Many common pills are coated with toxic phthalates

(NaturalNews)The coatings of many common drugs and supplements often contain phthalates according to a recent study reported in Environmental Health Perspectives. This family of plasticizer compounds has been linked in previous studies to hormonal and reproductive problems as well…

Chemicals in fast food wrappers show up in human blood

(NaturalNews)Toxic chemicals used to line fast food wrappers migrate easily into human blood, according to a study conducted by researchers from the University of Toronto and published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives. Oily foods such as fast food and microwave…

EPA report concludes that natural gas ‘fracking’ causes groundwater contamination

For the first time, a federal report has verified that chemicals used in natural gas hydraulic fracturing, also known as “fracking,” can, and do, cause groundwater contamination. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently issued a 121-page draft report on…

Flame retardant chemical found in US soft drinks

A substance patented as a flame retardant and banned as a food ingredient throughout Europe and in Japan is present in 10% of all soft drinks in the US. The December 12, 2011 issue of Environmental Health News reviews the history of this toxic ingredient, including the…

EPA finally acknowledges fracking dangers

(NaturalNews)The Environmental Protection Agency on December 7 released its first report linking fracking to water contamination. The report identified fracking as the source of poisons, including the carcinogen benzene, in the groundwater of a central Wyoming community. Something…

NaturalNews suggestion for your Netflix queue: The Vanishing of the Bees

(NaturalNews) “Vanishing of the Bees” provides a fascinating perspective on Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). The film looks at the mysterious affliction which has destroyed honeybee populations at many bee farms in the US, leaving hives deserted, yet with few bee bodies remaining to help unravel the riddle. Bee Informed This 2009 documentary is an excellent introduction to this environmental problem which also provides some information that may be new even to those who have read about the issue. If you are not sure why you should care about that a few buzzing insects are disappearing, the film does an excellent job of explaining the importance of this issue. As one of the beekeepers interviewed in the film points out “bees are an indicator of environmental quality. When the bees are dying, something’s wrong that’s going to affect all of us.” The film, narrated by actress Ellen Page, provides a wealth of information on web of influences, including consequences of monoculture farming, EPA policies and commercial beekeeping practices. This documentary incorporates brief animated segments, interviews with a broad spectrum of people including author Michael Pollan (Food Fight); scientists; both commercial and holistic beekeepers; and environmental activists; film clips of European beekeepers staging protests while wearing full bee-tending costume and archival footage of WWI chemical warfare. Global and Historical Bees Anyone with an interest in environmental issues, organic foods and the politics which affect our food system will find this film interesting. The movie offers a few intriguing historical and cultural facts about bees and beekeeping — such as how the ancient Egyptians managed beekeeping, wild honey collection in Malaysian rainforests and how bees are connected both to the concept of goddess worship and to Napoleon. The film also provides important information rarely mentioned in US media articles about CCD — the fact that a similar disease occurred in France, where it was dubbed Mad Bee Disease. The film discusses how the French choose a different means of handling the problem than has been taken in the US. Early evidence indicates the French approach has been at least partially successful and the bees are bouncing back there. Filmmakers George Langworthy and Maryam Henein manage to cover a great deal of ground in this short (89 minutes) and enjoyable documentary. They not only provide a more global perspective on the problem than many issue-oriented films, but also go beyond defining the issue to offer at least some notions for how to solve this concern. While the film may not cover the science of the issue well enough to satisfy experts, it does an excellent job at the balancing act all documentaries must perform — educating viewers on a topic without becoming boring. Further Information The documentary is currently available on Netflix for instant viewing. If you do not have a Netflix membership, you can visit the film’s website (http://www.vanishingbees.com/) to watch it on a pay-per-view basis. The website also provides information on hosting a screening of the film for a group, as well as classroom educational resources and suggestions for actions you can take. As the film points out, one of the silver linings of the publicity about the vanishing bees has been a growth of interest in small beekeeping, including changing laws in many major cities which make urban beekeeping legal. The “Vanishing of the Bees” website also includes links for people who want to help bring bees back by starting a backyard hive or two.

