Childhood lead exposure costs Michigan residents an estimated $330 million annually, and a statewide remediation program to eliminate the source of most lead poisoning would pay for itself in three years, according to a new report.
Report TOMORROW on Thursday June 5, 2014 11 a.m. CDT News Conference in Houston, TX
Media will be briefed on investigation findings and safety recommendations. These findings will then be formally presented to the public and two-member presidentially-appointed Board investigating the April 20, 2010, blowout of the Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico.
The national public awareness campaign, called the BabySafe Project, is being coordinated by Grassroots Environmental Education and Environmental Health Trust, and is based on independent scientific research linking exposure to wireless radiation from cell phones during pregnancy to neurological and behavioral problems in offspring that resemble Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children.
The American Thoracic Society is pleased that the Environmental Protection Agency is taking action to address carbon pollution. The proposed rules released today by the EPA to reduce carbon pollution from existing power plants are an important next step in the Administration’s efforts to address global climate change and improve air quality.
A team of researchers from the University of South Carolina received two patents for a new method to rid carpets, mattresses and other furniture of harmful allergens and pests that cause asthma.
A team of researchers from the National University of Singapore’s (NUS) Faculty of Engineering has developed a cost-effective solution for the control of indoor air pollution, especially from the haze. The new system is easy to use and ideal for use in a range of indoor environments.
Taking olive oil supplements may counteract some of the adverse cardiovascular effects of exposure to air pollution, according to a new study presented at the 2014 American Thoracic Society International Conference.
Children who are exposed in utero to high levels of particulate air pollution during the second trimester of pregnancy may be at greater risk of developing asthma in early childhood, according to a new study presented at the 2014 American Thoracic Society International Conference.
Since the rise in the use of hydraulic fracturing of shale to produce natural gas and oil, many have debated the merits and detractions of the practice. Members of the Society of Toxicology (SOT) outline how toxicological sciences can be used to determine what risks may or may not be associated with fracking.
Two widely used neonicotinoids—a class of insecticide—appear to harm honey bee colonies over the winter, particularly during colder winters, according to Harvard School of Public Health researchers. The new study replicated a 2012 finding from the same research group that found a link between imidacloprid and Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), in which bees abandon their hives over the winter and eventually die. The new study also found that a second neonicotinoid, clothianidin, had the same negative effect.
Efforts to protect the health and safety of workers and communities are essential to ensuring the sustainability of the aluminum industry into the future, according to a special supplement to the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM).
At the elevated levels of atmospheric CO2 anticipated by around 2050, crops that provide a large share of the global population with most of their dietary zinc and iron will have significantly reduced concentrations of those nutrients, according to a new study led by Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH). Given that an estimated two billion people suffer from zinc and iron deficiencies, resulting in a loss of 63 million life years annually from malnutrition, the reduction in these nutrients represents the most significant health threat ever shown to be associated with climate change.
The American Thoracic Society welcomes the release of the third National Climate Assessment report by the U.S. Global Change Research Program. The report confirms that climate change is occurring, the contribution of human activities in causing climate change, and the broad range of adverse health consequences that climate change causes.
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the Cross State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The court said the rule was permissible and appropriate execution of EPA’s responsibilities under the Clean Air Act.
A research team at Kansas State University recently confirmed that insects, such as house flies and cockroaches, can carry antibiotic-resistant bacteria from places such as food animal farms and wastewater treatment facilities, and disseminate them to urban areas. The transmission could be a contributor to the increasing problem with human antibiotic resistance.
Burning coal for domestic heating may contribute to early fetal death according to a new study by experts from The Saban Research Institute of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia – the coldest capital city in the world.
Geologic and soil processes are to blame for significant baseline levels of arsenic in soil throughout Ohio, according to a new study. Every sample had concentrations higher than the screening level of concern recommended by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Researchers at the National Institutes of Health, leading the largest health study ever conducted on the potential health effects of an oil spill, are encouraging participants to stay involved in this long-term project. All participants are being contacted for telephone interviews to update their health status. Those living within 60 miles of Mobile, Ala., and New Orleans also will be invited to take part in a second comprehensive health exam.
If you start feeling better as spring begins pushing up its tender shoots, you might be living proof of a trend discovered in data from the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin: The more green space in the neighborhood, the happier people reported feeling.
In a telephone press conference, scientists from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health, will discuss the Gulf Long-Term Follow-up Study (GuLF STUDY), and what they have learned to date about the 33,000 oil spill clean-up workers and volunteers enrolled in the study.
With biofuels being used globally on a wider scale than ever before, scientists are discussing the implications of their use on human and environmental health at the Society of Toxicology (SOT) 53rd Annual Meeting and ToxExpo in Phoenix, Ariz.
The complexities and implications of the chemical spill into West Virginia‘s Elk River keep growing, according to a study led by Virginia Tech Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering Andrea Dietrich.
Is air pollution connected with increases in obesity, diabetes, and chronic kidney disease? Researchers are providing insight into that question at the Society of Toxicology (SOT) 53rd Annual Meeting and ToxExpo in Phoenix, Ariz.
