Environmental Health Risks

When you look up at wires between utility poles you might not see a danger. But if those lines are old and contain lead, they might pose a hazard.

An investigation by the Wall Street Journal reported that AT&T, Verizon and other telecom companies have left more than 2,000 toxic lead cables – on poles, under waterways and in the soil – around the country. The Journal reported that testing revealed dozens of places registering lead levels that exceed Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) safety guidelines. 

The report got the attention of three environmental groups – the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), Clean Water Action and Below the Blue, which are now trying to get the EPA’s attention. Officials of the three groups signed a letter to the agency asking it to investigate.

“EPA must prioritize the immediate removal of lead-sheathed cables accessible to children or strung overhead between telephone poles,” said Tom Neltner, senior director for safer chemicals at EDF. “These cables pose the greatest exposure risk to lead, and they can be easily fixed. For the underwater cables, EPA should assess the risk, prioritizing those in sources of water protected for drinking.”

Some cables date to the 1880s

The cables are very old, dating as far back as the 1880s and to as recently as the 1960s. They consist of lead pipes with copper wires inside and asphalt coating on the outside. 

Many were abandoned in place when they failed or became unnecessary, but when deserted, the open ends of those bundles were exposed—leaving the lead open to soil and water, researchers say. Without EPA intervention, the groups said they expect that the risk posed by the cables will increase as they deteriorate further and release lead into the environment.

The Journal investigation conducted tests of soil and water samples that varied from no detectable lead to the highest lead level of 38,000 parts per billion from a single sample of water from Lake Tahoe. 

The risks are unclear

What is the risk to Americans? The groups say the risk is unclear. That’s why they are calling on the EPA to determine the potential risk to public health that the cables may pose.

"We have personally visited over 300 sites with lead-sheathed cables in communities across America,” said Seth Jones, co-founder of Below the Blue and president of Marine Taxonomic Services, Ltd. (MTS). “Research suggests that there are potentially thousands of other abandoned cables across the country. Given the number of cables identified across nine states, this is not a situation that can be addressed locally.”

Lead is not healthy for anyone but is particularly harmful to children, with exposure to the metal potentially resulting in permanent neurological damage. In recent days the EPA made clear that “there is no safe level of lead” and “even low levels are detrimental to children’s health.”

Working remotely eliminates the daily commute to the office, and for those whose route took them through heavy traffic, there might be a health benefit from working at home. Canadian researchers have published a study showing that common levels of traffic pollution can impair human brain function in only a matter of hours.

The peer-reviewed findings, published in the journal Environmental Health, found that the damage can occur in as little as two hours when drivers are exposed to heavy diesel fumes in heavy stop-and-go traffic.

The researchers from the University of British Columbia (UBC) and the University of Victoria say their study is the first to show altered brain network connectivity induced by air pollution.

“For many decades, scientists thought the brain may be protected from the harmful effects of air pollution,” said senior study author Dr. Chris Carlsten, professor and head of respiratory medicine and the Canada Research Chair in occupational and environmental lung disease at UBC. “This study, which is the first of its kind in the world, provides fresh evidence supporting a connection between air pollution and cognition.”

Study details

The researchers briefly exposed 25 healthy adults to diesel exhaust and filtered air at different times in a laboratory setting. Brain activity was measured before and after each exposure using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

Next, the scientists measured changes in the brain’s default mode network (DMN), a set of inter-connected brain regions that play an important role in memory and internal thought. The results showed that participants had reduced functional connectivity in several regions of the DMN after exposure to diesel exhaust, compared to filtered air.

The findings may take on added significance as more employers require employees to return to the office, a move that could contribute to heavier traffic during morning and afternoon commuting times. The researchers say there are steps commuters can take to reduce their risk.

“People may want to think twice the next time they’re stuck in traffic with the windows rolled down,” Carlsten said. “It’s important to ensure that your car’s air filter is in good working order, and if you’re walking or biking down a busy street, consider diverting to a less busy route.”

While many consumers are actively working to lower their stress levels, a new study conducted by researchers from the University of Georgia explored the benefits of small amounts of stress. According to their findings, enduring low to moderate stress levels may help improve consumers’ resilience and lower their risk for certain mental health conditions. 

“If you’re in an environment where you have some level of stress, you may develop coping mechanisms that will allow you to become a more efficient and effective worker and organize yourself in a way that will help you perform,” said researcher Assaf Oshri. 

Maintaining low stress levels

The researchers analyzed data from over 1,200 young adults enrolled in the Human Connectome Project. They answered questions about their typical stress levels, mental health, and emotions, and they also completed assessments that measured their neurocognitive abilities. 

The researchers learned that participants who were best able to handle low to moderate levels of stress were found to be more resilient and have fewer mental health concerns. While high levels of stress can become detrimental to both physical and mental health, building tolerance to stressful situations can be beneficial to the brain and mental health. 

“It’s like when you keep doing something hard and get a little callus on your continued,” Oshri said. “You trigger your skin to adapt to this pressure you are applying to it. But, if you do too much, you’re going to cut your skin.” 

The researchers gave several examples of some scenarios that may be considered “good” stress: having a strict deadline at work, studying for a big exam, or working late to close a big deal. These events can strengthen consumers’ resilience and make future stressful events easier to endure. From a mental health standpoint, making it through stressful situations can lower the risk of depression and antisocial behaviors. 

While the team isn’t encouraging consumers to seek out stress or to maintain unhealthy stress levels, the study findings do highlight some of the cognitive and mental health benefits associated with being able to tolerate stressful situations. 

“At a certain point, stress becomes toxic,” said Oshri. “Chronic stress, like the stress that comes from living in abject poverty or being abused, can have very bad health and psychological consequences. It affects everything from your immune system, to emotional regulation, to brain functioning. Not all stress is good stress.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine explored the link between crime rates and heart disease. According to their findings, decreased violent crime rates also led to decreased heart disease-related deaths. 

“It’s important to acknowledge the impact of the built environment on health,” said researcher Dr. Lauren Eberly. “Exposure to violent crime appears to be an important social determinant of cardiovascular health within the broader context of the ways in which structural racism harms health.” 

How crime affects heart disease

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from the Illinois Department of Public Health Division of Vital Records from 2000 through 2014. The team looked at rates of violent crime across Chicago’s nearly 80 different community areas and compared that information with rates of heart disease-related deaths. 

Ultimately, the researchers identified a connection between rates of violent crime and heart disease-related deaths. One area across the city experienced a nearly 60% drop in violent crime over the course of the study, which was then linked with a 15% lower risk of cardiovascular mortality. Similarly, a decrease in violent crime that was as low as 10% was linked with an 11% lower risk of heart disease mortality. 

“Because community areas that experienced the smallest decline in crime also experienced the smallest improvements in cardiovascular mortality, pre-existing disparities in mortality between neighborhoods in the city are likely to worsen over time, especially with the recent rise in crime rates in the United States,” said Eberly. “While these results represent one large, urban U.S. city that could potentially not be generalizable to other cities, we suspect that these results are likely reflective of many other large urban cities across the country.” 

The team plans to work more in this area to better understand how race and violent crime affect consumers' health. 

“It is possible that different types of crime rates in a neighborhood may have different relationships with community health, which needs to be investigated further,” said researcher Dr. Sameed Khatana. “Even if violent crime rates in a neighborhood are a marker of cardiovascular health, rather than the specific cause of cardiovascular events, the rise in any type of violent crime is concerning as it may identify neighborhoods where residents are especially vulnerable to worsening cardiovascular health in years to come.” 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has decided against imposing a total ban on a group of potentially dangerous chemicals called phthalates, which are commonly found in fast-food packaging and other food handling products like plastic gloves. The decision did not sit well with environmental organizations and scientists who have been trying to get the chemicals removed for years.

The FDA’s decision was in response to three petitions. One specifically requested that the FDA limit the use of 28 phthalates.

The packaging aspect may be of particular concern because some fast-food chains preform and partially cook their products for local stores, which prepare the foods when the items are eventually ordered. That leaves the food sitting in plastic packaging for an extended period of time. 

“FDA’s failure to ban phthalates in food packaging and processing is outrageous. We have known for a long time the impact these chemicals can have on pregnant women and children, and they disproportionately impact people of color,” Laurie Valeriano, executive director of Toxic-Free Future, told ConsumerAffairs. “Stopping the use of the most dangerous chemicals is the only way to prevent unnecessary harm and disease.”

The FDA said it is aware of concerns raised about the possible health effects of exposure to high levels of phthalates. However, at least for now, the agency said it is not aware of evidence that the dietary exposure to phthalates resulting from their use as food contact substances poses a safety risk.  

On the positive side

Although the FDA isn't acting right now, it doesn’t seem to be slamming the door on the issue either. In its announcement, the agency said it will continue to seek data about phthalate use and safety in food contact applications.

“The FDA is generally aware of updated toxicological and use information on phthalates that is publicly available. Nevertheless, stakeholders may have access to information that is not always made public,” the agency said.

The FDA is seeking scientific data and information on the specific current food contact uses, use levels, dietary exposure, and safety data for the remaining eight phthalates that are still authorized for use as plasticizers in food contact applications.

