EHP News
Latest News
The authors of a new mouse study hypothesize that vascular insulin resistance may be caused when PM2.5 exposure triggers oxidative stress in the lungs. The experimental study doesn’t replace the need for human research, but it offers insight into how air pollution might increase the risk of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.
Hot days can be deadly, so public health officials have begun developing heat action plans to help mitigate the health impact of high temperatures. Although these plans have been widely adopted, it is unclear how effective they really are at reducing the public health burden of extreme heat. A new study seeks to find out.
Researchers must strive to ensure that individuals understand the risks incurred by participating in a household exposure study, including legal obligations that come with identification of contamination issues in their homes. A new review outlines these potential obligations along with guidance for sharing this information with participants.
Climate change presents a significant and growing threat to human health, with diverse impacts projected for different regions. Investigators now report that Pacific island countries are among the nations most vulnerable to climate-related health problems due to their particular geographic, demographic, and socioeconomic characteristics.
In the Media
• The Many Health Benefits of Trees
US News and World Report, 9 December 2016
Related: Exposure to Greenness and Mortality in a Nationwide Prospective Cohort Study of Women
• Plastic Island: How Our Throwaway Culture Is Turning Paradise into a Graveyard
CNN, 1 December 2016
Related: New Link in the Food Chain? Marine Plastic Pollution and Seafood Safety
• New Method Shows Some Great Lakes Fish Consumption Advisories May Not Protect Health
Great Lakes Echo, 18 November 2016
Related: Are Fish Consumption Advisories for the Great Lakes Adequately Protective from Chemical Mixture?
• These Tiny Organisms Have Some Really Weird Shapes
National Geographic, 12 November 2016
Related: Phage Renaissance: New Hope against Antibiotic Resistance
• 12,000 U.S. Schools Are Within a Mile of a Hazardous Chemical Facility. What Should We Do about That?
Ensia, 10 November 2016
Related: School Siting Near Industrial Chemical Facilities: Findings from the U.S. Chemical Safety Board’s Investigation of the West Fertilizer Explosion
• Determining Safe PFOA Level an Uncertain Science
The Intelligencer (Doylestown, PA), 7 November 2016
Related: Gestational and Chronic Low-Dose PFOA Exposures and Mammary Gland Growth and Differentiation in Three Generations of CD-1 Mice
• Study Calls for Independent Monitoring of Carbon Offset Programs
Xinhua News Agency, 6 November 2016
Related: Climate and Health Co-Benefits in Low-Income Countries: A Case Study of Carbon Financed Water Filters in Kenya and a Call for Independent Monitoring
• To Create a Quieter City, They’re Recording the Sounds of New York
New York Times, 6 November 2016
Related: Environmental Noise Pollution in the United States: Developing an Effective Public Health Response
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Health Observances
World Soil Day (5 December 2016)
• Healthy Ground, Healthy Atmosphere: Recarbonizing the Earth’s Soils
Safe Toys and Gifts Month (December 2016)
• Cadmium Confusion: Do Consumers Need Protection?
World Toilet Day (19 November 2016)
• The WASH Approach: Fighting Waterborne Disease in Emergency Situations
One Health Day (3 November 2016)
• Seeing the Forest for the Trees: How “One Health” Connects Humans, Animals, and Ecosystems
Native American and Alaska Native Heritage Month (November 2016)
• Healthier Tribal Housing: Combining the Best of Old and New
• Lessons of the Elwha River: Managing Health Hazards during Dam Removal
• The Changing Landscape of Arctic Traditional Food
National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month (November 2016)
• Time after Time: Environmental Influences on the Aging Brain