Toxicologists are revealing new methods and models for estimating infants’ exposure to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) at the Society of Toxicology (SOT) 53rd Annual Meeting and ToxExpo in Phoenix, Ariz.
Toxicologists are presenting information on the uses of nanotechnology in food and food packaging and the current efforts to assure the safe development of the technology at the Society of Toxicology (SOT) 53rd Annual Meeting and ToxExpo in Phoenix, Ariz.
WV TAP Project Team in Charleston, West Virginia for a Public Briefing and
Convening of the Expert Panel. This press release describes two (2) important and distinct events that will take place on March 28 and April 1, 2014 in Charleston, West Virginia. Both events are part of the WV TAP project led by Mr. Jeffrey Rosen and Dr. Andrew Whelton.
Exposure to high levels of traffic-related air pollution is associated with changes in the right ventricle of the heart that may contribute to the known connection between air pollution exposure and heart disease, according to a new study.
With renewed focus from Congress on reforming the Toxic Substances Control Act, scientists from the Society of Toxicology are meeting and working with Members of Congress and their staffs to ensure sound scientific portions of any resulting bill.
In the largest, most comprehensive, nationwide study to examine the prevalence of allergies from early childhood to old age, scientists from the National Institutes of Health report that allergy prevalence is the same across different regions of the United States, except in children 5 years and younger.
Shale, the source of the United States’ current natural gas boom, could help solve another energy problem: what to do with radioactive waste from nuclear power plants. The unique properties of the sedimentary rock and related clay-rich rocks make it ideal for storing the potentially dangerous spent fuel for millennia, according to a geologist studying possible storage sites. He presented his research today at the 247th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society.
A waste product from making paper could yield a safer, greener replacement for the potentially harmful chemical BPA, now banned from baby bottles but still used in many plastics. Scientists made the BPA alternative from lignin, which gives wood its strength, and they say it could be ready for the market within five years. They described their research here today at the 247th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society.
Sunlight plus a common titanium pigment might be the secret recipe for ridding pharmaceuticals, pesticides and other potentially harmful pollutants from drinking water. Scientists reported today at the 247th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society that they have combined several high-tech components to make an easy-to-use water purifier that could work with the world’s most basic form of energy, sunlight, in a boon for water purification in rural areas or developing countries.
More than eight tons a month. That’s how much organic material in the form of spent coffee grounds the Austin-based Ground to Ground program diverts from area landfills and makes available to people in the community as compost.
Overweight children who were exposed to higher levels of perfluorinated chemicals tended to show early signs of developing the metabolic syndrome, according to a new study published in The Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
Regulatory agencies face barriers and often take limited action when confronted with public health concerns resulting from industrial food animal production operations.
Nobel Laureate Sir John B. Gurdon, DPhil, DSc, FRS, will kick off the largest gathering of toxicologists in the world at the Society of Toxicology Annual Meeting and ToxExpo. The meeting from March 23-27, 2014, will feature almost 170 scientific sessions and 2,900 abstracts.
This time of year might feel too late for making new year’s resolutions, or too early for spring cleaning, but it’s just the right time for taking an important step to protect the health your family: testing your home for radon, the second-leading cause of lung cancer.
• Domoic acid accumulates in seafood and is toxic to the brain
• The toxin damages kidneys at concentrations that are 100 times lower than what causes neurological effects.
With the winter weather still going strong, lots of people will be restocking the wood pile next to their fireplaces and wood burning stoves. Can using a wood burning stove or fireplace pose a threat to my health?
Overweight or obese adults can breathe 7-50% more air per day than an adult with healthy weight does, which makes them more vulnerable to air contaminants causing asthma and other pulmonary diseases, according to a study by Dr. Pierre Brochu, a professor at Université de Montréal’s School of Public Health.
Previous studies have shown the certain pesticides can increase the risk for developing Parkinson’s disease. Now, UCLA researchers have now found that the strength of that risk depends on an individual’s genetic makeup, which in the most pesticide-exposed populations could increase the chances of developing the debilitating disease by two- to six-fold.
New research shows how pesticides may increase the risk of Parkinson’s disease and that people with certain gene variants may be more susceptible to the disease. The research is published in the February 4, 2014, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Preparing for visits to our doctors or other healthcare providers is an important step to a successful outcome. Give your questions and concerns to your providers ahead of time, so that they can help address them and find additional resources as needed.
Scientists have known for more than 40 years that the synthetic pesticide DDT is harmful to bird habitats and a threat to the environment.
Now researchers at Rutgers University, writing in JAMA Neurology, say exposure to DDT – banned in the United States since 1972 but still used as a pesticide in other countries – may also increase the risk and severity of Alzheimer’s disease in some people, particularly those over the age of 60.
Mesothelioma is a very aggressive cancer associated with asbestos exposure, which is usually diagnosed in an advanced stage. So far no therapeutic strategy has proven effective against this deadly cancer and the prognosis remains very poor with only few exceptions.
Fetal exposure to a commonly used plasticizer found in products such as water bottles, soup can liners and paper receipts can increase the risk for prostate cancer later in life, according to a study from the University of Illinois at Chicago published Jan. 7 online in the journal Endocrinology.