"We may use this information to update the dietary exposure estimates and safety assessments for the permitted food contact uses of phthalates,” FDA officials stated.

Recent studies have highlighted the physical and mental health benefits associated with spending time in outdoor spaces. 

Now, researchers from the Hospital Del Mar Medical Research Institute have found that living close to green areas may lower the risk of stroke by more than 15%. 

“The study demonstrates the importance of environmental determinants in stroke risk,” said researcher Dr. Carla Avellaneda. “Given that it is predicted that the incidence, mortality, and disability attributed to the disease will increase in the coming years, it is important to understand all the risk factors involved. People who are surrounded by greater levels of greenery at their place of residence are protected against the onset of stroke.” 

Green spaces improve cardiovascular health

For the study, the researchers analyzed levels of three pollutants in Catalonia, Spain, between 2016 and 2017: particulate matter (PM2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and soot particles. The study included information on 7.5 million residents, including data on the available green spaces in their neighborhoods and the impact of these factors on their cardiovascular health. 

The researchers learned that pollution levels had a close link to stroke risk. When participants lived in heavily populated areas with a lot of car traffic, their risk of stroke was higher.

The study showed that the risk of stroke increased by 4% for every 10 micrograms per cubic meter increase of NO2. Similarly, every 5 micrograms per cubic meter increase of PM2.5 increased the risk of stroke by 4%, while each 1 microgram per cubic meter increase of soot particles raised the risk of stroke by 5%. 

“It should be borne in mind that, unlike other air pollutants, which have various sources, NO2 is mainly caused in road traffic,” said researcher Cathryn Tonne. “Therefore, if we really want to reduce the multiple risks that this pollutant poses to people’s health, we need to implement bold measures to reduce car use.” 

On the other end of the spectrum, those who lived in areas with less car traffic and more green spaces experienced notable differences in their stroke risk. The more green spaces that were close to the participants’ homes, the lower their risk of stroke. 

Ultimately, the team found that participants could lower their risk of stroke by as much as 16% by living closer to outdoor green areas. They believe more outdoor spaces help consumers stay physically active, maintain healthy stress levels, and make social interaction easier. 

“People who are surrounded by greater levels of greenery at their place of residence are protected against the onset of stroke,” Dr. Avellaneda said. 

A new study conducted by researchers from the University of Missouri-Columbia explored the long-term link between mental health and heart disease. According to their findings, adolescents who are more optimistic and positive are less likely to develop heart disease as adults. 

“Here, we are recognizing the role of the environment and lifestyle in heart disease,” said researcher Anand Chockalingam. “Some prior research has shown that more than 80% of all heart attacks can be prevented with a few simple lifestyle interventions at any point in the individual’s life. 

“Although a heart attack may occur at the age of 55, the underlying build-up of plaque or atherosclerosis starts much earlier, often in teenage years. By exploring healthy habits and connecting with optimistic peers in the impressionable teenage years, it becomes intuitive to sustain a good lifestyle.” 

How mental health affects heart health

The researchers analyzed data from over 20,000 participants enrolled in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) study. Participants were first surveyed at 15 years old about their psychological, social, economic, and physical health. The team followed up with the participants every few years with new surveys.

The researchers identified a clear link between psychological wellness in adolescence and heart health in adulthood. Participants who reported feeling more positive overall and generally optimistic when the study began were less likely to struggle with heart health by the end of the study. 

“Adolescents are simultaneously understanding the world as well as their own inner nature and mindset,” Chockalingam said. “Therefore, parents and other caregivers have a substantial role in their lifetime resilience and outlook of children. The biggest legacy that anyone can pass on for subsequent generations in optimism.” 

Finding ways to improve well-being

The researchers hope their findings will help experts come up with strategies to detect and prevent cardiovascular disease. 

“There are several step-by-step techniques established by industrial engineers that help with early detection of problems in the manufacturing and service industries,” said researcher Sharan Srinivas. “This is an opportunity to adapt some of these techniques to enable health care practitioners to monitor the well-being of an adolescent over time, because that’s the formative stage where your outlook on life is established, and it doesn’t change much after that.

“We want to use these techniques to help predict the long-term risk for CVD among adolescents, and uncover the impact that underlying factors can have on a person’s chance to develop CVD, including the influence of a person’s well-being.” 

Though recent studies have highlighted the environmental benefits associated with walking or biking, a new study conducted by researchers from the University of Surrey found some risks associated with bike trailers.

Their findings showed that when parents use bike trailers for their kids, they could be exposing their children to higher levels of air pollution. 

“It’s unfortunate that the very people who help minimize pollution by cycling rather than driving can be exposing their children to higher levels of pollution, and I’d encourage adults pulling bike trailers to use covers in heavy traffic,” said researcher Prashant Kumar. “With the use of electric-assisted cargo bikes growing rapidly in Europe, it’s crucial traffic planners ensure road infrastructure is designed to enable safe use of sustainable transport options.” 

Keeping kids safe from pollution

The researchers simulated the conditions of an adult riding a bike with a young child sitting in a trailer to understand how air pollution affects kids differently than their parents in these situations. They modeled trips around school drop-off and pick-up times and tracked several different pollutants. 

The researchers found that kids sitting in bike trailers were more susceptible to air pollution than their parents – primarily because of the height of these bike attachments. The study showed that kids were exposed to 14% more pollutants sitting in bike trailers than their parents were on the bikes. 

The researchers also learned that those figures spiked in the afternoon hours compared with the morning. During bike rides home from school, the kids were exposed to nearly 20% more pollutants than their parents. Pollution exposure was also higher for the kids when passing through high-traffic areas. 

To help prevent such high levels of pollution exposure, the researchers recommend that parents get covers for their bike trailers. These protective coverings were found to cut kids’ exposure to pollutants in half – especially during times with high traffic. 

Moving forward, the team plans to do more work in this area to better understand how pollution and traffic patterns in different regions can affect kids’ exposure when riding in bike trailers. 

A new study conducted by the American Heart Association explored how exposure to toxic metals may impact consumers’ heart health. 

According to their findings, consumers may be more likely to develop clogged arteries when they’re exposed to metals such as arsenic, cadmium, and titanium. 

“This study supports that exposure to toxic metals in the environment, even at low-levels of exposure, is toxic for cardiovascular health,” said researcher Dr. Maria Tellez-Plaza. “The levels of metals in our study population were generally lower compared to other published studies. Metals, and in particular arsenic, cadmium, and titanium, likely are relevant risk factors for atherosclerosis, even at the lowest exposure levels and among middle-aged working individuals.” 

How do toxic metals affect heart health?

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from nearly 2,000 people enrolled in the Aragon Workers Health Study who worked at an auto assembly factory in Spain. They evaluated the participants’ exposure to nine metals – including arsenic, barium, uranium, cadmium, chromium, antimony, titanium, vanadium, and tungsten – and compared their exposure levels to long-term heart health. 

The researchers learned that even low levels of exposure to toxic metals negatively affected the participants’ heart health. Arsenic, cadmium, and titanium posed the biggest threat and were linked to a higher risk of clogged arteries in the neck, heart, and legs. 

Arsenic, in particular, may contribute to the worst long-term effects on consumers’ heart health when exposure is combined with both titanium and cadmium. The researchers found that women, older people, and smokers all had higher traces of metals in their urine samples. 

“Metals are ubiquitous in the environment, and people are chronically exposed to low levels of metals,” researcher Maria Grau-Perez said. “According to the World Health Organization, 31% of the cardiovascular disease burden in the world could be avoided if we could eliminate environmental pollutants.” 

Risk of toxic metal exposure is high

Moving forward, the researchers hope more work is done to monitor consumers’ exposure to toxic metals. They say it’s especially important because these metals are widely used across several industries, many of which make cosmetic products, dental implants, and automotive parts, among several others. 

“Current global environmental, occupational, and food safety standards for cadmium, arsenic, and other metals may be insufficient to protect the population from metal-related adverse health effects,” said Dr. Tellez-Plaza. “Metal exposure prevention and mitigation has the potential to substantially improve the way we prevent and treat cardiovascular disease.” 

Single-use plastic items are convenient in consumers’ day-to-day lives, but the remnants they leave behind can be harmful to both the environment and people’s health. Now, a new study conducted by researchers from the University of California at Riverside found that exposure to dicyclohexyl phthalate (DCHP), a chemical used in plastics, may increase consumers’ risk of developing high cholesterol and cardiovascular disease. 

“To our knowledge, our study is the first to show the effects of DCHP exposure on high cholesterol and cardiovascular disease risk in mouse models,” said researcher Changcheng Zhou. “Our results provide insights and new understandings of the impact of plastic-associated chemicals on high cholesterol – or dyslipidemia – and cardiovascular disease risk.” 

Plastic may come with health risks

The researchers conducted their study on mice to get a better idea of how exposure to chemicals used in plastics can be harmful to consumers’ health. They explored specifically how DCHP affected the mice’s pregnane X receptor (PXR), which is responsible in the body for sensing toxic substances. 

Ultimately, the study showed that exposure to DCHP was linked to health risks for the mice. The researchers learned that higher exposure to the chemical increased the mice’s plasma cholesterol levels. 

