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Environmental Health

Cancer: When the Personal is National

June 11, 2010
There are two pictures from my childhood that I think of often, the classic kind that live for years on family refrigerators and mantels. One shows a little boy and I, very young and impossibly blond, too concentrated on our game to notice the snap of an aunt's camera from across the room. Then one...
Claire Moshenberg's picture

Cancer-free Strawberries Please!

June 9, 2010
My little girl is barely 10-months and I just love to watch her eat a strawberry, leaving her little face and fingers red and sticky! But I only give her organic strawberries, and for good reason. At 10-months, her little brain and body are developing at a fast rate and residues of chemicals found...

Food Safety Reform Cannot Wait!

June 4, 2010
Being a grandparent is a joy! You get the perks of bright eyes and giggles, along with the rush of pride to see your own child mature into a parent. In 2001, I was “Grandma” for two absolutely darling children , a girl age 5 and a boy age 2. Then the unthinkable happened – my grandson became sick...
Pat Buck's picture

Ensuring new food-safety legislation is effective

June 1, 2010
The laws governing the food - safety functions of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have not been substantially updated in more than 70 years , but congressional lawmakers will hopefully soon change that fact. The U.S. Senate is expected to vote soon on t he FDA Food Safety Modernization...

Kids in the Gulf

May 25, 2010
As the massive oil slicks from the BP Gulf spill advance upon shores and communities, everyone is worried about the effect on wildlife and the natural environment, but strangely silent about another unavoidable danger. Substantial harm to the children of the Gulf Coast is now unavoidable. If you...

Secret, troubling chemicals in popular fragrances

May 12, 2010
If someone were to ask you, “What’s that lovely fragrance you’re wearin g? ” would you sa y , “ Oh, that’s hormone disruptors, allergens and chemicals that have never been assessed for safety . It’ s my signature scent. ” Of course you wouldn’t. But th ere is a good chance that reply would be...

Corporate Innovation and Eliminating Toxic Chemcials

May 10, 2010
Government is here to do the things we can’t do for ourselves, like provide resources and mechanisms to clean up a gigantic oil spill or maintain traffic lights. In order to continue to flourish as a functional society, we need to prevent economic and environmental disasters from occurring in the first place and not simply continue to spend resources and money mitigating the impacts of their aftermath.
Renee Blanchard's picture

ANTIBACTERIALS = ANTI HEALTH

May 9, 2010
In our natural instinct to protect our children, we sometimes (often?) get waylaid by products that end up doing more harm than good, but make a nice profit for the manufacturer. A chemical called triclosan is a case in point. It’s supposed to vanquish “germs,” that is, bacteria or microbes. You’ll...

Victory! Marsh Fork Elementary Secures Funding for Relocation

May 2, 2010
On Friday April 30, the Governor of West Virginia held a press conference to announce the secured funding of a new elementary school. Located 300 feet from a coal ash silo due to the practice of mountaintop removal, Marsh Fork Elementary has been the center of a controversial school siting fight...
Renee Blanchard's picture

A Food Safety Emergency That Needs Attention NOW!

April 27, 2010
After way too many food recalls and contamination scares in everything from peanut butter to spinach, Congress is taking action. The U.S. Senate is about to consider a critical food safety bill that would ramp up protections against food contaminants like E.coli and salmonella. This is already an...
Ariana Kelly's picture

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