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NEWS ABOUT: toxins

Hitchcock's Birds Mystery Solved

Kamikaze California seabirds were poisoned, researchers say

(Newser) - The real-life mystery that inspired Alfred Hitchcock's 1963 thriller The Birds has been solved, researchers say. Hitchcock is said to have largely based the film on a bizarre incident in 1961, when flocks of crazed seabirds slammed into homes in California's Monterey Bay. Researchers now believe that, rather... More »

Al-Qaeda Trying to Make Ricin Bombs for US Attacks

Yemen affiliate said to be loading up on castor beans to make the toxin

(Newser) - Osama bin Laden is gone and the main branch of al-Qaeda might be reeling, but its affiliates remain bent on attacking the US, reports the New York Times . Citing classified intelligence reports, it says the Yemen branch known as al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is hoarding castor beans to turn... More »

Beware Toxic Beauty Products

Attention finally being paid to potentially unsafe cosmetics

(Newser) - With all the fervor over organic food, it’s surprising that so little attention has been paid to the many chemical ingredients we put on our face each day—until now. A February protest by a group of students in Maine was one of a number that have been recently... More »

Breast Cancer Linked to Cleaning Products

Mold, mildew cleaner particularly worrisome

(Newser) - As if anyone needed another reason to stop scrubbing, here's another: cleaning products have been linked to breast cancer in a new study. Scientists also found a link between an increased risk of developing the cancer to air fresheners and insect repellents. Women who regularly used a combination of cleaning... More »

Tainted Chinese Milk Yanked From Shelves—Again

Company in last scandal linked to new contamination

(Newser) - In the latest consumer product scandal to hit China, authorities have ordered milk contaminated with toxic melamine yanked from market shelves. The recall occurs a year after hundreds of thousands of children were sickened by a similar contamination. Products in southern China from three companies were found to contain melamine.... More »

Your Shampoo Is Chock Full of Toxins

Few ingredients contribute to cleaning

(Newser) - Most of what’s in shampoo does nothing to cleanse—instead, it “strokes your emotions,” writes Bill Bunn in Salon. If your hair is greasy, you simply need detergent. But shampoos contain a variety of other ingredients—two-thirds by volume—intended to make you feel good about the... More »

Under Italy's Mob, Toxic Trash Heaps Growing

Intimidation rife as garbage threatens public health

(Newser) - Heaps of garbage tower in southern Italy’s legal and illegal dumps, and may even be contributing to cancer and birth defects in the area—but the mafia’s grip on disposal makes it near impossible to fix the problem, the Los Angeles Times reports. “For years the waste... More »

How to Keep Bugs, DEET Away

Keep the bugs from biting without the toxins

(Newser) - Looking to keep the mosquitos away but not crazy about slathering yourself in a chemical such as DEET? Grist slapped on five DEET-free alternatives, with varying results:
  1. All Terrain Herbal Armor: This spray might be eco-friendly, but a medicine smell and filmy skin coating make that $4.99 better spent
... More »

Feds Push to Ease Workplace Toxin Regs

Labor Dept. seeks to loosen oversight; union decries 'midnight' move

(Newser) - The Department of Labor is rushing to push through policy that would make it more difficult to regulate workers’ exposure to toxins, the Washington Post reports. The proposal was never publicly disclosed, as required by law, but rather surfaced on the website of the White House Office of Management and... More »

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