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While all links worked when entries were posted to the database, different publishers
have different policies about retaining articles and providing access to archived material.
Thus some of the links, particularly older ones, may no longer be functional.
For links no longer working, you may be able to gain paid access to text via the publisher's site.
Research in Mexico in an area where DDT had been used for malaria control indicates that exposure in the womb during the first trimester is associated with impaired psychomotor development in children.
The size of the effect of exposure to DDT is comparable to that of lead. No association was seen with exposure during the second or third trimesters. Environmental Health Perspectives. 1 March 2007. More...
Experiments with different cell lines has clarified the genetic mechanisms through which the widespread pesticide atrazine disrupts the endocrine system of fish, amphibians and mammals.
The results are consistent with associations between atrazine and mammary and prostate cancers in laboratory rodents, as well as correlations between atrazine and similar reproductive cancers in people. The results also indicate atrazine may interfere with standard medical treatments for breast and prostate cancer. Environmental Health Perspectives. 7 February 2007. More...
Elevated arsenic and fluoride levels are associated with reduced intelligence in children exposed via drinking water in rural China.
Mean IQ scores decreased from 105 in the control group to 95 in children drinking elevated arsenic. Growth and lung capacity were also adversely affected. Elevated exposures were above more than 10 times above the current US arsenic safety standard. Environmental Health Perspectives. 10 January 2007. More...
People living closer to hazardous waste sites containing persistent organic pollutants are more likely to be hospitalized for diabetes.
The results are consistent with other epidemiological research showing association between exposure to POPs and diabetes. The risk was higher in a subset of sites along the Hudson River, where there was higher income, less smoking, better diet and more exercise. 6 January 2007. More...
Prenatal exposure to organophosphate pesticides is associated with poorer mental development and pervasive developmental problems at 24 months of age, according to a study of Mexican American children.
Yet the study also finds that childhood exposure is positively associated with neurodevelopment. The researchers suggest several possible explanations, including the possibility that children with higher cognitive function may increase their exposures because they are more interactive with their environment. The contradictory results suggest caution in interpretation. Environmental Health Perspectives. 5 January 2007. More...
Very limited information is available on the toxicity of biodiesel exhaust.
Yet this fuel is poised to become a part of the US energy infrastructure, with production capacity in the US increasing 300% in 2005, to 75 million gallons. Current capacity is 300 million gallons a year and new plants could double that within a few years. Environmental Health Perspectives. 5 January 2007. More...
Studies of health risks of cell phone use that are funded exclusively by industry are substantially less likely to report statistically significant effects.
Compared to studies funded by public agencies or charities, industry funded studies find adverse effects approximately 1/10th as frequently. This pattern is consistent with research funded by the tobacco and chemical industries. Environmental Health Perspectives. 2 January 2007. More...
A systematic review of all observational studies of lead and cardiovascular disease concludes that lead exposure can cause high blood pressure.
The evidence also suggests-- but is insufficient to prove-- that lead exposure causes cardiovascular mortality and other health problems. as well as heart rate variability. The authors conclude that occupational lead exposure standards should be lowered immediately. Environmental Health Perspectives. 25 December 2006. More...
A review of the impact of lead on cognitive function in adults concludes there is moderate evidence for an association between psychiatric symptoms and adult dose.
The association only appears at high levels of occupational exposure to adults, or in relation to the cumulative dose experienced by environmentally-exposed adults. Environmental Health Perspectives. 25 December 2006. More...
Rats exposed in the womb to low levels of a mixture of atrazine metabolites experienced persistent alterations in mammary gland development.
The lowest dose found to have an effect was over 10 times lower than the 'no observed adverse effect level' used by EPA to establish the safety threshold for acute exposure for people. Fetal exposure also caused weight gain in adulthood. Environmental Health Perspectives. 22 December 2006. More...
Regular alcohol intake during pregnancy appears to increase the risk of congenital cryptorchidism in boys.
After adjusting for confounders, the odds for cryptorchidism more than tripled in boys born to women who drank at least 5 alcoholic drinks a week during pregnancy. Environmental Health Perspectives. 6 December 2006. More...
Swedish researchers report that lactation is a source of considerable exposure for infants to perfluorinated chemicals.
Their study found PFCs in all milk samples, with the average total of eight PFCs in milk at 0.34 ng/mL. Serum levels averaged 32 ng/mL. They observed a strong association between increased serum and increased milk concentrations. Environmental Health Perspectives. 1 December 2006. More...
The industrialization of livestock production and the widespread use of non-therapeutic antimicrobial growth promotants has intensified the risk for the emergence of new, more virulent, or more resistant microorganisms.
These have reduced the effectiveness of several classes of antibiotics for treating infections in humans and livestock. Recent outbreaks of virulent strains of influenza have arisen from swine and poultry raised in close proximity. Environmental Health Perspectives. 17 November 2006. More...
Toxic gases, including ammonia and hydrogen sulfide, are emitted from concentrated animal feeding operations.
Microbial exposures, especially to endotoxins, are related to deleterious respiratory health effects. Malodors may be linked to psycho-physiological changes. But there are few data on the health effects of these exposures to people living in the surrounding areas. Environmental Health Perspectives. 17 November 2006. More...
A large study in Spain of the impacts of prenatal exposure to the organochlorine, hexachlorobenzene, finds that children with higher levels of HCB are less competent socially and more at risk to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
Measurements of contamination were obtained at birth and examined in relation to behaviors at the age of 4 years. Exposures were for people living in an area where HCB exposure was elevated because of proximity to an electrochemical factory. Environmental Health Perspectives. 13 November 2006. More...
Workers exposed to the phthalates DBP and DEHP in an occupational setting have higher phthalate levels and lower free testosterone levels than unexposed workers.