“We found dicyclohexyl phthalate, or DCHP, strongly binds to a receptor called pregnane X receptor, or PXR,” said Zhou. “DCHP ‘turns on’ PXR in the gut, including the expression of key proteins required for cholesterol absorption and transport. Our experiments show that DCHP elicits high cholesterol by targeting intestinal PXR signaling.” 

The researchers also found that when PXR is compromised in this way, it can be detrimental to heart health. The study showed that the mice were more likely to have higher traces of fatty molecules called ceramides in their intestines as a result of both DCHP exposure and PXR activation. When these ceramides are present, it increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. 

“This, too, points to the potentially important role of PXR in contributing to the harmful effects of plastic-associated chemicals on cardiovascular health in humans,” said Zhou. 

While more work needs to be done to better understand the full scope of how DCHP can impact consumers’ health, the researchers hope these findings highlight some of the risks associated with plastics. 

A new study conducted by researchers from NYU Langone Health found that consumers’ proximity to fast-food restaurants may come with health risks. According to their findings, consumers have a higher chance of developing diabetes when they have greater access to fast food.

“Most studies examine the built food environment and its relationship to chronic diseases have been much smaller or conducted in localized areas,” said researcher Rania Kanchi, MPH. “Our study design is national in scope and allowed us to identify the types of communities that people are living in, characterize the food environment, and observe what happens to them over time. The size of our cohort allows for geographic generalizability in a way that other studies do not.” 

Having more fast-food restaurants nearby led to more cases of diabetes

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from 9 million people from the U.S. Veterans Health Administration. The team tracked the participants’ health for around five years and evaluated the types of restaurants that were in their neighborhoods. 

The researchers learned that participants had a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes when there were more fast-food restaurants close to their homes. Over the course of the study, over 13% of the participants developed diabetes.

Those who lived in high-density urban areas typically resided within one mile of a fast-food restaurant. Among the participants who lived in these neighborhoods, more than 14% developed diabetes. Comparatively, 12.6% of those who lived in more rural areas and had to drive to the nearest fast-food restaurant also developed diabetes. 

Moving forward, the researchers hope these findings prompt changes that could benefit consumers’ long-term health. 

“The more we learn about the relationships between the food environment and chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes, the more policymakers can act by improving the mix of healthy food options sold in restaurants and food outlets, or by creating better zoning laws that promote optimal food options for residents,” said researcher Lorna Thorpe, Ph.D. 

A new study conducted by researchers from Louisiana University explored some of the risk factors associated with childhood pneumonia. The findings showed that environmental influences, like air pollution, and social factors, like socioeconomic status, may put kids at a higher risk of contracting and being hospitalized for pneumonia. 

“This research contributes to the body of evidence linking poor respiratory health to exposure to environmental air pollution, especially combustion-derived particulate matter,” said researcher Stephania Cormier.

Many factors can impact respiratory health

For the study, the researchers analyzed several data points to better understand the risks associated with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in kids. The team looked at data from children who were hospitalized with pneumonia in Memphis, Tenn., and paid particular attention to age, race, health insurance, bacterial or viral infection, and exposure to air pollution. 

Ultimately, the researchers learned that several of these factors had significant impacts on children’s respiratory health. 

From a social standpoint, both socioeconomic status and race played important roles in the severity of the children’s infection, though race proved to be a bigger risk factor in terms of hospitalization. The researchers learned that children of color were more likely to spend time in the hospital with pneumonia than white children. 

Environmentally, children who lived in areas with higher levels of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) had a higher risk of infection and hospitalization. This was a cause for concern because even when levels of air pollution were lower than recommended guidelines, it still seriously impacted kids’ health. 

“The fact that we saw an increased risk for pediatric pneumonia at PM2.5 levels lower than what is currently allowed by the EPA is a concern and signals the need for continuous review and policy adjustment based on health effects evidence and exposure or risk information such as this,” said Cormier. 

Moving forward, the researchers hope these findings impact how consumers understand their children’s health risks, especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“COVID-19 also causes pneumonia, and our research suggests that PM2.5 may contribute to higher rates of infection and enhanced disease among those who do get sick,” Cormier said. 

A new study conducted by researchers from the University of Tsukuba explored one of the risks associated with outdoor exercise. 

According to their findings, it may be difficult for consumers to identify symptoms related to hypothermia when exercising outdoors or in the water. They say that’s because these environments may make it difficult for consumers to detect changes in body temperature. 

Monitoring body temperature during exercise

The researchers were most interested in understanding how core body temperature was affected when consumers exercise outdoors. They also wanted to see how accurately people perceived their own body temperatures and the degree to which they felt temperature changes when participating in outdoor physical activities. 

For the study, the researchers analyzed several factors, including core body temperature, perception of cold, skin temperature, and skin sensation in 11 healthy young men. The team measured these things while the participants exercised in a cold water tank and again while the group was at rest. 

Ultimately, the study showed that the participants were more successful at identifying changes in core body temperature when at rest as opposed to during exercise in a cold environment. The participants tended not to feel as physically cold during exercise as they did at rest, even though their skin temperatures were similar. 

These findings are important because they highlight the two primary ways the body regulates temperature: physiologically and biologically. While the body works naturally to adjust its temperature, the researchers say our perceptions also play a role in core body temperature.

These findings could have serious implications, especially for people who live in colder climates or regularly play winter sports. Staying mindful of body temperature when engaging in physical activity outdoors can help consumers prevent more serious symptoms associated with hypothermia. 

A new study conducted by researchers from Columbia University explored how kids’ performance in school may be impacted by exposure to air pollution. 

According to their findings, exposure to pollutants may affect comprehension and skill level in several areas, including reading, math, and cognitive outcomes. 

“Children with poor inhibitory control are less able to override a common response in favor of a more unusual one -- such as the natural response to say ‘up’ when an arrow is facing up or ‘go’ when a light is green -- and instead say ‘down’ or ‘stop,’” said researcher Amy Margolis, Ph.D. “By compromising childhood inhibitory control, prenatal exposure to air pollution may alter the foundation upon which later academic skills are built.”  

Consequences of air pollution exposure

For the study, the researchers tracked the cognitive and academic outcomes for more than 200 children in the Bronx and Manhattan from the time their mothers were pregnant until they were 13. They analyzed pollution levels when the women were in their third trimesters and then evaluated the participants’ academic and behavioral performance for over a decade.

The study showed that children exposed to the highest levels of air pollution were the most likely to struggle academically. High air pollution exposure was linked with poorer results in spelling, reading comprehension, and math abilities. Moving forward, the researchers hope these findings highlight one of the risks associated with prenatal air pollution exposure.

“This study adds to a growing body of literature showing the deleterious health effects of prenatal exposure to air pollution on child health outcomes, including academic achievement,” said researcher Julie Herbstman, Ph.D. “Reducing levels of air pollution may prevent these adverse outcomes and lead to improvements in children’s academic achievement.” 

Recent studies have highlighted how exposure to high levels of air pollution can affect kids’ development. Now, a new study conducted by researchers from Lehigh University has found that exposure to another form of pollution could increase pregnant women’s risk of preterm birth. 

According to the researchers, light pollution can increase the risk for several pregnancy complications, including premature birth and low birth weight. 

How can consumers’ behaviors contribute to light pollution?

For the study, the researchers measured skyglow and what effect it had on women having a full, healthy pregnancy. Skyglow refers to nighttime brightness, and it is created by both natural and manmade sources -- like the reflection of sunlight on earth or street lights that reflect into the sky. The researchers say high levels of skyglow can be dangerous because it typically means there are higher levels of light pollution. 

The researchers learned that women who were exposed to the highest levels of light pollution were nearly 13 percent more likely to have a premature birth, and those who live in urban areas or major cities were found to be more at risk.

The team believes that nighttime brightness can affect pregnancy because exposure to light disrupts the body’s natural circadian rhythm. However, this doesn’t just happen due to natural circumstances. Consumers who spend a great deal of time in front of artificial light at night -- such as screens, candles, lamps, etc. -- are more likely to have their circadian rhythms thrown off.

“While greater use of artificial light at night is often associated with greater economic prosperity, our study highlights an often neglected health benefit of darkness,” said researcher Muzhe Yang. “We must realize that the biological clock (i.e., the circadian rhythm) of a human body, like all lives on the earth, needs the ‘darkness’ as part of the light-dark cycle, in order to effectively regulate physiological functions, such as sleep.” 

Though their findings are specifically geared toward pregnant women, the researchers hope that consumers recognize just how detrimental light pollution can be to anyone. 

While recent studies have shown how environmental factors can increase the likelihood of young kids developing asthma, a new study conducted by researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine is exploring how kids’ diets can also play a role. 

According to the researchers, kids who consume higher quantities of meat could experience more severe asthma symptoms than those who eat less meat. They say this is because of the large traces of a compound found in non-seafood meat known as advanced glycation end-products (AGEs). 

“We found that higher dietary consumption of dietary AGEs, which are largely derived from intake of non-seafood meats, was associated with increased risk of wheezing in children, regardless of overall diet quality or an established diagnosis of asthma,” said researcher Dr. Jing Gennie Wang. 

