How Everyday Beauty Products Could Pose a Toxic Health Threat + More
Source: Children’s Health Defense
How Everyday Beauty Products Could Pose a Toxic Health Threat
While researchers have focused on the health risks posed by formaldehyde in hair straighteners and nail treatments, a study released Wednesday highlights the extent to which the carcinogen pervades other routine beauty products.
Formaldehyde, and preservatives that release the chemical over time, can be found in a variety of personal care products often marketed to Black women, such as lotion, body wash, conditioner and face cream. Research published Wednesday in Environmental Science & Technology Letters found that more than half of the participants used products containing formaldehyde-releasing preservatives every day, sometimes multiple times a day.
The study monitored 70 Black and Latina women as they used over 1,100 personal care products, averaging 17 products a day. According to the research, approximately 53% of the participants used products with preservatives that release formaldehyde. Some women used multiple products containing the preservatives, while others used products such as lotions and hand soaps multiple times a day. And more than 70% of the formaldehyde-releasing products were used at least twice over the study period.
Simpson Backs Florida Ban on Geoengineering: ‘We Don’t Put Metals in the Sky’
Florida Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson is backing a new state law banning geoengineering and weather modification, warning of the potential health risks tied to unregulated climate intervention efforts.
SB 56, signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis, makes Florida one of the first states to preemptively outlaw practices such as injecting substances into the atmosphere to alter weather or block sunlight — techniques often associated with geoengineering.
“When you think about putting metals and things up into your atmosphere to block the sun, to reflect the sun away, and then that material comes down and becomes part of your air or your water — yes, that’s exactly what we were looking at,” Simpson said during remarks supporting the bill.
“That’s the air you’re breathing, the water you’re drinking. That is 100% what we were looking to prevent with these types of products.” Simpson praised Sen. Ileana Garcia, R-Miami, for championing the bill in the Legislature, saying she “did a great job” laying out the dangers during debate.
Children’s Cancer Risk From Gas Stoves Nearly Double That of Adults
The gas stove in your home could be releasing toxic chemicals at cancer-causing levels, a new study shows. The study focuses on benzene, which is produced from the burning of natural gas or propane, and is already known to increase cancer risk.
Researchers led by a team from Stanford University measured benzene emission rates from gas stoves in 87 homes, as well as analyzing the movements of the gas in a smaller number of locations, and running computer models of how benzene might spread.
For homes with stoves that emit the most benzene and have the least ventilation, benzene-caused cancer risks are “significantly elevated”, the data showed — especially for children, where the lifetime risk rose 1.85 times higher than it did for adults.
“Natural gas and propane stoves emit benzene, a known carcinogen through combustion,” write the researchers in their published paper.
“This study evaluates population-level benzene exposure and associated health risks for the 6.3 million U.S. residents exposed to the top 5% highest benzene-emitting gas stoves.”
High School Students Make Devastating Discovery While Testing Water in Iconic National Park: ‘I Cried Three Times’
High school students found a concerning level of microplastics in water samples collected from two remote Grand Teton National Park lakes. The Jackson Hole News&Guide reported on tests conducted by two San Francisco Bay Area high school students.
The duo collected water samples with a portable pump from eight lakes in Grand Teton National Park. They returned to California to analyze the lakewater with a microscope and spectrometer and found plastic particles in samples from two of the lakes. Researchers have determined that microplastic particles can enter remote areas by wind or rain. Ski areas are another likely culprit for the contamination.
The National Park Service does not regularly sample for microplastics in water, according to the Jackson Hole News&Guide. Independent research, including the study conducted by the students, is vital to understanding the scope of microplastic pollution.
State Confirms Residents’ Worst Fears After Testing Drinking Water Across Community: ‘I Definitely Would Not Recommend Drinking It’
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality had bad news for Crook County residents. Recent tests revealed that their well water had disturbingly high levels of pollutants, as reported by Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB).
Crook County residents have had an ongoing problem with a gravel mining site run by Knife River Corporation. Their claims of polluted water were largely ignored or refuted until February, when the DEQ’s test results were publicized. Manganese, iron, and aluminum were found in the water and seemed to be increasing.
Ashley McCormick, a Crook County local, shared her correspondence with an Oregon Health Authority toxicologist with OPB. They said: “I definitely would not recommend drinking it. … The manganese levels are high enough to cause health concerns.” McCormick claimed the problem extended beyond drinking. After bathing, her children broke out in hives. They can no longer use the water in their house.
Though the cause is still technically unconfirmed, all signs seem to point to Knife River Corporation. Central Oregon Daily reported that the company is now washing rocks in settling ponds that geologist Jim Newton said are directly linked to the county’s aquifer.
Forgoing Moratorium, Committee Backs Plan to Study Health Impacts of Artificial Turf
Forgoing a moratorium on new artificial turf fields, lawmakers are recommending the state still study the effects they could have on public health and the environment.
The members of the Legislature’s Environment and Natural Resources Committee who were present for a work session Wednesday afternoon unanimously endorsed an amended version of LD 1177. The bill will next go to the Maine House of Representatives and Senate for approval.
Originally, the bill sought to place a three-year moratorium on the installation and reinstallation of synthetic turf athletic fields while the Department of Environmental Protection conducted a study to determine how those materials interact with the health of local environments and the people who recreate on those fields.
However, the amended bill backed by the committee nixed the moratorium and narrowed the study to look at how synthetic turf affects ambient air, groundwater and surrounding organisms, as well as disposal options once the fields reach the end of their life.
The study would also evaluate any release of microplastics from the fields and the effect of that on the surrounding environment and human health. The department would need to submit a report to the Legislature with its findings in the study by January 2028.
Congress Sends Trump a Resolution Ending Biden-Era Rule Targeting Rubber Tire Emissions
Congress has voted to kill a Biden-era rule requiring rubber tire makers to clean up planet-warming emissions from their manufacturing processes in the U.S. The Environmental Protection Agency finalized rules for the rubber tire industry, specifically previously unregulated rubber processing, last November through amendments to the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants.
Tires are made of chemicals, compounds and materials that release greenhouse gases, heavy metals and volatile organic compounds, experts say. Republican Virginia Congressman Morgan Griffith, alongside South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott and Mississippi Sen. Roger Wicker, also Republicans, introduced a resolution to undo the rules earlier this year and it advanced through the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to reverse recently adopted federal agency rules with a simple majority vote in each chamber.
The vote passed in the House on March 5 and the Senate on Tuesday. The measure heads to the president’s desk for signing next.
Study Finds Toxic ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Beer
A new study is raising fresh concerns about the safety of everyday beverages, revealing that toxic chemicals commonly found in drinking water are also turning up in beer. Researchers at RTI International found that many popular beers sold in the U.S. contain detectable levels of PFAS, a group of toxic compounds often called “forever chemicals” because they don’t break down easily in the environment or the human body.
“Nearly every beer we tested had at least one detectable PFAS compound in it,” said Jennifer Hoponick Redmon, lead author of the study and senior director of environmental health and water quality at RTI. “And that’s directly tied to the municipal water used during the brewing process.”
The study, published in Environmental Science & Technology, is the first to adapt a drinking water testing method to analyze beer. The findings illustrate how PFAS contamination moves from local water supplies into products on store shelves — and into people’s homes.