Study finds connection between prenatal exposure to BPA and aggression during toddler years

(NaturalNews) Researchers from the Harvard University School of Public Health have made a disturbing new discovery about the plastics chemical bisphenol-A (BPA). It turns out that prenatal BPA exposure can spur aggressive and undesirable behaviors in girls after they are born and reach their toddler years. Published in the journal Pediatrics , the study analyzed a group of 244 mothers and their three-year-old daughters living in the Cincinnati, Oh., area. The study team gathered and studied gestational and childhood BPA exposures using urine samples from the mothers, and compared various exposure levels among the children to their respective behavioral profiles. The team discovered that for each ten-fold increase in gestational BPA exposure levels, young girls exhibited significantly more indicators of anxiety and depression than their less- or non-exposed counterparts. Young girls exposed to high BPA levels were also more emotionally disturbed than the others and had a more difficult time controlling their inhibitions. The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) jointly funded the study as part of an investigation into the safety of BPA. “Parents should be concerned about these findings,” says study author Joe Braun. “As the mothers concentration of BPA rose, the girls born to those mothers had higher scores on these behavior problem indices. If pregnant women or parents are concerned about exposure to BPA, they can try to reduce it by limiting their exposure to canned foods and packaged foods.” Although these particular findings were limited strictly to females, previous studies have found a similar connection between prenatal BPA exposure and poor behavior in both sexes. Back in 2009, a study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives found that BPA’s endocrine-disrupting effects can harm both girls and boys. Besides impairing proper neurological development, which is likely the reason for behavior problems later in life, prenatal BPA exposure was found to “masculinize” unborn females, and “feminize” unborn males. It appears, based on that study, that BPA actually blocks the proper growth and development of human sex hormones (http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/48065/title/Science_%2B_the_Public__BPA_in_the_womb_shows_link_to_kids%E2%80%99_behavior). Both the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the American Chemistry Council (ACC), however, continue to insist that BPA is safe, despite the plethora of scientific data showing that the chemical is harmful. Sources for this article include: http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/study-links-bpa-exposure-in-womb-to-behavior-problems-in-toddler-girls/2011/10/24/gIQA6ihRDM_story.html http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/48065/title/Science_%2B_the_Public__BPA_in_the_womb_shows_link_to_kids%E2%80%99_behavior

District ignores unanimous opposition by parents, approves installation of Phillips Exxon Mobil Corp ‘fracking’ wells on school property

(NaturalNews) Not a single parent of a student attending a South Butler County School District (SBCSD) school has expressed support for the district’s plan to allow Phillips Exxon Mobil (PEM) Corp. to build oil and natural gas drilling wells on school property. But this did not stop the Pennsylvania school district’s board members from approving, in a 6 – 2 decision, a lease permitting PEM to build the wells as close as 500 feet from classrooms. Pennsylvania has become a hotbed of natural gas drilling operations in recent years due to its proximity right over the Marcellus and Utica shale formations, both of which contain large amounts of lucrative natural gas fuel. As a result, formerly-unspoiled land, private property, and now public schools, are all becoming infested with drilling machinery and wells, which are a serious threat to environmental and human health (http://www.naturalnews.com/032358_fracking_gas_drilling.html). “I have concerns that the safety of our children may be compromised,” said Heather Rickenbrode, a Penn Township resident and parent of a SBCSD-enrolled child, to Pittsburg Live . “I am personally not willing to gamble my child’s health for an education.” At a recent public hearing on the issue, which was not widely announced, a group of local residents expressed serious concerns about allowing “fracking” (hydraulic fracturing) wells to be built so closely to facilities where young children spend much of their time throughout the school year. Since fracking involves the injection of many tons of water and chemicals into the ground — and many accidents have already occurred, resulting in poisoned groundwater and other environmental contamination — it has no place on school property, they say. SBCSD also has a water well on site that it uses to water the school football field, which represents another problematic factor in the equation. Though the well is not used for drinking water, its possible contamination by fracking chemicals could have devastating effects on the student athletes that use the field for practice and games. Nevertheless, despite a complete death of support from local residents or parents for the project, district officials have approved the fracking lease anyway. If and when drilling wells are built, SBCSD will receive $3,750 from PEM per acre used, plus an 18 percent royalty fee, according to Pittsburg Live . PEM will also pay SBCSD a $15,000 fee for every well that it builds. Sources for this story include: http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/valleynewsdispatch/s_756893.html#ixzz1Y82vZHY9