Improving health outcomes

To understand how kids’ meat consumption can affect asthma symptoms, the researchers evaluated data from over 4,300 kids enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The survey included information on the kids’ typical diets and their experience with asthma symptoms. 

The researchers learned that when kids consumed higher levels of AGEs, they were more likely to experience more severe asthma symptoms -- regardless of whether or not they had been diagnosed with asthma. 

Wheezing was found to be the most problematic symptom for the kids in the study, which makes sense when thinking about the nutritional make-up of foods that are high in AGEs. The researchers explained that AGEs increase inflammation, and that makes wheezing more likely. 

The study revealed that wheezing often affected kids as they were trying to go about their regular day-to-day routines. Activities like exercise or sleep were interrupted by wheezing, and many of the kids needed prescription medication to treat their asthma symptoms. 

Though these findings highlight a concern for young kids’ respiratory health, the researchers hope that parents and caregivers understand the importance of making healthier choices. Following a healthy diet can promote better overall health outcomes and help kids manage their asthma symptoms beyond childhood. 

“Research identifying dietary factors that influence respiratory symptoms in children is important, as these risks are potentially modifiable and can help guide health recommendations,” said researcher Dr. Sonali Bose. “Our findings will hopefully inform future longitudinal studies to further investigate whether these specific dietary components play a role in childhood airways disease such as asthma.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the Karolinska Institute explored what factors could contribute to young people developing lung disease. 

According to their findings, consumers in their mid-twenties are likely to experience lung disease from a combination of influences from their childhoods, including a history with asthma, smoking, or exposure to air pollution.

Identifying risk factors

The researchers analyzed results from over 4,000 participants who were involved in the BAMSE (Child, Allergy, Milieu, Stockholm, Epidemiological) birth cohort study in Sweden. The researchers evaluated their health records when they reached 24 years old, and they were primarily interested in chronic lung disease, which included chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), chronic bronchitis, and irreversible airflow irritation. 

The researchers identified three primary factors that increase young adults’ risk of developing chronic lung disease: childhood asthma, exposure to air pollution, and smoking. Current smokers were responsible for nearly 40 percent of the chronic bronchitis cases, and nearly half of the participants who experienced chronic bronchitis also self-reported more respiratory infections than those without the condition. 

“To our surprise, we found the prevalence of chronic bronchitis and irreversible airflow irritation to be rather high (5.5 percent and 2 percent, respectively), considering the young age of the study participants,” said researcher Erik Melen. “Those diseases are usually diagnosed in patients older than 50 years of age,” added researcher Anders Linde. 

Rural consumers less at risk

Though this study focused on a young population, the results highlight just how powerful -- and preventable -- these risks are. The findings suggest that it doesn’t take years of smoking to develop lung disease; in fact, only a brief window of exposure was enough to greatly affect the participants’ lung function. Similarly, the researchers explained that lung disease related to air pollution exposure was the worst for those who lived close to high-traffic areas, which indicates that those in more rural areas could have better health outcomes. 

“The levels of air pollutants in the current study mainly reflect local emissions from road traffic, which implies that this preventable risk factor may play an important role in the development of chronic lung disease in young adults,” said Melen. 

Moving forward, the researchers hope that these findings highlight how preventative measures taken in the early part of life could benefit consumers’ lung health as they move through young adulthood. 

“The take-home message is: If you want to prevent disease, early prevention is the key to success,” Melen said. 

While consumers certainly have their preference when it comes to living in busier cities or more rural towns, recent studies have found that the decision could actually have greater implications than many realize. 

Researchers from the University of British Columbia found that living closer to major roadways was associated with an increased risk of several serious neurological conditions, such as Parkinson’s and dementia. According to the researchers, air pollution is to blame in these cases. 

“For the first time, we have confirmed a link between air pollution and traffic proximity with a higher risk of dementia, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and MS at the population level,” said researcher Weiran Yuchi. “The good news is that green spaces appear to have some protective effects in reducing the risk of developing one or more of these disorders. More research is needed, but our findings do suggest that urban planning efforts to increase accessibility to green spaces and to reduce motor vehicle traffic would be beneficial for neurological health.” 

Proximity matters

To understand how living closer to busier roads and having greater exposure to air pollution can affect consumers’ health, the researchers looked at data from nearly 700,000 adults living in the city of Vancouver. 

They evaluated the participants’ home addresses to determine their exposure to air pollution, how close they were to green spaces, and how much noise they’re typically exposed to. 

Ultimately, the researchers couldn’t find a direct correlation between air pollution affecting Alzheimer’s or multiple sclerosis (MS); however, they did notice that cases of dementia and Parkinson’s increased over time and were in direct connection to where the participants lived. 

While the initial analysis occurred between 1994 and 1998, the researchers followed up with the participants over the next four years. In that time, there were over 13,000 new cases of dementia and over 4,200 new cases of Parkinson’s. 

The researchers explained that consumers didn’t necessarily need to live on a major street, but being in close enough proximity, which they found was anywhere between 50 and 150 meters from a highway, was associated with an increased risk of these conditions. 

The power of green spaces

The researchers found that the risk for any neurological disorder decreased when there were green spaces nearby, further emphasizing the importance of such areas, especially in busy cities. 

“For people who are exposed to a higher level of green space, they are more likely to be physically active and may also have more social interactions,” said researcher Michael Brauer. “There may even be benefits from just the visual aspects of vegetation.” 

Living near green spaces has been touted as being incredibly beneficial for consumers, as researchers have found positive effects on consumers’ mental and physical health.

Researchers from Imperial College in London recently found that poor air quality and an overall increase in air pollution could lead Americans to an early death. 

In evaluating levels of fine particulate matter, known as PM2.5, the researchers determined that the emissions are high enough to increase the risk of mortality for rou

“U.S. PM2.5 concentrations are generally lower than those in many European cities -- which suggests there may also be [a] substantial number of deaths in Europe associated with air pollution” said researcher Majid Ezzati. 

The push for clean air

Using a combination of satellite images and data from over 750 air quality monitoring systems that spanned the country, the researchers were able to get statistical values of PM2.5 and see how those levels have been affecting consumers’ health. 

In looking at death records between 1999 and 2015, they were able to determine how many of those deaths were related to air pollution. They then estimated how PM2.5 levels could affect those numbers. 

One positive finding from the study was that PM2.5 levels are actually on the decline, and have been for the past two decades. However, the current level of emissions were still found to be dangerous for consumers’ overall health, and could be the cause of death for nearly 30,000 people. 

To put the numbers into perspective, the United States has set their annual PM2.5 standard at 12 micrograms per cubic meter of air (ug/m3). This study has recorded PM2.5 levels that were significantly under that benchmark for the most part, with totals ranging from 2.8 ug/m3 to 13.2 ug/m3. However, even on the lower end, these emissions were associated with health hazards. 

The researchers found that breathing in PM2.5 even at considerably lower levels than what the U.S. deems dangerous can lead to a slew of cardiovascular issues, including heart disease, lung disease, heart attack, or asthma. The researchers hope lawmakers see the significance behind these results so that they can work to lower the standard PM2.5 levels. 

“We’ve known for some time that these particles can be deadly,” said Ezzati. “This study suggests even at seemingly low concentrations -- mostly below current limits -- they still cause tens of thousands of deaths. Lowering the PM2.5 standard below the current level is likely to improve the health of the U.S. nation, and reduce the health inequality.”

Air pollution has been dominating headlines as of late, as the risks that come with the fumes are well-documented. Now, researchers from Washington State University are exploring the harms that are right inside consumers’ homes.

The study revealed that many consumers are living with air pollution inside their homes, which can be affected by temperature changes or time of day and can leave residents at risk.

“People think of air pollution as an outdoor problem, but they fail to recognize that they’re exposing themselves to much higher emission rates inside their homes,” said researcher Tom Jobson.

Preventing risks at home

While steps have been taken to help regulate air pollution outdoors, legislators have skimmed over consumers’ homes.

To see how consumers are being affected at home, the researchers evaluated homes that reflect the current model and year of those most commonly found in the United States and found that many have higher than normal levels of pollutants within their four walls.

Mercury and formaldehyde were the two most common pollutants, and the study revealed that different temperatures and times of day can affect the pollution level in consumers’ homes.

“As a home gets hotter, there is a lot more formaldehyde in the home,” said Jobson. “The materials are hotter and they off-gas at higher rates.”

Contrary to what many have previously believed, pollutant levels differ throughout the course of the day, peaking in the afternoon hours, while they’re lowest during morning time.

There’s no one thing that can increase the likelihood of indoor air pollution, as the researchers note the emissions can come from just about anything -- day-to-day chores, cooking, cleaning products, or furniture.

However, there is a foolproof way to reduce emissions in the home: keep the house ventilated, particularly with easy access to windows and doors.

“Exposure to these chemicals impacts people’s ability to think and learn,” Jobson said. “It’s important for people to be more cognizant of the risk -- opening a window is a good thing. We have to balance making more energy efficient homes with protecting our health and cognitive function.”

Air pollution-related risks

Air pollution affects all those who breathe in its emissions, but recently, researchers have explored the countless ways children are affected by the pollutants.

