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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.
A large, multi-lab endeavor has identified the most common byproducts formed during drinking water disinfection and developed methods to study and understand their health impacts.
Scientists identified more than 100 chemical byproducts and measured the levels of 75 of the most harmful and highly regulated ones. It was the first time many of the chemicals had ever been detected. 3 September 2010. More...
New research shows that the drugs and contaminants that often contaminate sewage sludge that is used as fertilizer can be taken up by the plants grown in fertilized fields and gardens.
Also called 'biosolids,' these fertilizers are regularly applied to agricultural fields and are sometimes packaged as organic soil fertilizers sold in home improvement stores. 30 August 2010. More...
Advanced wastewater treatments can reduce the endocrine disrupting effects of the effluent on fish, according to a study that pinpoints the most effective methods.
Conventional sewage treatment does not usually remove all of these compounds. Fish are then exposed when the estrogens are released into waterways. 16 August 2010. More...
Chemists in Germany have figured out a way to extract energy from just water and oxygen. The discovery uses existing fuel cell technology and minimal additional chemicals, providing a safer way to generate electricity for low-power applications.
Remarkably, the fuel cell setup can be used to generate electricity from water and air, producing just water and oxygen as byproducts. 9 August 2010. More...
Researchers at Yale University have developed a custom membrane that can clean and purify water from oceans, salty ground water or sewage water with far less energy input than currently is required to do a similar job.
The membrane may be a big step forward in reaching the goal of reliable and affordable sources of fresh water. Finding sustainable sources of clean drinking water is a major global challenge, especially in most of the developing world. 21 July 2010. More...
Researchers at the University of Iowa have discovered that PCBs are present in many more kinds of paint pigment than previously known. While the US EPA knew about some of the contamination, the extent of the problem is a surprise.
The researchers suggest that the contaminated pigments used in a variety of paints, inks, cosmetics, plastics and other consumer goods are probably a source of ongoing exposures in humans. 9 July 2010. More...
New chemicals - with unknown toxic properties - are present after heating commercial polypropylene plastics during manufacturing.
The contaminants form when synthetic antioxidant additives break down when exposed to high temperatures typical of the manufacturing process. The discovery of the new chemicals is of concern since they may occur in commercial products where they could migrate out of the plastic and potentially into humans. 25 June 2010. More...
In a new study, people who adopted a vegetarian diet for just five days show reduced levels of antibiotics and phthalates in their bodies.
The pilot study suggests that people may be able reduce their exposure to potentially dangerous chemicals through dietary choices, such as limiting consumption of animal products like meats and dairy. 11 May 2010. More...
Despite having phased out the use of organochlorine pesticides in the 1990’s, the chemicals continue to be detected in sewage sludge in Australia.
As in many countries, the sewage sludge - the solid part of processed sewage - is often recycled and used to fertilize crops. This suggests the banned pesticides are still present in agricultural areas of Australia. 23 April 2010. More...
A study of children born near a PCB-contaminated harbor in Massachusetts finds that prenatal exposure to banned persistent organic pollutants - specifically PCBs and DDE - may be linked to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
The results are consistent with previous human and animal studies that have found links between PCB levels and ADHD-like behaviors, such as inattention and impulsivity. This may be the first time the behaviors are associated with DDE exposure. 20 April 2010. More...
A new study suggests that hundreds of chemicals used commercially could persist and bioaccumulate, yet next to nothing is known about their actions and levels in the environment.
Predicting exposures and if and how chemicals may pose a health threat is incredibly difficult. Now, researchers propose a unique way to screen and identify chemicals that may need further evaluation and monitoring. 2 April 2010. More...
Researchers conducting a study of phthalate exposure and breast cancer among Mexican women reported that metabolites of one type of phthalate are associated with at least twice the risk of breast cancer, while other types appear to lower risk.
After adjusting for other risk factors, women in the highest third of exposure to MEP had twice the risk of breast cancer relative to women in the lowest third. Among premenopausal women, those with high exposure had a 4-fold increased risk of breast cancer. 19 March 2010. More...
Certain types of PCBs can affect the way a brain chemical responsible for halting signals sends its chemical messages from nerve to nerve, according to research conducted on frog egg cells
These results further tease apart PCBs' complex effects on brain chemicals and better explain how these interactions can result in abnormal brain function. 10 March 2010. More...
Exposure during development to the active ingredient of many birth control pills caused infertility in adult male rates.
More than 50 million women worldwide take contraceptive pills. Of those, 3 to 4 percent may take them into the second trimester of pregnancy. Doses sufficient to cause effects were higher compared to birth control pills. 15 January 2010. More...
A new study in rats shows that persistent organic pollutants (POPs) – at levels found in farmed Atlantic salmon – cause insulin resistance and associated obesity and liver disease in the animals. The study is the first to show this experimentally.
Insulin resistance can lead to type 2 diabetes, which is becoming a global epidemic. The association between high levels of POPs in people and increased chance of developing diabetes has been known since 2006. Until now, scientists could not positively conclude that POPs influenced the onset of diabetes. 14 January 2010. More...