Pesticide exposure in expectant mothers causes lower IQ in newborns

(NaturalNews)Three separate studies recently published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives indicate prenatal pesticide exposure to fetuses negatively impact a child’s learning ability. Their IQs tend to be lower. The greater the umbilical cord pesticide blood levels, the lower the child’s IQ. Research Focus These toxins originated mostly from conventional agriculture’s heavily sprayed foods. But farmers and farm workers were studied the least. The three studies focused mostly on urban dwellers who consume those sprayed foods. One was done in UC Berkley, CA, another by Columbia University in NYC, and the other by Mt. Sinai Hospital researchers, also in NYC. It doesn’t get much more urban than that. What’s Bad About Pesticides Most effective pesticides contain different types of organophosphates . As of the turn of our current century, many nations had banned chlorpyrifos and diazinon , from domestic use. Those two pesticides were so heavily loaded with organophosphates that just having bug and ant poisons stored in one’s domicile caused health problems to occupants. Organophosphates (OPs) are spinoffs from biochemical warfare research to create nerve gases for killing humans. Scientists soon discovered that the OPs killed bugs too. Of course, the usual toxicology index that protects the industry is based on the notion that if you don’t drop dead soon after exposure to any chemical agent, it’s safe! But eventually, long term neurological deterioration was detected among OP users, even if they hardly used them . The link was made to these organophosphate nerve gas components in chlorpyrifos and diazinon. They were disallowed for home use, but not for agricultural use. Back on the Farm Since workers on farms using these pesticides are often subject to skin exposure and inhalation of organophophates, the CDC issued a paper categorizing symptoms of poisoning from biochemical nerve agents and pesticide toxicity. The symptoms described were the same for both. (CDC source below) If you’re having thoughts about Monsanto’s Roundup, it is actually an herbicide for killing weeds. Roundup kills all plants. That’s why Roundup Ready GM seeds are necessary. They enable using the herbicide while the GMO seed plants supposedly thrive. Roundup’s active ingredient is glyophosate, which is a type of organophosphate that isn’t as nasty to the nervous system as other organophosphates. Over 30 organophosphate pesticides used in non-organic commercial farming are USDA approved. So what if we eat daily while other environmental toxins overload our immune systems. Remember, if it doesn’t do great harm immediately, it’s safe. If you have to go with conventionally grown produce occasionally, find out the most and least sprayed from the Environmental Working Group’s dirty dozen and clean fifteen list here: http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/summary/ Sources for more information include: Three new studies reveal children are dumbed down by pesticide exposure in womb http://www.naturalnews.com/032158_pesticide_exposure_intelligence.html#ixzz1Y3DUmP4O Guide to pesticides in produce http://www.naturalnews.com/033163_pesticides_fresh_produce.html CDC nerve toxin paper http://www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/nerve/tsd.asp Explaining organophosphates http://www.panna.org/resources/specific-pesticides/organophosphates Explaining Glycophosate in Roundup http://archive.greenpeace.org/geneng/reports/gmo/gmo009.htm Main stream media article reporting the three pesticide studies http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1379245/Pesticide-exposure-womb-linked-lower-IQ-children.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

Exposed: California officials manipulated safety data on methyl iodide, ignored scientist warnings against approving deadly strawberry chemical