While general health problems are worsened due to air pollution, children are also affected in the classroom and on the scale. Most recently, researchers have found that children’s anxiety symptoms worsened when they were exposed to traffic-related air pollution.

“I think it can speak to a bigger impact on population health...that increased exposure to air pollution can trigger the brain’s inflammatory response...” researcher Dr. Kelly Brunst said. “This may indicate that certain populations are at an increased risk for poorer anxiety outcomes.”

Researchers from George Washington University recently conducted a study which found that traffic-related pollution causes millions of cases of childhood asthma all over the world.

According to the study, over four million cases of asthma can be attributed to traffic-related pollution, and over 60 percent of those cases are found in children who live in urban areas.

“Our findings suggest that millions of new cases of pediatric asthma could be prevented in cities around the world by reducing air pollution,” said researcher Susan C. Anenberg, PhD.

Worldwide implications

To see how traffic played a role in childhood asthma cases, the researchers gathered data on nearly 200 countries and over 120 cities around the world.

The team analyzed asthma rates related to traffic-related emissions in cities and countries where there were large numbers of children. Overall levels of nitrogen dioxide emissions, which is the gas most closely associated with car exhaust, were also measured.

The researchers tracked these numbers from 2010 through 2015, finding that over four million children developed asthma annually in direct relation to their exposure to nitrogen dioxide. Of the countries they analyzed, China was the biggest offender of pollution-related asthma cases, followed by India and the United States.

Across the United States, cities like Las Vegas, New York, Milwaukee, Chicago, and Los Angeles took the top spots for cases of childhood asthma because of traffic pollution.

According to the researchers, the cities and countries that put their citizens at the greatest risk of developing asthma were also leaders in greenhouse gas emissions, proving that residents in these places are exposed to more pollution than just nitrogen dioxide. Overall, nitrogen dioxide exposure was the impetus for 13 percent of all childhood asthma cases.

Moving forward, the researchers hope that these findings inspire policymakers to make the changes necessary to improve children’s health around the globe.

“Improving access to cleaner forms of transportation, like electrified public transport and active commuting by cycling and walking, would not only bring down [nitrogen dioxide] levels, but would also reduce asthma, enhance physical fitness, and cut greenhouse gas emissions,” said Dr. Anenberg.

Protecting children’s health

Last year, the World Health Organization (WHO) found that air pollution kills seven million people annually, proving just how dangerous these chemicals can be.

Researchers have found that air pollution is increasing health problems among the youngest demographic, as the noxious gases can lead to impaired cognitive abilities, respiratory illness, and childhood cancer, among other conditions.

Both air pollution and asthma were also linked to an increased risk of children developing obesity, which can lead to several other health complications later in life. However, on a more positive note, researchers have found that when city-dwelling children who also have asthma live near parks, their symptoms tend to be milder.

Air pollution is certainly not a new issue. Fossil fuel emissions have come to be a longstanding environmental concern, as the noxious gases contribute to several negative health consequences.

Though the risks associated with air pollution have long been documented, researchers from the Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health (CCCEH) analyzed over 200 peer-reviewed studies that have previously explored children’s health risks that come with air pollution to produce some staggering evidence.

“Policies to reduce fossil fuel emissions serve a dual purpose, both reducing air pollution and mitigating climate change, with sizable combined health and economic benefits,” said Dr. Frederica Perera. “However, because only a few adverse outcomes in children have been considered, policymakers and the public have not yet seen the extent of the potential benefits of clean air and climate change policies, particularly for children.”

Assessing the health risks

The researchers analyzed over two hundred studies that spanned nearly two decades to get a comprehensive picture of what children are experiencing due to air pollution. Each paper looked at children’s health after being exposed to the emissions.

The researchers found that children can feel the effects of air pollution from birth, and it can also manifest itself in childhood cancer, impaired development or cognitive abilities, and respiratory illness.

Additionally, the combustion of fossil fuel was also found to be a contributing factor to several other negative health outcomes for children. As the climate continues to change, and natural disasters like flooding, forest fires, intense storms, or droughts happen more frequently, children’s likelihood of compromised mental health, injury, illness, or death has increased.

“There is extensive evidence on the many harms of air pollution on children’s health,” said Dr. Perera. “Our paper presents these findings in a convenient fashion to support clean air and climate change policies that protect children’s health.”

The researchers are hopeful that these findings will influence lawmakers over the long-term, and they hope children’s health will be taken into greater consideration.

A consistent problem

While air pollution has been addressed by legislators in recent years, the effects of fossil fuel emissions are wide-reaching. Most recently, researchers found that air pollution was sending more people to the emergency room with cardiovascular issues.

The World Health Organization reported earlier this year that air pollution kills seven million people each year, while researchers have also found that air pollution could be linked to an increased risk of dementia and affect children’s performance in school.

Within the past few years, reusable grocery bags have become a popular option for environmentally-conscious shoppers, but the U.K. Food Standards Agency warns they could house dangerous bacteria unless regularly cleaned.

Recent updates to agency guidelines underscore the importance of cleaning reusable grocery bags, citing studies showing reusable bags contain bacteria that can cause foodborne illness. 

A 2013 study led by University of Arizona and Loma Linda University found almost all of the reusable bags randomly selected from customers entering a grocery store contained a significant amount of bacteria. Nearly half of the bags contained coliform bacteria and 12 percent contained E.Coli. 

Breeding ground for bacteria

Additional findings from the study revealed the potential health risks of accidentally leaving meat in a reusable bag. When meat juices (such as those that might leak from a butcher package) were added to the bag and left in a car for two hours, the bacteria in the bags grew tenfold. 

Bacteria can form quickly, which is bad news for those who never wash their reusable bags. If this applies to you, you’re not alone; the same study found that most people seldom, if ever, washed their reusable bags. 

But washing the bags -- either by hand or machine -- reduced the amount of bacteria present by 99 percent. Another way to reduce your risk of contracting a foodborne illness? Separate your groceries. 

Reducing cross-contamination

Separating foods by meats, fresh produce, and household/dry items can drastically cut the risk of cross-contamination (as can never using your grocery bags for other purposes, like carrying your gym clothes). 

Here are a few other tips to keep your reusable grocery bags clean and prevent the spread of foodborne illness, according to the U.S. Food Safety website:

• Wash bags once every two weeks. To banish bacteria, wash your reusable bags at least once every two weeks in hot water and detergent. To clean insulated shopping bags, wipe them with a disinfecting wipe after each use (especially if you used it to carry meat).
• Separate foods. Consider using separate bags for raw fruits and vegetables, raw meat, and other products. This can help reduce the risk of foodborne illness derived from cross-contamination. 
• Use plastic bags (for meat, that is). Put your raw meat products in a disposable plastic bag before placing it in your reusable shopping bag. 
• Don’t store in a hot place. When not in use, store your bags in a cool, dry place like a pantry. Bacteria can spread more quickly in hot places, like the inside of a car. 

Bacteria are getting stronger and more resistant to the miracle drugs that have fought infection and saved millions of lives over the last few decades.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has blamed the prevalence of antibiotics in the environment, with doctors overprescribing the drugs and livestock producers using too many of them in animals. Some healthcare providers may have cut back on the use of the drugs, but two studies suggest there's room for improvement.

Researchers at the University of Georgia have identified sinus infections as the biggest reason doctors write a prescription for antibiotics. They contend, however, that bacteria cause only about a third of sinus infections, so many patients are taking the drugs unnecessarily.

Bacterial vs. viral

“A lot of the signs and symptoms of a bacterial sinus infection can be similar to those of a viral respiratory infection,” said University of Georgia researcher Mark Ebell. “It can be difficult to distinguish between the two just using individual signs and symptoms.”

So Ebell developed new rules for diagnosing sinus infections, or acute rhinosinusitis. The rules integrate patient symptoms and lab tests to accurately detect when bacteria is the cause of the infection.

“We need to give physicians better tools to support their decision-making, and that can include clinical decision rules and point of care tests,” Ebell said. “Using these kinds of tools, we can hopefully reduce unnecessary antibiotic use.”

When patients are prescribed antibiotics, they are instructed to take all of the pills as directed, even if their symptoms disappear and they are feeling better. That's been the standard for decades.

Researchers writing in the British Medical Journal suggest that's a misguided policy that might be contributing to antibiotic resistance.

Reducing unnecessary use

"The relation between antibiotic exposure and antibiotic resistance is unambiguous both at the population level and in individual patients," the authors write. "Reducing unnecessary antibiotic use is therefore essential to mitigate antibiotic resistance."

The study suggests stopping antibiotic treatment before the entire amount of medication has been taken does not appear to increase antibiotic resistance. On the other hand, they say taking antibiotics for a longer period than necessary could contribute to the problem. Patients prescribed antibiotics, however, should continue to follow their doctor's instructions.

The WHO says antibiotic resistance is "one of the biggest threats to global health, food security, and development today." It has found that a growing number of infections, including pneumonia, tuberculosis, and gonorrhea have become harder to treat because they are becoming resistant to antibiotics.

California's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) has announced it will list glyphosate, an herbicide found in Monsanto's best-selling Roundup weedkiller, as a known carcinogen.

