Breathing air pollution may be as toxic as cigarette smoke for pregnant women

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Breathing the air outside their homes may be just as toxic to pregnant women —if not more so — as breathing in cigarette smoke, increasing a mom-to-be’s risk of developing deadly complications such as preeclampsia, according to findings from a new University of Florida study.

UF researchers compared birth data with Environmental Protection Agency estimates of air pollution, finding that heavy exposure to four air pollutants led to a significantly increased risk for developing a high blood pressure disorder during pregnancy. The research was published in the January issue of the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

The pollutants include two specific types of fine and coarse particulate matter, carbon monoxide and sulfur dioxide. According to the EPA, particulate matter includes acids, dust, metals and soil particles. These inhalable particles are released from industries and forest fires and can form when gases react with each other in the air. Sulfur dioxide is emitted from power plants and industries. Most carbon monoxide is produced by car exhaust.

“Fetal development is very sensitive to environmental factors,” said Xiaohui Xu, M.D., Ph.D., an assistant professor of epidemiology in the colleges of Public Health and Health Professions and Medicine. “That is why we wanted to do this research. Hypertension (high blood pressure), in particular, is associated with increased morbidity and mortality, causing a lot of problems for the mother and fetus, including preterm delivery.”

Hypertensive disorders such as gestational hypertension, preeclampsia and the deadly condition it leads to, eclampsia, affect about 10 percent of pregnancies. Despite the serious risks to mother and baby, little is known about what specifically causes these conditions to develop in pregnant women, the researchers say.

Although more studies are needed, the researchers hypothesize that exposure to air pollution during pregnancy may affect a woman’s normal pattern of blood pressure.

“We also want to look at preterm delivery and low birth-weight and find out what the effects of breathing contaminated air are on fetal development.” Xu said.

What percentage of your food has some type of packaging? It may be making you sick.

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Think of your last trip to the grocery store -- it's likely that even your vegetables may be housed in some type of packaging. 

Scientists are now concerned that all those synthetic chemicals used in the packaging, storage, and processing of foodstuffs might be harmful to human health over the long term.

In a commentary in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, the researchers say that most of these substances are not inert and can leach into the foods we eat.

Despite the fact that some of these chemicals are regulated, people who eat packaged or processed foods are likely to be chronically exposed to low levels of these substances throughout their lives, say the authors.

And far too little is known about their long term impact, including at crucial stages of human development, such as in the womb, which is "surely not justified on scientific grounds," the authors claim.

They point out that lifelong exposure to food contact materials or FCMs - substances used in packaging, storage, processing, or preparation equipment - "is a cause for concern for several reasons."

These include the fact that known toxicants, such as formaldehyde, a cancer causing substance, are legally used in these materials. Formaldehyde is widely present, albeit at low levels, in plastic bottles used for fizzy drinks and melamine tableware.

Secondly, other chemicals known to disrupt hormone production also crop up in FCMs, including bisphenol A, tributyltin, triclosan, and phthalates.

"Whereas the science for some of these substances is being debated and policy makers struggle to satisfy the needs of stakeholders, consumers remain exposed to these chemicals daily, mostly unknowingly," the authors point out.

And, thirdly, the total number of known chemical substances used intentionally in FCMs exceeds 4000.

Furthermore, potential cellular changes caused by FCMs, and in particular, those with the capacity to disrupt hormones, are not even being considered in routine toxicology analysis, which prompts the authors to suggest that this "casts serious doubts on the adequacy of chemical regulatory procedures."

They admit that establishing potential cause and effect as a result of lifelong and largely invisible exposure to FCMs will be no easy task, largely because there are no unexposed populations to compare with, and there are likely to be wide differences in exposure levels among individuals and across certain population groups.

But some sort of population-based assessment and biomonitoring are urgently needed to tease out any potential links between food contact chemicals and chronic conditions like cancer, obesity, diabetes, neurological and inflammatory disorders, particularly given the known role of environmental pollutants, they argue.

"Since most foods are packaged, and the entire population is likely to be exposed, it is of utmost importance that gaps in knowledge are reliably and rapidly filled," they urge.

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Study to look into possible links between air pollution and brain cancer

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Researchers at Cedars-Sinai have been awarded a $1 million grant to determine if several potentially toxic compounds that exist in polluted air are capable of entering the brain from the bloodstream and causing brain cancer.

The Brain and Lung Tumor and Air Pollution Foundation is providing the funds for the south coast air quality management district study.

The National Toxicology Program, an interagency program of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Institute of Environmental Health Services, has identified 13 chemicals that have caused brain tumors. The Cedars-Sinai study will focus on three – naphthalene, butadiene and isoprene – that often are associated with polluted air.

Naphthalene, used in the plastics industry and a component of mothballs and other products, may be released into the air when coal and oil are burned. Butadiene, used in rubber manufacturing and found in vehicle exhaust, exists in low levels in the air of urban and suburban areas. Isoprene, a natural compound produced by certain trees and shrubs, is used in manufacturing synthetic rubber and adhesives. Alone, it usually is not considered an air pollutant, but when it mixes with high levels of nitric oxide – which often occurs in industrial areas – the combination produces "ground-level" ozone, which can be harmful when inhaled.

