cancer doubles with a tenfold increase in the acrylamide-haemoglobin level. A tenfold increase in the acrylamide-haemoglobin level corresponds more or less to the difference measured between the women with the lowest and highest exposure"
• Even Low Doses of Arsenic -- At Levels Found In Drinking Water -- Can Be Harmful - Science Daily, 11/13/07 - "low doses of arsenic disrupt the activity of a hormone critical in development. The finding is further evidence that arsenic at low doses (at levels found in U.S. drinking water in some areas) can be harmful" - See reverse osmosis systems at Amazon.com.
• Air Pollution Linked To Early Death - Science Daily, 7/31/07 - "The risk of an early death from respiratory disease rose by almost 4% for every 10 ug/m3 increase in black smoke, and by 13% for every 10 parts per billion increase in sulphur dioxide during 1982-98 ... n 1994-8, the comparable figures were more than 19% and almost 22%, respectively"
• Office printers 'are health risk' - BBC News, 7/31/07 - "Almost one-third were found to emit ultra-tiny particles of toner-like material, so small that they can infiltrate the lungs and cause a range of health problems from respiratory irritation to more chronic illnesses"
• Air Pollution Linked To Clogged Arteries - Science Daily, 7/26/07 - "the diesel particles and oxidized fats had worked in tandem to activate the genes that promote cellular inflammation -- a major risk factor for atherosclerosis"
• Exposure to traffic emissions throughout life and risk of breast cancer: the Western New York Exposures and Breast Cancer (WEB) study - Cancer Causes Control. 2007 Jul 14 - "Higher exposure to traffic emissions at the time of menarche was associated with increased risk of premenopausal breast cancer (OR 2.05, 95% CI 0.92-4.54, p for trend 0.03); and at the time of a woman's first birth for postmenopausal breast cancer (OR 2.57"
• Inhaling Pure Oxygen Can Damage Brain - Doctor's Guide, 5/22/07 - "Several brain areas responded to 100% oxygen by kicking the hypothalamus into overdrive ... The hypothalamus overreacted by dumping a massive flood of hormones and neurotransmitters into the bloodstream. These chemicals interfere with the heart's ability to pump blood and deliver oxygen -- the opposite effect you want when you're trying to resuscitate someone"
• Red, processed meats linked to breast cancer - CNN, 4/17/07 - "Women who ate the most red meat (2 or more ounces per day) were 56 percent more likely to develop breast cancer than the women who ate no red meat ... those who ate the most processed meat (more than three quarters of an ounce per day) showed a 64-percent increase in their risk of the disease"
• Eating Cured Meats Frequently Can Lead To Lower Lung Function And Potential COPD - Science Daily, 4/16/07 - "Frequent consumption of cured meats results in lower lung function test scores and increases the odds of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)"
• Air Pollution Linked to Heart Deaths - WebMD, 1/31/07 - "A resident of Birmingham, Ala., one of the smoggiest cities included in the study, would have roughly a 76% increased risk of dying from cardiovascular causes than someone living in Tucson, Ariz., which was among the cities with the cleanest air"
• Mercury Rising - Time Magazine, 9/11/06 - "Researchers testing birds in the Northeast have found creeping mercury levels in the blood of more than 175 once clean species. Others have found the metal for the first time in polar bears, bats, mink, otters, panthers and more"
• Household Insecticides Associated With Increased Risk of Childhood Leukaemia - Doctor's Guide, 1/17/06 - "The risk of developing acute leukaemia was almost twice as likely in children whose mothers said that they had used insecticides in the home while pregnant and long after the birth"
• Air Pollution's Health Risks Underestimated? - WebMD, 10/3/05 - "The health risks associated with air pollution may be nearly three times greater than previously thought ... for each increase of 10 micrograms per cubic meter of fine particles in the neighborhood's air, the overall risk of death rose 11% to 17%; heart-disease-related deaths rose by 25% to 39% ... the risk of death from diabetes was more than two times higher in areas of high air pollution"
• Air Pollution Found To Pose Greater Danger To Health Than Earlier Thought - Science Daily, 9/21/05 - "When the epidemiologists examined links between particle pollution and mortality within more than 260 Los Angeles neighborhoods, they found that pollution's chronic health effects are two to three times greater than earlier believed"