The effective date is July 7, 2017. The announcement had been delayed while Monsanto challenged the state's intended action in court. A court dismissed the case Monday and OEHHA said it did not impose a stay while the chemical company filed an appeal.

If the court's decision stands, products using or exposed to glyphosate would be required to carry a warning label when sold in California.

Monsanto issued a statement in response to the court's ruling, calling it "unwarranted on the basis of science and the law."

'Probably carcinogenic'

Glyphosate has been a target of environmentalists and some health officials since the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a finding in 2015, saying the substance is “probably carcinogenic.”

Monsanto sued California 18 months ago to block it from adding Roundup to the Proposition 65 list of chemicals known to cause cancer, birth defects, and other reproductive damage. Prop. 65 requires the state to label all substances identified as carcinogenic or dangerous to the reproductive process.

Monsanto filed the suit in Fresno County, Calif., maintaining glyphosate is not harmful. The use of the chemical has increased in recent years, as agricultural operations have used it on a variety of crops. Consumers are likely most familiar with it as the active ingredient in the weedkiller Roundup, used to control unwanted vegetation in suburban lawns and driveways.

The company said California's OEHHA tested glyphosate in 1997 and 2007 and found it did not present a cancer risk to humans.

If you're paying more for antimicrobial or antibacterial soaps than other products, more than 200 scientists and medical professionals say you're wasting your money, doing nothing for your health, and harming the environment.

“People think antimicrobial hand soaps offer better protection against illness. But generally, antimicrobial soaps perform no better than plain soap and water,” said Barbara Sattler, RN, DrPH, FAAN, environmental health professor at the University of San Francisco. 

Last fall, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) determined that 19 different antimicrobial chemicals, including infamous triclosan and triclocarban, were not effective and should not be marketed for use in over-the-counter consumer wash products. Now, 200 scientists say the FDA’s decision does not go far enough to protect consumers and the environment.

While there has been some reduction in the use of triclosan and triclocarban, soap brands are using different additives that may be as bad or even worse. 

No evidence they work

“I was happy that the FDA finally acted to remove these chemicals from soaps. But I was dismayed to discover at my local drugstore that most products now contain substitutes that may be worse,” said Arlene Blum, PhD, Executive Director of Green Science Policy Institute. Antimicrobials are also commonplace in products where you wouldn’t expect them, including paints, exercise mats, flooring, apparel, food storage containers, home textiles, electronics, kitchenware, school supplies, and countertops. 

“Customers may think added antimicrobials are a way to reduce infections, but in most products there is no evidence that they do,” said Ted Schettler, MD, MPH, Science Director of the Science and Environmental Health Network. 

“Added antimicrobials are marketed as beneficial in building products from countertops to doorknobs and light switches” said Bill Walsh, President of Healthy Building Network, which recently produced a white paper on antimicrobial building products. “Antimicrobial preservatives are useful in certain products like paints, but we found claims about health benefits to be largely invalid.” Nevertheless, sales of “antimicrobial” performance products are projected to grow.

Scientists and health professionals agree that non-medical uses of antimicrobials should be reduced. “Environmental and human exposures to triclosan and triclocarban are widespread, affecting pregnant women, developing fetuses, and breast-feeding babies,” said Rolf Halden, PhD, PE, professor of engineering at Arizona State University. “We must develop better alternatives and prevent unneeded exposures to antimicrobial chemicals.”

It seems that good air quality is a precious commodity these days. In a recent study, researchers were able to identify many major sources of in-home air pollution that could lead to respiratory problems and even kidney failure. Now, a new study shows that the air outside may be damaging our DNA.

Researchers from the University of California, Berkeley have found evidence that air pollution from traffic damages and shortens a region of our DNA called telomeres.

Telomeres are basically protein endcaps found at the end of our chromosomes. Researchers say that the length of the caps generally measure our biological clocks – the longer the telomere, the younger someone is biologically regardless of their actual age. Having a shorter telomere, which the researchers suggest air pollution causes, would indicate advanced biological aging that could result in variety of health problems over time.

"Our results suggest that telomere length may have potential for use as a biomarker of DNA damage due to environmental exposures and/or chronic inflammation," the researchers said.

Especially harmful to children and young people

The study analyzed the relationship between polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), a pervasive air pollutant found in motor vehicle exhaust, and telomere length in fourteen children from Fresno, Calif. – the second-most polluted U.S. city.

The results showed that participants’ who had more exposure to PAHs had shorter telomere lengths, even after adjusting for factors like age, sex, race/ethnicity, and presence of asthma. The researchers theorize that the PAHs from vehicle exhaust cause oxidative stress that damages lipids, proteins, and DNA and ultimately leads to telomere shortening.

The researchers further note that telomere shortening could be especially harmful to children and young consumers because their bodies operate under different internal regulations. They say that younger people may become more vulnerable to air pollution and its negative health effects over time when compared to older consumers.

Informing new policies

The researchers believe their work could help lawmakers design and implement interventions and policies that could reduce air pollution and PAHs. They say the data they collected will be used as part of a larger study that should corroborate their findings.

"Greater knowledge of the impact of air pollution at the molecular level is necessary to design effective interventions and policies," said co-author Dr. John R. Balmes.

The full study has been published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

Previous studies have linked poor air quality in the home to respiratory problems and even kidney failure, but what are the main contributors to in-home air pollution?

Most people would naturally point to habits like cigarette smoking as the primary cause, but a new study from San Diego State University found that there are, in fact, several sources of air pollution that can be found in any home. The research was conducted in the hopes of finding ways to improve air quality for families with children.

"The aim of our research is, ultimately, to find effective ways to promote smoke-free homes and also to find good strategies, in general, for reducing exposure to household pollution. The findings from our work will allow for better education and feedback to families,” said lead author Neil Klepeis.

Sources of air pollution

Klepeis and his colleagues recruited nearly 300 San Diego-based families with at least one child to participate in the study. Air particle monitors were installed in areas of the home where the child slept and where any smoking activity usually occurred.

Over a three-month period, the monitors measured air quality data and transmitted it to the researchers for analysis. During that same time, the researchers conducted two interviews that asked participants about any activities that were going on in the house that would affect air quality, such as cooking, cleaning, or smoking habits.

At the study’s conclusion, the researchers found that tobacco smoking was indeed one of the leading causes of in-home air pollution, but surprisingly there were other sources that warranted concern.

The researchers found for the first time that marijuana smoking produced just as much in-home air pollution as tobacco smoking. The researchers say that other sources such as burning candles and incense, frying food in oil, and spraying cleaning products also increased the number of fine air particles in the air that could be harmful to residents’ health.

Understanding risks

Going forward, Klepeis said that he and his team would continue trying to improve air monitoring services so that families better understand the health risks of certain habits and products they use in the home.

"Our research team is continuing to develop novel monitoring devices and approaches that consumers can use to understand their air quality, and to explore ways that work for them and their families to reduce unhealthy pollutant exposures, especially for kids," he said.

The full study has been published in PLOS ONE.

In recent years, researchers have been trying to determine why allergies in children seem to be on the rise. Some experts have theorized that consumers in industrialized nations live in cleaner environments and are not exposed to enough bacteria to build up a resistance.

Now, a new study suggests that phthalates in plastic products could be the culprit. Researchers at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) in Leipzig, Germany say that children are more likely to develop allergic asthma if their mothers were exposed to phthalates during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

“It is a well-known fact that phthalates affect our hormone system and can thereby have an adverse effect on our metabolism or fertility. But that’s not the end of it. The results of our current study demonstrate that phthalates also interfere with the immune system and can significantly increase the risk of developing allergies,” said UFZ environmental immunologist Dr. Tobias Polte.

Exposure leads to allergies

For those who don’t know, phthalates are used by companies as plasticizers during the manufacturing process to make products more flexible. However, these chemicals can enter our bodies through skin contact, foodstuffs, and respiration and can disrupt several internal processes.

The UFZ researchers conducted a mother-child cohort study in mouse models to see what effect phthalate exposure had on mice offspring. The models were exposed to certain levels of phthalates during their pregnancy and lactation periods, and then the offspring were analyzed to see if the chemicals had any effect on their allergic responses.

While the findings showed that the adult mice were not affected by the phthalate exposure, their offspring had a “clear tendency” to develop allergic asthma, a trait that was even passed down to third generation mice.

“The time factor is therefore decisive: if the organism is exposed to phthalates during the early stages of development, this may have effects on the risk of illness for the two subsequent generations. The prenatal development process is thus clearly altered by phthalate exposure,” said Polte.

Methyl groups and DNA

Deeper investigation by Polte and his team found that phthalates affected developing mice at the genetic level. An analysis revealed that so-called “methyl groups” had become attached to the DNA of developing mice that were exposed to the chemicals, which inhibited the production of certain proteins.

When the researchers treated affected mice with a substance meant to break the methyl groups, the mice demonstrated fewer signs of allergic asthma. To see if the same process could be affecting human children, Polte and his colleagues consulted a cohort study and found similar genetic disturbances.

