ANALYSIS
Military-use substances were deemed less toxic, key reviews stalled
Salon Nov 11, 08 4:15 PM CST
(Newser)
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The Environmental Protection Agency program that rates the toxicity of chemicals used in the US, and around the world, has been manipulated in favor of industry and the military under the Bush administration, Rebecca Claren reports in Salon. Budget-cutting directives from the White House have allowed outside organizations, including the Pentagon, to stall or downgrade assessments, potentially endangering thousands of people.
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Consumers, experts worry over effect of drugs present in supply
Wall Street Journal Aug 19, 08 12:58 PM CDT
(Newser)
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As critics pan bottled water as wasteful and frivolous, many Americans are turning back to tap water—only to find a debate of equal concern waiting at their kitchen sinks. The Wall Street Journal examines the controversy over tap-water purity, and why many argue the federal government isn’t doing enough to protect us from newly discovered impurities.
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opinion
Why won't the US
do the right thing, ban dangerous products?
Los Angeles Times Jul 30, 08 6:20 PM CDT
(Newser)
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The rapid, mysterious deaths of billions of honeybees demand a closer look at how we use and control pesticides, Al Meyerhoff writes in the Los Angeles Times . A family of toxic chemicals called neonictonoids—led by two Bayer pesticides called Gaucho and Poncho—may be killing off the insects, but Washington will not ban the pesticides because of outdated regulations that require so-called "unreasonable risk."
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Clues to sex-change mystery could explain amphibian decline
Independent (UK) Jul 13, 08 10:40 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The mystery of the hermaphrodite toads may be solved: Researchers have found that various chemicals used in farming are linked to sex changes in certain amphibian species, the Independent reports. In a population of cane toads, 40% of males had developed feminine coloring and ovaries, and an additional 20% had marked female characteristics. And the toads are not unique.
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Tough new regs shift burden to proving products are safe
Washington Post Jun 12, 08 1:57 PM CDT
(Newser)
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The European Union has passed a series of tough new laws requiring companies to prove that the chemicals in their products are safe, the Washington Post reports. The rule is the exact opposite of US law—which requires proof that a chemical is dangerous before it can be regulated—and manufacturers say it will add billions to their costs.
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Company will yank bottles containing bisphenol A
Associated Press Apr 18, 08 1:31 PM CDT
(Newser)
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The maker of Nalgene bottles will pull the products from stores over concerns about the health effects of the chemical bisphenol A, Reuters reports. The plastic water bottles, long a favorite of hikers, will be made with BPA-free materials going forward. The move comes despite the chemical industry's assurances that BPA does not harm humans.
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Study finds plastic bottles leach chemical BPA in hot water
USA Today Jan 30, 08 9:55 AM CST
(Newser)
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Hot liquid causes a potentially harmful chemical to leach out of certain plastics much faster than usual, researchers have found. The study, published in Toxicology Letters , discovered that bisphenol A, or BPA, was released from some common plastic bottles 55 times faster when they were placed in boiling water. Concerns about BPA, a hormone "disrupter," have been growing, particularly for containers used by babies and young children.
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Loophole allows pharma-producing chemical companies to bypass regulation
New York Times Oct 31, 07 12:54 PM CDT
(Newser)
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China’s massive prescription drug industry has an equally massive flaw: pharmaceuticals made by chemical companies are not held to regulatory standards. Of nearly 500 Chinese companies at a recent drug trade show, 82 were unregulated and uncertified, the New York Times discovered. “This is definitely against the law,” said one drug regulator, who acknowledges that China's food and drug agency doesn't have jurisdiction over chemical companies.
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Flame retardants used on furniture could be hurting humans, too
Los Angeles Times Aug 16, 07 12:21 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Cats are falling ill with thyroid disease caused by toxic flame retardants found in household dust and some pet food, says the EPA. Chemicals known as PBDEs—polybrominated diphenyl ethers—found in consumer products and furniture are mimicking hormones which send a cat's thyroid into overdrive. Since humans are the only other mammal with a high rate of hyperthyroidism, the common chemicals could be affecting them, too.
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And it's linked to infertility, obesity, cancer—you name it
Salon Aug 2, 07 1:59 PM CDT
(Newser)
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It's in everything from baby bottles to coffee makers to CDs, and research is accumulating, as Salon's Elizabeth Grossman puts it, that it's a major health hazard. Bisphenol A is a key ingredient of the lightweight plastics now ubiquitous in consumer products, and it's been variously linked to reproductive health, obesity, cancer and neurological disorders.
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Household products contain chemicals linked to asthma, infant growth defects
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Jul 24, 07 2:43 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Common household products, including laundry detergents and floor cleaners, contain harmful chemicals that could induce health problems in adults and infants, a new report says. Five chemicals, present in popular brands like Pine-Sol, Formula 409, and Tide, may lead to asthma attacks, developmental problems, and infertility but often are not listed on packaging, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports.
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Tainted tubes from China turn up
in Georgia prisons, hospitals
New York Times Jun 28, 07 7:41 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The Chinese toothpaste scare is far from over and is more than just a scare. Tainted tubes have turned up, as expected, in discount stores—but officials have also found them in institutions such as prisons and hospitals, the Times reports. Nearly 1 million tubes containing varying amounts of a chemical found in antifreeze have been distributed, mostly in Georgia.
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Dangerous chemicals added to products from candy to pickles; most not exported
Wall Street Journal Jun 28, 07 3:51 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The Chinese government has shut down 180 food manufacturing plants for racking up a whopping 23,000 violations in the last six months, most of them for using chemicals and industrial materials as food fillers to cut costs. Almost all were small and unlicensed, making it unlikely their products, worth some $26 million, reached international markets.
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Crackdown spreads to plants using industrial chemicals in edibles
Associated Press Jun 27, 07 12:49 PM CDT
(Newser)
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The Chinese government has closed 180 factories that were using dangerous and illegal ingredients, such as formaldehyde, in food products. The relatively large number of plants casts serious doubt on Beijing's insistence that the recent rash of tainted products originated with a small number of sources, the AP reports: A government official said the shutdowns were "not isolated cases."
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Counterfeit dentifrice may contain toxic chemical, company says
Reuters Jun 14, 07 4:23 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Colgate alerted the public today that counterfeit toothpaste bearing its brand name and possibly containing a deadly chemical has turned up in discount stores in four Northeast states. The phony products' packaging is riddled with misspellings and gives the manufacturing location as South Africa, where the company doesn't make toothpaste. Colgate-Palmolive is working with the FDA to find the source.
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