• Does Manganese Inhaled From The Shower Represent A Public Health Threat? - Science Daily, 7/4/05 - "The study is the first to show the potential for permanent brain damage from breathing vaporized manganese during a shower"
• Breast-cancer Risk Linked To Exposure To Traffic Emissions At Menarche, First Birth - Science Daily, 4/30/05 - "higher exposure around the time of first menstruation to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), potential carcinogens found in traffic emissions, was associated with increased risk of premenopausal breast cancer"
• Most Childhood Cancers Linked to Prenatal Exposure to Pollutants - Doctor's Guide, 1/18/05 - "Most childhood cancers are "probably" down to prenatal exposure to industrial and environmental pollutants, most likely to have been inhaled by the mother during pregnancy"
• Pesticides May Promote Parkinson's Disease And Exercise May Offer Protection, According To New Reports - Science Daily, 11/3/04 - "chronic exposure to the “organic” pesticide rotenone can cause Parkinson's-like pathology in monkeys. This finding builds upon their previous study in which they demonstrated that rotenone, a commonly used agricultural pesticide made from the extracts of tropical plants, can reproduce parkinsonian features in rats"
• Beware The Air You Breathe At Home - CBS News, 9/16/03 - "A study of 120 homes in Cape Code, Mass., reported in the Los Angeles Times, found 67 contaminants ... Little is known about the chemicals that have been shown to alter hormones in laboratory tests, including what effects they have on humans or at what levels they pose a risk"
• A New Look At Birth Defects - CBS News, 7/11/03 - "suggests exposure to common herbicides applied to wheat could be responsible for the increased rate of birth defects"
• Link Eyed Between Beef And Cancer - CBS News, 5/21/03 - "beef cattle are given growth hormones to make them fatter faster, to save money ... questions are being raised about one of the most widely-used hormones, Zeranol, a synthetic estrogen implanted in cattle. A series of tests done for the Pentagon show a possible link between breast cancer and Zeranol"
• Car Pollution May Damage Male Fertility - WebMD, 4/30/03 - "Car exhaust lowers male fertility"
• Smog Report: Half of U.S. Still Flunks - WebMD, 4/30/03 - "Smog threatens the health of nearly half of all Americans"
• Studies find disturbing amounts of chemical contamination in lettuce - USA Today, 4/28/03 - "some of this winter lettuce is contaminated with perchlorate, a pollutant that has found its way into the groundwater in as many as 20 states, from the manufacture of rocket fuel, flares and munitions and is known to contaminate the Colorado [river] ... U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has set a preliminary safety level of one part per billion of perchlorate in water ... recent tests by The Press-Enterprise newspaper of Riverside, Calif., found perchlorate in 18 of 18 lettuce samples, at an average of eight parts per billion ... Perchlorate affects the thyroid gland and can disrupt hormone production"
• Reining In Diesel Exhaust - CBS News, 4/15/03 0 - "The Bush administration on Tuesday proposed ordering reductions of more than 90 percent in non-highway diesel engine pollution blamed for thousands of premature deaths, heart attacks and respiratory ailments"
• Low Blood Lead Levels Associated With Hypertension In Middle-Aged Women - Doctor's Guide, 3/26/03 - "From a public health prospective, the most important and troubling implication of these findings is that lead appears to increase blood pressure in women at very small increments above 1.0 (mu)g/dL, well below what is considered deleterious in adults"
• Something Fishy With Seafood? - CBS News, 2/25/03 - "Studies show that mercury found in some fishes can be unhealthy and dangerous for pregnant women. But experts say little has been done to warn those at risk ... mercury in the body can result in impaired coordination, blurred vision, tremors, irritability, memory loss and behavioral or intellectual problems"
• Low-Level Lead Exposure Harms Kidneys - Doctor's Guide, 1/22/03 - "the progression of kidney failure was much slower in patients who received chelation therapy compared with those who got the placebo"