The workers were employed in a polyvinyl chloride flooring factory in China. Within the exposed worker group, free testosterone was inversely correlated with phthalate levels. Environmental Health Perspectives. 4 November 2006. More...
In a study of young men from the general Flemish population, as dioxin levels double, total and free testosterone levels drop significantly.
Semen volume also falls, while sperm concentration rises. The data suggest an interaction of dioxin-like compounds affect secretory function in the seminal vesicles or prostate, without altering spermatogenesis. Dioxin levels were related to fish and egg consumption. Environmental Health Perspectives. 4 November 2006. More...
In a pilot study of young girls in 3 US cities, a wide spectrum of hormonally-active compounds were found, some at relatively high concentrations.
Eighteen of 25 measured compounds were found in at least 94% of subjects. Phytoestrogens as a group had the highest levels and were most frequently found; phthalates were intermediate. Four phytoestrogens, four phthalates and two phenols had maximum values above 1 ppm. Environmental Health Perspectives. 26 October 2006. More...
A large study of US women by the CDC finds that the higher their level of perchlorate, the lower their thyroid function.
The effects were observed at perchlorate levels lower than would be predicted from previous studies. The women most at risk were those with low iodine levels-- approximately one-third of US women. Impaired thyroid during pregnancy have ave detrimental effects on fetal development. Environmental Health Perspectives. 7 October 2006. More...
In a study of over 1000 pregnant women in Michigan, those with relatively high levels of mercury measured in their hair are three times more likely to give birth very prematurely.
Mercury levels were related to fish consumption, and the greatest source of mercury exposure in the population studied appeared to be canned fish. Environmental Health Perspectives. 29 September 2006. More...
New research concludes that two common exposures, prenatal exposure to tobacco smoke and childhood lead exposure, account for about one-third of cases of ADHD among US children.
The study is based on an analysis of CDC data gathered from 1999-2002. Of the children studied, 4.2% were reported to be using medication for ADHD, corresponding to 1.8 million children in the US. The data indicate that prenatal tobacco and lead exposure account for 270,000 and 290,000 excess cases of ADHD in US children, respectively. Environmental Health Perspectives. 19 September 2006. More...
Prenatal exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons were significantly associated with lower birth weight in Caucasians in Krakow, Poland, and African-Americans in New York City.
No association was found in Dominicans studied in New York City. The results also indicated a 6-fold greater susceptibility of NYC African-Americans to low level exposures. EHP. 17 August 2006. More...
Exposure to the fossil fuel combustion products, PAHs, is associated with smaller newborn babies.
A group of non-smoking Chinese women who lived near a seasonally operating coal-fired power plant gave samples of their blood and cord blood at the time of delivery. Higher levels of PAH-DNA adducts were associated with smaller head circumference and reduced children's weight at 18, 24, and 30 months of age. Longer exposures during the months the power plant was operating were also associated with reduced growth in infants and toddlers. Environmental Health Perspectives. 1 August 2006. More...
A study of Air Force veterans finds that the risk of benign prostatic hyperplasia declines with increasing serum dioxin levels.
The veterans had participated in spraying Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. Serum testosterone levels were inversely associated with serum TCDD levels. EHP. 23 July 2006. More...
Comparing relative impacts of fetal lead exposure during different trimesters, an analysis indicates that the largest impact may be during the first trimester.
First trimester lead levels predicted reductions in a Mental Development Index, while levels in the second and third trimester did not. EHP. 23 July 2006. More...
A survey of PBDE levels in US foods indicates that food alone cannot be the source of very high body burdens of PBDEs that have been measured in Americans.
Indoor air may be an important exposure route because of volatilized PBDEs and PBDEs in dust. The foods sampled had levels ranging from 7.9 parts per trillion (milk) to 3,726 (sardines). EHP. 19 July 2006. More...
Analysis of later mortality patterns among participants in a national US survey conducted 1976-1980 shows an elevated risk of death with blood lead levels as low as 5-9 µg/dL.
People with blood lead levels of 10 µg/dL were at greater risk, and the trend of increased exposure and increased risk was highly significant. Causes of death associated with lead exposure included cardiovascular disease and cancer. EHP. 9 July 2006. More...
A study of over 14,000 workers exposed to PCBs at two capacitor plants corroborates earlier reports of a link to liver cancer and reveals a strong exposure-response relationship with prostate cancer risk.
Stomach cancer risk was also elevated, with increased risk associated with increased exposuree, but no association was seen for rectal or intestinal cancers. The rise in prostate cancer risk with exposure was highly significant (p=0.0001). EHP. 3 July 2006. More...
Exposure to persistent pesticides in breast milk is associated with undescended testicles.
A case-control study compared breast milk samples from mothers of baby boys with cryptorchidism to milk samples from mothers with healthy boys at 1 and 3 months of age. Seventeen of twenty-one organochlorine pesticides were found to be at higher median levels in the cases, but only one, trans-chlordane, was found to be statistically different. When the eight most abundant pesticides were combined and compared between cases and controls, total pesticide level was significantly higher in boys with cryptorchidism. Environmental Health Perspectives. 1 July 2006. More...
New work by researchers at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine confirms that PCBs are endocrine disruptors capable of causing permanent alterations in the female reproductive tract.
Newborn mice exposed to environmentally relevant levels of Aroclor 1254, a commercial mix of PCBs, had decreased expression of a regulatory gene in the uterus. There were also changes in the structure of the uterus that persisted into adulthood. These changes were similar to those seen with low level DES exposure. Finally, this study showed there was a genetic predisposition, suggesting some mice are more sensitive to these exposures. Environmental Health Perspectives 1 June 2006. More...
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