Silver nanoparticles used as antimicrobials in fabric can leach out of clothes as they are being washed. One brand lost over half of its silver content from the fabric with just two washings.
The discovery raises questions about potential effects of human and environmental exposures 7 January 2010. More...
New research reports that the enzymes in the roots of a poplar tree can alter the chemical structure of a common type of PCB pollutant, rendering it less harmful than the original chemical.
The results are a first step in determining if plants would be a valuable tool in cleaning up contaminated sites. 29 December 2009. More...
Blood levels of three types of banned organochlorine pesticides are associated with prostate cancer in the general US population, researchers report in a recent study.
Researchers who analyzed data from a large, long-term national study coordinated by the CDC found that levels of organochlorine pesticides in the blood are associated with a higher risk of prostate cancer. A link was not found for an increased risk of breast cancer. 25 November 2009. More...
A recent study uses an unconventional method to shed light on these the lives of tuna. By measuring pollutants in fish tissues, the research team was able to where the fish had been.
Pollution signatures – the blend of chemicals in the environment – are unique to different geographical areas of the world. 23 November 2009. More...
Common air pollutants can react with one another to form highly reactive and toxic chlorine gasses, reports a study published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
In areas where both NOx and HCl concentrations are generally high, these chemical reactions can also increase ozone pollution. 7 October 2009. More...
Levels of antibiotics measured in streams, lakes and well water near pharmaceutical factories in India are 100,000 to 1,000,000 times higher than levels measured in waters that receive sewage effluent in the US or China.
Much of the world's supply of supply of generic antibiotics are produced in the study area. 9 September 2009. More...
Several long-lived pollutants measured in the blood of Canadian Inuits, including stain repellents, are associated with altered thyroid hormone levels, according to new research.
The study highlights again how long-persisting environmental pollutants can accumulate in people and alter normal hormone levels. It is unique because it included women and is one of the first large-scale studies to look at the stain repellent PFOS's effects on thyroid hormone. 5 August 2009. More...
A new study in Mexico finds that women with higher exposure to phthalates during their third trimester of pregnancy were up to four times as likely to have their babies early.
This is the first human study to investigate associations between exposure to phthalates and preterm birth rates. Early births are of concern because they are associated with long-term health problems and are the leading cause of neonatal mortality in the United States, accounting for more than one third of infant deaths. 3 August 2009. More...
Fish produced fewer – or no eggs at all – after only one to two weeks of exposure to either of two different types of synthetic progestin hormones found in women's birth control and menopausal drugs.
The more potent of the pair of progestins also lowered sperm production and affected behavior in male fish. Effects occurred at levels found in the environment in sewage effluents. 30 July 2009. More...
Concentrations of PCBs, dioxins, and some flame retardant chemicals in human breast milk declined significantly between 1996 and 2006.
A new study of Swedish women confirms that PCBs -- a chemical used in electronics and transformers until the 1970s -- and dioxins and furans -- byproducts of industrial processes -- are less prevalent in breast milk now than in the mid 1990s. 24 July 2009. More...
Chemicals heavily used in everyday products can end up in dust and increase people's exposure to the contaminants, reports a study by Belgium researchers who calculated exposure to bisphenol A, an antibacterial agent and a flame retardant through dust.
The researchers conclude that exposure to BPA, tetrabromobisphenol-A and triclosan from dust contributes to less than 10 percent of average total daily exposure. Diet and direct contact with personal care products are the the greatest contributors. 15 July 2009. More...
First time expectant mothers in the US have much lower blood levels of selected persistent organic pollutants than women did before the chemicals' ban and restrictions on use and emissions.
Levels of a PCB indicator fell drastically, from 140 nanograms per gram in women sampled between 1959-1966 to about 8 nanograms per gram in women from the more recent sample. Still, a metabolite of the insectide DDT, which has not been used in the US for 30 odd years, was detected in all of the women's blood. 23 June 2009. More...
A bacteria-killing chemical widely used in an array of consumer products has made its way down kitchen and bathroom sinks and into dolphins living in US coastal waters.
Researchers report for the first time that a marine mammal--the bottlenose dolphin--is accumulating triclosan from water bodies where treated sewage is released. The study examined animals from rivers, an estuary, a harbor and a lagoon in South Carolina and Florida. 18 June 2009. More...
A new study shows that pesticides, some already banned for decades from the US market, continue to persist in homes.
DDT and chlordane – two pesticides that have been banned for decades – were found in 42 percent and 74 percent of homes respectively. Chlorpyrifos and diazinon, both banned for several years, were detected in 78 percent and 35 percent of homes respectively. 16 June 2009. More...
Some horse estrogens used in hormone replacement therapies make their way from people to wastewater and into fish where they may contribute to the feminization of the animals, reports a study from England.
Laboratory tests showed the hormones – one of which was more potent than human varieties – can turn on estrogen hormone systems in fish at very low concentrations. This is the first time scientists report that HRT-related horse estrogens in water coming into and leaving sewage treatment plants are estrogenic in fish. 9 June 2009. More...
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