"Thanks to our translational study approach - which led from humans via the mouse model and cellular culture back to humans again - we have been able to demonstrate that epigenetic modifications are apparently responsible for the fact that children of mothers who had a high exposure to phthalates during pregnancy and breastfeeding have an increased risk of developing allergic asthma," says Polte.

Going forward, the researchers intend to investigate why phthalates lead to gene methylation and how this leads to the development of allergies.

The full study has been published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 

Despite efforts to reduce the effects of flame retardants used in furniture, electronics, and other devices, researchers continue to find health risks related to the chemicals. The latest study ties flame retardants to developmental problems in children.

Researchers from Oregon State University found a "significant relationship" between social behaviors among children and their exposure to widely used flame retardants, said Molly Kile, an environmental epidemiologist and associate professor in the College of Public Health and Human Sciences at OSU.

"When we analyzed behavior assessments and exposure levels, we observed that the children who had more exposure to certain types of the flame retardant were more likely to exhibit externalizing behaviors such as aggression, defiance, hyperactivity, inattention and bullying," said Kile, the corresponding author of the study, published in the journal Environmental Health.

"This is an intriguing finding because no one had previously studied the behavioral effects of organophosphate classes of flame retardants, which have been added to consumer products more recently," Kile said.

Foundation for success

Manufacturers started adding flame retardants in 1975 in response to a new California law aimed at reducing flammability in common household items. That law has since been revised, but the chemicals are still widely used and their effects linger. 

The most common types of flame retardants are brominated diphenyl ethers (BDEs) and organophosphate-based flame retardants (OPFRs). 

Past research has shown that both BDEs and OPFRs are linked to poorer cognitive function in children. But less is known about the relationship between the flame retardants and children's social and emotional health, particularly during early childhood, a key developmental period for learning.

"The social skills children learn during preschool set the foundation for their success in school, and also for their social and emotional health and well-being later in life," said Shannon Lipscomb, an associate professor and lead of the human development and family sciences program at OSU-Cascades and a co-author of the study.

Negative social effects

For this study, the OSU research team recruited 92 Oregon children between ages 3-5 to wear a silicone wristband for seven days to measure exposure to flame retardants. They found that all of the children had some exposure to the chemicals 

Children who had higher exposure rates of OFPRs showed less responsible behavior and more aggression, defiance, hyperactivity, inattention, and bullying behaviors. Children with higher exposure to BDEs were seen as less assertive by their teachers. All of these social skills play an important role in a child's ability to succeed academically and socially.

"We detected these links between flame retardant and children's social behaviors while controlling for differences in family demographics, home learning environments and adversity," Lipscomb said. "This suggests that flame retardants may have a unique effect on development apart from the effects of children's early social experiences."

Further study is needed, the researchers said.

Eating fish can be part of a healthy diet. A balancing concern, however, is the amount of mercury consumers might ingest along with the fish.

It's an unfortunate fact that mercury is in the environment and, when it gets in the water, it also gets into fish. Researchers presenting their findings at the American Academy of Neurology meeting in Boston in April are offering a preview.

They say they found that increased consumption of high levels of mercury from seafood is associated with a greater risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. ALS is a progressive neurological disease that is ultimately fatal.

The researchers make a distinction between species, however. They say just eating a lot of seafood is not associated with a greater risk of ALS.

The study

To reach their conclusions, the researchers studied more than 500 people. More than half had been diagnosed with ALS.

The participants were quizzed on how much fish was in their diet, whether it came from the supermarket or was wild-caught, and the types of fish they ate. Researchers compared the species and noted whether they tended to be high or low in mercury contamination.

For example, swordfish and shark are considered high in mercury, while salmon and sardines are on the lower end of the scale. Toenail samples were collected from both groups and the mercury levels were measured.

Researchers also measured the levels of mercury found in toenail samples from participants with ALS and compared those levels to people without ALS.

Twice as likely to have ALS

The researchers said the link was not hard to find. Among people in both groups, those who ate the most fish were twice as likely to be in the group that had been diagnosed with ALS.

More than 60% of the group with ALS were in the top 25% of estimated mercury consumption, compared to 44% of those who didn't have the disease.

Those who had the most mercury in their toenail samples were more likely to be in the ALS group.

The researcher point out that their study is merely preliminary and needs to be replicated by additional studies. They also point out they are not suggesting consumers avoid fish, but rather choose species that are lower in mercury.

Last month, the government issued advice to consumers about what fish to eat and what to avoid. The agencies involved found pregnant women were not eating enough healthy fish, and advised them to consume more salmon and avoid swordfish.

Last June, Barack Obama signed an environmental bill into law that enjoyed rare bipartisan support from Congress. The Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, named for the senator who had drafted the bill years earlier before dying in 2013, was celebrated by some environmentalists, EPA officials, and Obama as the first real chemical safety reform the United States had seen in decades. 

Previously, all chemicals in commerce in the United States were regulated under the Toxic Control Substances Act of 1976, a law that environmental groups like the National Resources Defense Council said was deeply flawed and ineffective. The original TCSA law grandfathered in an estimated 80,000 chemicals without safety testing, allowing companies to sell products containing chemicals for which little data was available.

The Lautenberg act, an amendment meant to reform the TSCA, was supposed to give regulators the power to demand safety reviews for commonly-used chemicals and require safety testing for new chemicals before they enter the market. Change, as always, would happen incrementally. 

“Under the new law, we now have the power to require safety reviews of all chemicals in the marketplace," Jim Jones, assistant administrator of the of Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention, said in a press release following the bill's passage.

Asbestos from Montana mine brings new questions

In late November, EPA officials announced ten chemicals that they would evaluate under the new law. "If it is determined that a chemical presents an unreasonable risk, EPA must mitigate that risk within two years," the EPA explained at the time. Included in that list was asbestos, which the agency has already acknowledged causes lung disease. The EPA had tried to implement a ban on many asbestos-containing products in 1989, but a federal court overturned the regulations.

About a decade later, residents in the town of Libby, Montana discovered that a W.R. Grace and Co. vermiculite mine just outside town had spread asbestos dust throughout the region. As many as 400 people died as a result, officials estimated. EPA officials from Region 8 spent the next 18 years overseeing the cleanup of a reported 2,000 properties nearby, as well as the mine itself. 

The local clean-up was coming to a close shortly before Trump took office. 

A warning for other homeowners?

Millions of homes and businesses across the country are likely still insulated with asbestos-contaminated vermiculite from Libby, according to the Billings Gazette. But while the EPA implemented a local clean-up, the agency would not commit to informing the millions of other property owners across the country about the risks they faced, the local paper recently reported. 

“It’s too early to say what the result will be and what action EPA will take. TSCA requires these chemical risk evaluations be completed within three years,” the paper quoted an EPA spokesperson as saying. The spokesman's comments, made shortly before Trump implemented what has been described as a "gag order" on EPA officials, drew criticism from public health advocates, who accused the agency of dragging its feet.

With gag order, state of chemical safety is unclear

Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, Donald Trump has claimed in interviews that asbestos is "100 percent safe, once applied." Trump was also sued by undocumented Polish immigrant workers in the late 90s who said they were exposed to asbestos during the construction of Trump Tower.

What Trump's pro-asbestos, anti-EPA attitude means for the fate of asbestos regulations under the EPA remains unclear. News outlets reported last week that employees at some federal agencies, including the EPA, were instructed to cease sending news releases or social media updates to the public. A memo sent to the EPA, obtained by the Washington Post, said that "a digital strategist will be coming on board" to screen the EPA's comments, adding that, “Incoming media requests will [be] carefully screened.”

Asked about the asbestos contamination in Libby, Montana, and whether the EPA will warn other affected homeowners about the contaminated insulation, an EPA spokesman responded to ConsumerAffairs with a brief email: "Checking," is all it said. 

Earlier this year, the Environmental Protection Agency put out a notice that appeared to strike fear in the agricultural pesticide industry, or the crop-protection industry, as they like to call themselves.

Reviewing glyphosate's cancer-causing potential would be the responsibility of nearly a dozen scientists handpicked by the EPA, including Dr. Peter Infante, an epidemiologist, environmental health researcher, and consultant who spent over two decades working for the federal government in the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Infante, according to the EPA's glowing descriptions of him, "played a major role in determining cancer and other risks to workers during the development of standards for a number of toxic substances, including asbestos, arsenic, benzene, cadmium, ethylene oxide, formaldehyde, lead and MDA."

Whether or not glyphosate is a carcinogen is still debated among researchers and agencies. In the past year, separate panels working for the World Health Organization issued two different opinions on the matter. 

Industry objects to government scientist

While federal regulators praised Infante for his role in determining the cancer-causing potential of toxic chemicals, the pesticide industry was singing a different tune. CropLifeAmerica is the trade group that represents Monsanto and other pesticide-makers. It describes its members in rosier terms, as "distributors of crop protection chemicals and plant science solutions for agriculture and pest management in the United States."

In October, CropLifeAmerica wrote a letter to the EPA, publicly complaining about Infante's inclusion on the panel evaluating glyphosate. In the past, Infante "has taken radical anti-pesticide positions," the members wrote, and has also testified as an expert witness in lawsuits against Monsanto, which they argued caused him to be biased.

