Environmental

Will these Radioactive Spiders give me super powers?

‘Spin’ in media reports of scientific articles: 47% of articles contain ‘Spin”

Contact: Sumrina Yousufzai syousufzai@plos.org 415-568-3164 Public Library of Science Press releases and news stories reporting the results of randomized controlled trials often contain “spin”—specific reporting strategies (intentional or unintentional) emphasizing the beneficial effect of the experimental treatment—but such “spin” frequently… Read More ›

Chlorinated Tap water substantially increased the risk of three common birth defects: ventricular septal defects, cleft palate, and anencephalus

Contact: Charlotte Webber charlotte.webber@biomedcentral.com 44-020-763-19980 BioMed Central Is tap water safe for expectant mothers? Drinking water disinfected by chlorine while pregnant may increase the risk of having children with heart problems, cleft palate or major brain defects, according to a… Read More ›

New analysis of drinking water-related gastrointestinal illness: May Cause up to cause of up to 1.1 million annual cases of acute gastrointestinal illness

Contact: Michael Bernstein m_bernstein@acs.org 202-872-6042 American Chemical Society The distribution system piping in U.S. public water systems that rely on non-disinfected well water or “ground water” may be a largely unrecognized cause of up to 1.1 million annual cases of… Read More ›

Miracle-Gro to pay big fine for fake pesticides, poison bird feed: Falsifying pesticide registration documents, distributing pesticides with misleading and unapproved labels and distributing unregistered pesticides.

By Agence France-Presse Saturday, September 8, 2012 9:13 EDT Lawn and garden products company Scotts Miracle-Gro will pay $12.5 million in fines for poisoning bird feed and violating pesticide laws, officials said Friday. Scotts will pay record criminal and civilian… Read More ›

EPA pesticide exposure test too short, overlooks long term effects: EPA only test Pesticides health effects over 4 days

Contact: Morgan Kelly mekelly@pitt.edu 412-624-4356 University of Pittsburgh Pitt research suggests EPA pesticide exposure test too short, overlooks long term effects PITTSBURGH—The four-day testing period the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) commonly uses to determine safe levels of pesticide exposure… Read More ›

Prenatal exposure to flame-retardant compounds affects neurodevelopment ( IQ ) of young children: polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs)

Contact: Stephanie Berger sb2247@columbia.edu 212-305-4372 Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health January 19, 2010 — Prenatal exposure to ambient levels of flame retardant compounds called polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) is associated with adverse neurodevelopmental effects in young children, according… Read More ›