Are household products making kids fat?
A fascinating article at Grist.com takes at look at how endocrine-disrupting chemicals like bisphenol A (BPA), flame retardants (PBDEs), PVC and phthalates are correlated to the obesity epidemic.
Can chemicals make us fat? Many scientists are starting to connect the dots that chemicals that mess with the delicate hormonal balance in the human body are indeed to blame for exploding rates of obesity, particularly in children and even babies.
Making the connection between the increased use of these chemicals and obesity is difficult since there are so many factors that contribute to obesity, including individuals’ diet and exercise. But one control group may be babies.
Obama, EPA set out to reform chemical regulation
The Environmental Protection Agency and the Obama administration are setting out to reform the nation’s decades-old approach to chemical regulation, according to an announcement made Tuesday by EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson.
Jackson said in a speech that chemical regulation is broken and in need of major reform, pointing to upcoming legislation that will reform the grossly outdated 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
Recently the public has become more aware of toxic chemicals which are pervasive in the food chain, common household products, cosmetics, toys and more. The reality is the EPA currently has very little authority to regulate these toxic chemicals.
EPA announces plans to step up chemical regulation
The Environmental Protection Agency’s toxics chief says his agency has plans to dramatically ramp up regulation of toxic chemicals and could go as far as banning some existing chemicals that pose threats to human health.
Steve Owens said the EPA has plans to ban chemicals and other toxic substances under the existing Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The EPA hasn’t gone after a toxic chemical since it attempted regulating asbestos in 1991 when a federal court said it had overstepped its authority. Owens also said the EPA may expand rules, which currently only apply to new chemicals, to halt or limit the production of existing chemicals.
Cocktail of chemicals to blame for decline in male virility
A recent British study is building on the case many scientists are making that endocrine-disrupting chemicals are responsible for a growing number of genital deformities and reproductive problems in men.
These chemicals, which include bisphenol A, phthalates and many pesticides, are suspected of blocking testosterone in pregnant women and activating estrogen in developing boys and grown men.
This disruption of the delicate balance of hormones is leading to birth defects in baby boys’ reproductive systems and is harming male sperm counts.
According to an article on miller-mccune.com:
Press buzzing over healthystuff.org
The release of healthystuff.org last week had newspapers, bloggers, TV news and radio buzzing. The new site is a resource that rates a variety of products based on the presence of toxic chemicals.
Healthystuff.org focuses on toxics in pet products, women’s handbags, toys, car interiors, car seats and back to school items.
The New York Times wrote about the site’s release in its article Environmental Group Reveals Toxic Chemicals in a Range of Consumer Items.
The Times interviewed Jeff Gearhart, research director at the Ecology Center, which developed healthystuff.org.
New site calls out toxic products, points to safe ones
The chew toy your dog plays with, the material of your handbag, the surfaces inside your car – they’re all sources of toxic chemicals in daily life, according to testing results available on the new Web site HealthyStuff.org.
Healthystuff.org launches today and is a resource for information about toxin exposure in places you may not expect them. Like lead in dog toys and bedding, car interiors and women’s handbags, polyvinyl chloride in back-to-school products, and flame retardants and heavy metals in car seats.
Healthystuff.org is a project of the Ecology Center, which also created HealthyToys.org and HealthyCar.org .The site has a searchable database and produces lists of highly and poorly rated products in various categories.
AMA calls for chemical policy reform
The nation's largest association of physicians and medical students has resolved to advocate for improved
chemical policy and environmental health practices in the United States. The American Medical Association (AMA) recommended restructuring of the Toxic Substances
Control Act (TSCA) to help federal and state agencies to efficiently
assess “the human and environmental health hazards of industrial
chemicals and reduce the use of those of greatest concern.”
The AMA is calling on government to “implement a national modern, comprehensive chemicals policy that is in line with current scientific knowledge on human and environmental health, and that requires a full evaluation of the health impacts of both newly developed and industrial chemicals now in use.”
Read more at www.changecalifornia.org.
Toymaker giant Mattel exempt from toxics testing rules
New toy safety regulations are in the news again after the Consumer Product Safety Commission has granted the country’s largest toymaker an exemption.
The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act requires third-party testing of toys to ensure that toymakers large and small are adhering to strict new guidelines. The guidelines regulate how much lead, among other toxic chemicals, are allowed in toys. The guidelines were instated in the aftermath of massive toy recalls in 2007.
Now the Associated Press reports that Mattel was granted an exemption from third-party testing. Instead the toymaker will be able to do its own testing, in its own labs.
Can SIGG brand recover after BPA deception?
As outrage over the SIGG water bottle controversy grows, business experts are asking whether a company that was dishonest about the presence of BPA in its products can ever recover.
SIGG, a Swiss company that produces aluminum water bottles, saw sales increase 250% between 2006 and 2007 alone as health-conscious consumers abandoned plastic water bottles and invested in reusable bottles like SIGG’s. Last week SIGG's CEO announced that until recently the bottle liner contained BPA.
Many question whether SIGG, which benefited from fear of BPA, can regain trust after allowing consumers to believe its products were BPA-free.
SIGG shocks consumers, saying bottles contain BPA
Health-conscious consumers are outraged this week after makers of the metal SIGG water bottles announced recently that until last August the bottles were lined with an epoxy liner that included bisphenol A (BPA). As concern about BPA’s presence in plastic water bottles grew in the past couple years, many savvy consumers switched to metal water bottles, assuming they were BPA-free. But just as all soda cans and food cans contain BPA in their lining, so did the SIGG bottles.
Even though SIGG switched liners in August 2008, the company was still distributing bottles with the BPA liners to retailers up until Tuesday.
