Plastic bottles raise hormonal activity of bottled spring water

Plastic bottles can further contaminate natural spring water with estrogen active compounds, report researchers who tested and compared water from the same sources but was bottled in either glass or plastic.

The water in the plastic containers triggered up to 90 percent more activity in the human cell assays used than the water in the glass containers. Hormone activity was measured by the increase in growth rate of the exposed human breast cancer cells – which are sensitive to estrogen hormones.

The results suggest that some springs used by water bottlers initially contain estrogenic chemicals, but the process of bottling in plastic further increases the waters estrogenic potential.

Read the synopsis at Environmental News Network

Or the full article in The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Can the FDA police the world?

Only 1% of the 10 million products shipped the the US as part of the global food supply chain is currently inspected by FDA. Unsanitary factory conditions and toxic contaminants have led to a number of scandals and recalls in recent years. Now as part of Obama's Food Safety Modernization Act the FDA will step up regulation of imported food and ingredients. 

Read the full article at Time Magazine

The dirty dozen- now an iphone app

We can always use a reminder of the dirty dozen and now it comes as an iphone app from EWG.

The dirty dozen:

1. Celery
2. Peaches
3. Strawberries
4. Apples
5. Blueberries
6. Nectarines
7. Bell Peppers
8. Spinach
9. Kale
10. Cherries
11. Potatoes
12. Grapes (Imported)

And of course the clean 15:

1. Celery
2. Peaches
3. Strawberries
4. Apples
5. Blueberries
6. Nectarines
7. Bell Peppers
8. Spinach
9. Kale
10. Cherries
11. Potatoes
12. Grapes (Imported)

Download the pdf wallet guide or the iphone app from foodnews.org, EWG's Shoppers Guide to Pesticides

EWG finds widespread use of formaldehyde in popular hair straightening products

EWG’s comprehensive survey of 45 manufacturers of hair-straightening products has found that 15 of 16 companies claim little to no formaldehyde but tests show their products contain substantial amounts.

Read the full report at ewg.org

Green Beauty Tips from Livia Firth

Along with her Green Carpet fashion challenge Livia Firth, wife of King's Speech star Colin Firth, attempted a Green Beauty challenge. Take a look at her blog to find out her Vogue-worthy tips.

Read Livia's blog at Vogue.com

BPA found in 40% of Cash Register Receipts

Source: Flickr/functoruser

Laboratory tests commissioned by Environmental Working Group (EWG) have found high levels of the endocrine-disrupting chemical bisphenol A (BPA) on 40 percent of receipts sampled from major U.S. businesses and services, including outlets of McDonald's, CVS, KFC, Whole Foods, WalMart, Safeway and the U.S. Postal Service. Receipts from Target, Starbucks, Bank of America ATMs and other important enterprises were BPA-free or contained only trace amounts.

The total amounts of BPA on receipts tested were 250 to 1,000 times greater than other, more widely discussed sources of BPA exposure, including canned foods, baby bottles and infant formula...

BPA, a plastic hardener and synthetic estrogen linked by researchers to a long list of serious health problems, is used to coat thermal paper used by major retailers, grocery stores, convenience stores, gas stations, fast-food restaurants, post offices and automatic teller machines (ATMs). The chemical reacts with dye to form black print on receipts handled by millions of Americans every day...

Wipe tests conducted by the lab easily removed BPA, indicating that the chemical could rub off on the hands of a person handling the receipt.

Scientists have not determined how much of a receipt's BPA coating can transfer to the skin and from there into the body. A study published July 11 by scientists with the Official Food Control Authority of the Canton of Zürich in Switzerland found that BPA transfers readily from receipts to skin and can penetrate the skin to such a depth that it cannot be washed off. This raises the possibility that the chemical infiltrates the skin's lower layers to enter the bloodstream directly.

Read the full press release at EWG.org

Or read the results of the Swiss study in the science journal, Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry, by Sandra Biedermann, et al.

Massachusetts' Safer Alternatives Bill- 6th time's the charm

Massachusetts legislators are filing a bill this week to protect children, families and workers from harmful chemicals found in everyday household products from window cleaner to shampoo...

The legislation, called The Safer Alternatives Bill, would require businesses to replace toxic chemicals with safer ones if there are ones available. It also sets up a review system for other chemicals. This is the 6th year the bill will be filed in Massachusetts, but despite the budget woes of the state, environmentalists say they expect to make headway...

Read more about Massachusetts' Safer Alternatives bill at boston.com

Read the full Safer Alternatives bill

Massachusetts residents- contact your elected officials and show your support for this bill



Aspartame- that can't be good

Chemical Structure of Aspartame

An article on High Fructose Corn Syrup had this nugget:

Diet Coke contains aspartame. Yet in 1985, as a member of the National Soft Drink Association, Coca-Cola opposed the FDA approval of aspartame for beverages. The company’s own objections—running to several pages in the Congressional Record—included the assertion that aspartame is uniquely and inherently unstable and breaks down in the can. It decomposes into formaldehyde, methyl alcohol, formic acid, diketopiperazine, and other toxins. In a study on seven monkeys, five had grand mal seizures and one died, a casualty rate of 86%.

See the full article at the Alliance for Natural Health

The Congressional Record

Tests find high levels of lead in reusable bags

Source: CEH,orgTwenty-one reusable bags sold as alternatives to disposable plastic or paper bags had dangerous levels of lead, according to new test results provided to USA TODAY.

The non-woven-polypropylene bags, sold by chains including Safeway, Walgreen's and Bloom, all had lead content above 100 parts per million — the highest level that many states allow in consumer packaging. The tests were conducted by Frontier Global Sciences for the Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF), which plans to release the results Monday. The group tested 71 bags and inserts from 44 retailers and organizations.

Often it was the bags' inserts that contained the high lead levels. The Safeway bag inserts had the highest level of lead — 672 ppm — behind only CVS bags recalled in November. Earlier this month, the Center for Environmental Health (CEH) reported finding lead levels 15 times the federal limit for kid's products in Disney-themed Safeway reusable bags.

Read the full article in USA Today

Read the press releasse from the Center for Environmental Health

30 states announce legislation aimed at curbing toxic chemicals

Source: Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families Coalition

In response to continued public concern over the presence of dangerous chemicals in common household products, coupled with Congressional inaction on the matter, on Wednesday, January 19, legislators and advocates in thirty states across the country and the District of Columbia will announce legislation aimed at protecting children and families from harmful chemicals. Despite well-funded opposition from the chemical industry, 18 state legislatures have already passed 71 chemical safety laws in the last eight years by an overwhelming, bipartisan margin – with more to come this year.

Bills to be considered in the 30 states include: bans on BPA and hazardous flame retardants in consumer products; requirements that children's product manufacturers use only the safest chemicals; and resolutions urging Congress to overhaul the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) – the federal law that allows dangerous and untested chemicals to be used in everyday products and materials.

Read the full press release at Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families

Contact your State Legislators to voice your support for this kind of legislation