Among the other concerns they list about Infante are his apparent distrust of industry-funded studies, the type of research that the pesticide industry naturally sees no problem with. According to CropLifeAmerica's letter, Infante once made the following statement in open court: “How does industry find scientists to do this kind of task? It buys them, that’s all!  Let’s be clear—it’s what I call ‘prostituted science.'"

It is probably to be expected that the pesticide industry does not appreciate its industry-funded researchers being referred to as prostitutes. But what took some food safety advocates by surprise was the EPA's reaction to CropLifeAmerica's demands.

Several days before the planned October 18 date the panel was scheduled to convene, the EPA delayed its review of glyphosate. Now, the panel is scheduled to meet in mid-December, two months later than originally planned. And according to a list of experts provided by the EPA, Infante is no longer one of the researchers who will review glyphosate’s cancer-causing potential.

“He [Infante] is a good scientist but the pesticide industry doesn’t like him,” Bill Freese, science policy analyst at the Center for Food Safety, tells ConsumerAffairs. "I think the evidence that glyphosate is carcinogenic is very strong and the EPA just refuses to acknowledge it.”

“This is outrageous. The industry wants to say that our own government scientists, the top ones in their fields, aren’t good enough for these panels,” Michael Hansen, senior staff scientist at the Consumers Union, said in a statement last month to the Huffington Post.

Defending credentials

In response to an interview request, EPA spokesman Cathy Milbourn sent ConsumerAffairs an online statement, in which the EPA blamed scheduling issues and experts' availability for delaying the panel.

Milbourn would not comment on the new list of researchers, in which Infante is no longer included. "EPA does not comment on personnel matters," Milbourn said via email.

Infante has not returned messages, but he defended his credentials and his work in a public letter that he fired back to the EPA in response to CropLifeAmerica. Infante acknowledged that he has testified in cases in which Monsanto was a defendant, but he said all of those cases concerned the chemical vinyl chloride (VC), not glyphosate.

"I was asked to opine whether there was a connection between VC and these rare liver cancers. My testimony was not for or 'against Monsanto,'" Infante wrote. "I have no special interest in regard to glyphosate. I have not been involved in any litigation involving glyphosate nor have I formed any opinion on this issue....I have also not worked on behalf of industry regarding glyphosate."

SAP Glyphosate Cancer - Infante-1 (1) by Amy Cranks on Scribd

CropLife finds another target

In its letter criticizing Infante as being radically anti-pesticide, CropLife also singled out another panelist, Dr. Kenneth Portier, who is the Vice President of the Statistics & Evaluation Center at the American Cancer Society. According to CropLife,  Portier "has expressed opinions about glyphosate that suggest he may already have pre-formed conclusions as to glyphosate’s safety.”

CropLife additionally criticizes Portier for being the sibling of Christopher Portier, the Associate Director of the  National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and a supposed  "noted and vehement antiglyphosate activist," according to the pesticide trade group.

While CropLife America apparently has no concerns that industry funding may cause a bias among researchers, they are concerned that being a sibling to Christopher Portier could cause a problem.  "CLA requests that EPA confirm that his brother’s views will not affect Dr. Portier’s ability to evaluate the relevant evidence objectively and that he has not already formed a conclusion regarding the carcinogenicity of glyphosate," the trade group’s letter says.

Dr. Kenneth Portier is still included on the upcoming panel, and he directed an interview request back to the EPA.

Researchers from The University of Texas at Austin have been able to successfully inhibit alcohol and drug addiction by using a drug that is already approved by the FDA.

The preliminary trials, which were conducted on mice, showed that the drug is able to erase the unconscious memories that underlie addiction.

Environmental cues play a huge role in whether or not someone will relapse into their addictive habits. These cues include the people, places, sights, and sounds that an addict experiences before abusing their drug of choice. When an addict experiences these cues, their cravings become much more poignant and harder to control.

The study, which was led by Hitoshi Morikawa, attempted to erase the connections that an addict has between environmental cues and their drug abuse. By eliminating the triggers that lead to relapse, they hope that it will become easier for former addicts to stay clean. The drug that they used to eliminate these connections is called isradipine, which is commonly used to treat high blood pressure.

Addicted rats

For the purposes of the study, researchers trained rats to associate either a black or white room with the use of a drug. Rats that developed an addiction would almost always prefer the room that correlated to their drug.

After some time, researchers gave the addicted rats a dose of isradipine before they made their choice of which room to go to. While the rats chose the room that they associated the addiction with on that day, the choices became more varied on subsequent days. They no longer showed a preference for which room they wanted to enter.

“The isradipine erased memories that led them to associate a certain room with cocaine or alcohol,” said Morikawa.

The science behind addiction and what it does to the brain is fascinating. Scientists believe that addictive drugs rewire the brain’s concept of reward learning, which makes memories of drug-related cues more powerful. Isradipine, and other hypertensive drugs, block a particular ion channel in the brain, which reverses the rewiring process and disassociates memories of environmental cues with drug abuse.

Morikawa and his team believe that isradipine can help support addicts who want to quit. “Addicts show up to the rehab center already addicted… [They] want to quit, but their brains are already conditioned. This drug might help the addicted brain become de-addicted,” he said.

Since isradipine is already approved by the FDA, clinical trials may be able to start much more quickly than with other drugs. Caution must be exercised, though. Because isradipine is designed to lower a person’s blood pressure, it might be necessary to pair it with other medications to keep it at safe levels. Proper usage and additional supplements will need to be explored before it can be made ready for the public.

The full study has been published in Molecular Psychiatry. 

Parents have good reason to worry about the sugar content of children’s breakfast cereals, according to an Environmental Working Group review of 84 popular brands.

Vehicle interiors have dangerous levels of toxic chemicals, mainly from flame retardants and plastic softeners, an environmental group warns.

The study, released by The Ecology Center, a Detroit organization, revealed new information about toxic chemical exposure in automobile interiors. PBDEs, chemicals used as fire retardants, and phthalates, used primarily to soften PVC plastics (and partly responsible for "new car smell"), were found in dangerous amounts in dust and windshield film samples.

"We can no longer rely just on seatbelts and airbags to keep us safe in cars," said Jeff Gearhart, the Ecology Center's Clean Car Campaign Director. "Our research shows that autos are chemical reactors, releasing toxins before we even turn on the ignition. There are safer alternatives to these chemicals, and innovative companies that develop them first will likely be rewarded by consumers."

Drivers and passengers are exposed through inhalation and contact with dust. These groups of chemicals have been linked to birth defects, impaired learning, liver toxicity, premature births and early puberty in laboratory animals, among other serious health problems, the group said.

"Most people think about cars causing outdoor air pollution, such as smog," said Gearhart. "Now we know that breathing the air and dust inside of cars may be even more dangerous."

Fortunately, car owners can take some direct actions to minimize health risks from PBDEs and phthalates in car interiors, Gearhart said. They can use solar reflectors, ventilate car interiors, and park in the shade whenever possible.

The study - "Toxic at Any Speed: Chemicals in Cars & the Need for Safe Alternatives" - found that chemicals used to make seat cushions, armrests, floor coverings, wire insulation and other interior auto components are more rapidly released into the air in extreme temperatures.

Since automobiles have 360-degree windows surrounding the interior, cars can heat up to 190 degrees F. In addition, UV exposure from parking in the sun creates a favorable environment for chemical breakdown, causing PBDE flame retardants to become even more dangerous. Solar exposure in cars can be 5 times higher than in homes or offices, according to the study.

The Ecology Center collected windshield film and dust samples from 2000 to 2005 model cars made by 11 leading auto manufacturers. Volvo was found to have the lowest levels of phthalates and the second lowest levels of PBDEs, making it the industry leader in terms of indoor air quality. Volvo also has the toughest policies for phasing out these chemicals.

Other manufacturers claim they have eliminated PBDEs and phthalates from particular applications. For example, Ford reports that it has eliminated PBDEs from "interior components that customers may come into contact with." Honda also reports that it has eliminated most of its phthalate-containing PVC in its vehicles. Other manufacturers tested include BMW, Chrysler, GM, Hyundai, Mercedes, Subaru, Toyota and Volkswagen.

But automakers believe that the chemicals, such as the flame retardants, are needed to protect people in crashes. They have been shown not to pose a risk to occupants, said Eron Shosteck, spokesman for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. The alliance represents the Big 3 and six import-brand companies.

The study found that concentrations of PBDEs in dust and windshield film samples were up to five times higher than those found in homes and offices in previous studies. Since the average American spends more than 1.5 hours in their car every day breathing in these chemicals, the inside of a car is a significant source of indoor air pollution. According to the EPA, indoor air pollution is currently one of the top five environmental risks to public health.

In Europe and Japan, momentum is beginning to move away from toxic chemicals such as PBDEs and phthalates toward safer alternatives. The European Union, for example, passed legislation in 2003 requiring the phase-out of PBDEs in electronic and electrical equipment. As a result, electronics manufacturers such as Apple, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Panasonic and Sony have already eliminated PBDEs from their products.

The European Union has also required phase-outs of phthalates in toys, childcare items, and cosmetics, resulting in similar elimination efforts in those industries.