• New reasons for eating organic? - MSNBC, 12/18/02 - "The study by researchers at the University of Washington concluded that children fed a diet of organic foods were exposed to far fewer — six to nine times less — toxic pesticides than children fed a conventional diet ... What we do know is that chronic exposures to low levels of pesticides could very well be significant ... Children exposed to high levels of organophosphate pesticides are at risk for bone and brain cancer, neuroblastoma and childhood leukemia"
• Study Looks At Pollution, Gene Mutations - Intelihealth, 12/10/02 - "Exposure to air pollution from steel mills may cause genetic mutations that are passed by fathers to their offspring ... pairs of mice exposed for about 70 days to air pollution downwind from a steel mill produced young that carried up to twice the number of genetic mutation found in animals that lived in clean air"
• Air Pollution-Medical Costs Linked - Intelihealth, 11/12/02 - "The study found air pollution significantly increases Medicare recipients' medical care needs, even after controlling for region, population size, education, income, cigarette use and obesity"
• Rising breast cancer rate fuels environmental concerns - MSNBC, 10/23/02 - "Breast cancer jumped by 72 percent among Marin [County, Calif.] women ages 46 to 64 during the 1990s ... Common pollutants, such as benzene, a compound found in car exhaust, are linked to breast tumors, and people who move to industrialized counties suddenly face a higher breast cancer risk within one generation ... In the case of breast cancer, new diagnoses have, in fact, been growing at a rate of .6 percent per year nationwide"
• Study Records Elevated Mercury - Intelihealth, 10/19/02 - "A study of Californians who loaded their lunch and dinner menus with fish shows 89 percent wound up with elevated mercury levels in their bodies ... Of that group, 63 people had blood mercury levels more than twice the recommended level and 19 showed blood mercury levels four times the level considered safe. Four people had mercury levels 10 times as high as the government recommends"
• Cleaner Air: Longer Life - WebMD, 10/17/02
• Toxins in 20% of U.S. Food Supply - WebMD, 10/14/02 - "About 20% of the entire U.S. food supply is contaminated with toxins from pesticide residue, and a recent study by an anti-pesticide group estimates that the average American receives about 68 "exposures" to these substances each day ... We really don't know the effects of exposure to all the pesticides, but we do know that the incidence of certain diseases and conditions is increasing for unexplained reasons ... This includes childhood leukemias, non-Hodgkin's lymphomas, and certain types of breast cancer"
• Toxic Chemicals Seen Contributing To Increased Childhood Illness - Intelihealth, 6/12/02 - "There are 85,000 chemicals registered with the Environmental Protection Agency for commercial use in America ... Virtually all of them did not exist before the 1960s ... There has been a 25 percent rise in the incidence of childhood leukemia since the 1960s and a 21 percent increase in brain cancer ... In addition to cancer-causing substances, Landrigan warned of "endocrine disrupting" chemicals, which he said may be linked to premature puberty in girls, growing numbers of testicular cancer in boys and penis malformation"
• Solvent Exposure At Work An Important Issue - Doctor's Guide, 6/11/02 - "Increasing exposure to organic solvents is linked with increasing risk of cognitive impairment ... Solvent exposure and reduction in grip strength were also found to be linked"
• Is Soot in the Air a Lung Cancer Threat? - Dr. Weil, 3/22/02 - "The report you refer to, on results of a study published in the March 6 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, was somewhat alarming, particularly for city-dwellers like yourself. The study found that with each 10-microgram increase in fine particles of soot and sulfur dioxide-related pollution per cubic meter of air, the risks of heart and lung diseases increase, including an 8 percent increase in the risk of lung cancer"
• Streams Contaminated with Drugs - WebMD, 3/13/02
• The State of the Air Many Breathe Is a Sorry State - WebMD, 3/12/02 - "It's not just L.A. any more. Three out of every four Americans now breathe air so dirty it threatens the health of children, the elderly, and even outdoor joggers ... The American Lung Association's annual State of the Air report card gave an F in air quality to nearly 400 U.S. counties -- a 15% increase since the previous report"