(NaturalNews) Many of those plump, juicy strawberries found on produce section shelves are hiding a deadly little secret. In 2010, regulators in California, where over 90 percent of conventional strawberries are grown, quietly approved the use of toxic methyl iodide as a fruit pesticide after the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved it nationally. But new evidence has now surfaced that government officials twisted study data to make the chemical falsely appear safe in order to get it approved — and individuals everywhere are now increasingly demanding that methyl iodide be banned. A recent report from Mother Jones explains that the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) cherry-picked data from varying studies on methyl iodide in order to paint the chemical in an artificially positive light. The agency then used this deceptive data to justify allowing smaller buffer zones between farms that use methyl iodide and farms that do not use methyl iodide. DPR also used the flawed data to increase the permitted spray concentration maximum for the chemical. Early on, DPR’s own scientists decried the agency’s intended actions, having noted in an internal memo that numbers cited in the agency’s report endorsing methyl iodide had been extracted from “different risk assessment methodologies that are not interchangeable.” They added that such data was “not scientifically credible,” and that any data of that type is only accurate when compiled from the same source. But DPR refused to listen to these scientists, and instead approved methyl iodide in spite of the evidence against it. Not long after, environmental protection groups, farmers, and ordinary citizens together sparked a burgeoning battle to force the state to ban methyl iodide, including a recent rally that took place on the steps of the California State Capital. Methyl iodide causes miscarriages, thyroid dysfunction, cancer Arysta LifeScience, the chemical company that produces methyl iodide, claims that it is largely safe, and that the neurotoxic damage it can cause is “transient.” But according to data cited by leading scientists, this is simply not the case, and permanent brain damage can ensue from exposure to methyl iodide. Back in 2007 before methyl iodide’s approval, a group of more than 35 esteemed scientists wrote a letter to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) urging it to deny approval for the chemical on the grounds that it is “highly toxic,” and has a “significant adverse impact on public health.” After methyl iodide was approved anyway, the same group sent another letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson once again urging the agency to withdraw approval for the chemical (http://www.panna.org/sites/default/files/Jackson_MeI_5-7-11_Final-1.pdf). “Due to the potent toxicity of methyl iodide, its transport and ultimate fate in the environment, adequate control of human exposure would be difficult, if not impossible,” wrote scientists from California’s Scientific Review Committee (SRC) concerning methyl iodide. “We have concluded there is little doubt that the compound possesses significant toxicity.” SRC’s thorough report also notes that, despite claims made by Arysta about methyl iodide’s supposedly transient neurotoxicity, “no robust studies of neurotoxicity (were) actually conducted.” If they had been, it would have been revealed, of course, that methyl iodide is a highly neurotoxic substance that is known and recognized by the state of California to cause cancer (http://www.oehha.ca.gov/prop65/prop65_list/files/P65single061308.pdf). Methyl iodide, of course, is the same chemical that scientists have used to deliberately create cancer cells in laboratories for research purposes that is how powerfully dangerous it is! The Pesticide Action Network – North America (PANNA) also notes that methyl iodide is responsible for causing late-term miscarriages as well, especially at the 100 pounds (lbs) per acre spread rate to which it has been approved for California strawberries (http://www.panna.org/cancer-free-strawberries). Methyl iodide has no legitimate place in American agriculture On December 30, 2010, Earthjustice and California Rural Legal Assistance, Inc. filed a lawsuit against DPR for approving of methyl iodide, which ignored all available evidence against the chemical, as well as the more than 53,000 comments submitted by Californians against the chemical’s use. The use of methyl iodide violates the California Environmental Quality Act, the California Birth Defects Prevention Act, and the Pesticide Contamination Prevention Act, according to the suit. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of PANNA and numerous other groups representing farmers and consumers, many of whom stand to be affected most by the pumping of soils with toxic methyl iodide gas. Many of the farm fields that spray methyl iodide are located directly near homes and schools, where high-risk individuals like pregnant mothers and young children face routine exposure. In truth, there really is no need to use methyl iodide on strawberries, peppers, or any of the other varieties of produce for which it has been approved. Several large strawberry growers, including Swanton Berry, Driscoll’s, and Martinez Farms, have been able to develop thriving organic strawberry operations that require no pesticides — surely the rest can make modifications to avoid pumping toxic poisons into the soils of one of America’s major produce production regions. Sources for this story include: http://motherjones.com/blue-marble/2011/08/california-methyl-iodide-scientists http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/06/07/methyl-iodide-controversy_n_602904.html http://www.pesticidereform.org/article.php?id=342

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