• Air Pollution Increases Lung Cancer Risk - WebMD, 3/5/02 - "the strongest evidence to date that long-term exposure to fine particulate air pollution common to many metropolitan areas is an important risk factor for [death from heart disease] ... Significant increases in lung cancer [deaths]" were also linked with air pollution ... sulfur oxide pollution -- from automobile exhaust -- was significantly associated with all deaths including heart disease and lung cancer"
• Australian Researchers Say New Car Interiors Emit Toxic Smells - Intelihealth, 12/19/01 - "a new car could expose occupants to levels of toxic emissions many times beyond limits established by Australia's National Health and Medical Research Council, NHMRC. Long-term exposure can be carcinogenic and may cause abnormalities in unborn children"
• Scientists Say Greenhouse Gases Have Immediate, Widespread Effect On Public Health - Intelihealth, 8/16/01 - "It is our best estimate that more people are being killed by air pollution from traffic than from traffic crashes"
• Asthma tracking urged - USA Today, 7/10/01 - "Most states with large amounts of air pollutants don't track the number of asthma cases in each community, preventing researchers from determining which environmental toxins trigger the disease"
• Scientists identify new male infertility syndrome - CNN, 7/2/01 - "Hormone disruptors, which are also known as gender-bending chemicals, are compounds used in paints, pesticides and detergents that can disrupt natural hormones in the body causing birth defects and other problems in humans"
• High Levels of Dangerous Toxin Found in Some Lake Fish - WebMD, 6/8/01 - "Although the new study focuses on fish from the Great Lakes, where PCB levels are known to be high, PCBs exist everywhere, and according to Schantz, "We are all getting exposed, mostly through foods that we eat, like meat, dairy products, and fish.""
• Nearly 10% of Infant Deaths Linked to Air Pollution - WebMD, 5/23/01 - "9% of [deaths] in infants aged 1-12 months may be due to PM10 air pollution ... Considering that the overall infant mortality rate in the U.S. is about 250 per 100,000 live births, that means up to 25 of those deaths may be pollution related"
• Nasal Sprays: More There Than Meets the Nose?, Common Preservative Could Be Causing Sinus Troubles - WebMD, 5/14/01 - "A common ingredient found in nasal saline sprays be may doing more harm than good"
• The State of the Air Many Breathe Is a Sorry State, Smog Rising Across U.S. Blamed for Health Ills - WebMD, 5/1/01 - "Three out of every four Americans now breathe air so dirty it threatens the health of children, the elderly, and even outdoor joggers"
• Study: Lead Paint Affects Child IQ - Intelihealth, 5/1/01 - "Children with a lead concentration of less than 10 micrograms per deciliter of blood scored an average of 11.1 points lower on the Stanford-Binet IQ test than the mean of children with a lead concentration of 1 microgram or less"
• Study: 'Safe' levels of lead still harm IQ - CNN, 4/30/01
• Expectant Moms, Can the Fish, Environmental Groups Expand FDA's List of Unsafe Seafood - WebMD, 4/12/01 - "Methylmercury is a toxic form of mercury that gathers in fish tissue. Absorbed by the fish from pollution and from other water creatures, it poses health threats to developing brains and nervous systems of unborn babies"
• Cancers haunt town, defy science - USA Today, 4/12/01 - "Despite several suspected causes — among them the highest arsenic levels in any U.S. municipal water supply — investigators aren't close to solving the case"
• Fish-mercury risk underestimated - CNN, 4/12/01 - "millions of pregnant women and their fetuses are at risk of serious health problems from exposure to mercury in fish ... shark, swordfish, king mackerel and tilefish not be eaten by pregnant women and women of childbearing age who might become pregnant. It also recommended that nursing mothers and young children steer clear of these fish"
• Pollutants? We're soaking in them - USA Today, 3/21/01 - "Federal health researchers found measurable levels of 27 environmental chemicals in the blood and urine of most of the 3,800 people tested in 12 U.S. regions"
• Exposure To Questionable Chemical Higher Than Expected, Study Finds - Intelihealth, 3/21/01 - "Americans' bodies harbor surprisingly high amounts of a chemical used in soap and cosmetics ... the chemical, diethyl phthalate, may disrupt normal hormone function and cause birth defects"
• American Bodies Harbor Some Suspicious Chemicals - WebMD, 3/21/01 - "a chemical used in soap and cosmetics is surprisingly prevalent"