The air pollution study is intended to determine whether up to 12 months of ongoing exposure to air pollution causes molecular changes in the brain that are consistent with the development of brain tumor pathways and  if toxins associated with air pollution can cross the brain's natural defense mechanism – the blood-brain barrier.

"Most studies looking at central nervous system cancers have focused on occupational hazards and have found that many manufacturing, farming, chemical and other industries are associated with increased risk. In this study, we will learn about particular components of air pollution and how they may be involved with the abnormal expression of genes and proteins that activate cancer stem cells. This may increase our understanding of air pollution as a potential risk factor for the generation of brain cancer," said Keith Black, MD, chair and professor of the Department of Neurosurgery, director of the Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute, director of the Johnnie L. Cochran, Jr. Brain Tumor Center and the Ruth and Lawrence Harvey Chair in Neuroscience.

Black is principal investigator of this study. He and other Cedars-Sinai researchers have conducted earlier studies on air pollution and molecular brain changes that could lead to cancer development – primarily on the potential effects of diesel fuel exhaust – for the South Coast Air Quality Management District.

In the new study, researchers will examine tissue exposed to pollutants at three months, six months and 12 months to determine if there is a change with longer exposure compared to shorter.

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Study: Breathing in smoke at home impairs child’s response to asthma treatment

Children exposed to cigarette smoke at home have lower levels of an enzyme that helps them respond to asthma treatment, a study has found.

Passive smoking is known to worsen asthma symptoms in children and impair their response to inhaled steroid treatment, but how this effect occurs was not known.

Researchers at Imperial College London found that children with severe asthma with a parent who smokes at home have lower levels of the enzyme HDAC2 compared with those whose parents don’t smoke. HDAC2 is required for steroids to exert their beneficial anti-inflammatory effects in asthma.

Professor Peter Barnes FRS, from the National Heart and Lung Institute at Imperial College London, said: “The mechanism we’ve identified makes children less sensitive to inhaled steroid treatment, so they suffer more symptoms and might have to take higher doses of steroids, which may lead to side effects.

“These findings underline the importance of legislation aimed at protecting children from being exposed to cigarette smoke. Restricting smoking in cars is a positive step, but the same should be applied in homes.”

The findings are reported in the journal Chest.

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Smoking linked with increased risk of most common type of breast cancer

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Young women who smoke and have been smoking a pack a day for a decade or more have a significantly increased risk of developing the most common type of breast cancer. That is the finding of an analysis published in the journal Cancer.

The majority of recent studies evaluating the relationship between smoking and breast cancer risk among young women have found that smoking is linked with an increased risk; however, few studies have evaluated risks according to different subtypes of breast cancer.

The researchers found that young women who were current or recent smokers and had been smoking a pack a day for at least 10 years had a 60 percent increased risk of estrogen receptor positive breast cancer. In contrast, smoking was not related to a woman's risk of triple-negative breast cancer. Estrogen receptor positive breast cancer is the most common subtype of breast cancer, while triple-negative breast cancer is less common but tends to be more aggressive.

"The health hazards associated with smoking are numerous and well known," says researcher Christopher Li, MD, PhD, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. "This study adds to our knowledge in suggesting that with respect to breast cancer, smoking may increase the risk of the most common molecular subtype of breast cancer but not influence risk of one of the rarer, more aggressive subtypes."

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One-third of Californians still breathe air that does not meet U.S. standards

State officials are admitting that even though air pollution has dropped significantly over the last decade, about one-third of people in California live in communities where the air quality does not meet federal health standards.

According to the California Air Resources Board, of the five largest urban areas in the state only the San Francisco Bay Area meets all federal standards for ozone and fine particulate matter.

Of the state's five biggest urban areas, only the San Francisco Bay Area meets all federal standards for ozone — the worst component of smog — and fine particulate matter, or soot.

Smog levels remains above federal health standards in parts of Greater Los Angeles, the San Joaquin Valley, Sacramento and San Diego.

Health studies link fine-particle pollution and ozone to respiratory illness, asthma, heart disease and cancer.

Source: Los Angeles Times

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5.6 million U.S. children prematurely will die unless current smoking rates drop

Approximately 5.6 million American children alive today – or one out of every 13 children under age 18 – will die prematurely from smoking-related diseases in their lifetime unless current smoking rates drop, according to a recent Surgeon General’s report.

Over the last 50 years, more than 20 million Americans have died from smoking. The report concludes that cigarette smoking kills nearly half a million Americans a year, with an additional 16 million suffering from smoking-related conditions. It puts the price tag of smoking in this country at more than $289 billion a year in direct medical care and other economic costs.

“Smokers today have a greater risk of developing lung cancer than they did when the first Surgeon General’s report was released in 1964, even though they smoke fewer cigarettes,” said Acting Surgeon General Boris Lushniak, M.D., M.P.H. “How cigarettes are made and the chemicals they contain have changed over the years, and some of those changes may be a factor in higher lung cancer risks. Of all forms of tobacco, cigarettes are the most deadly – and cause medical and financial burdens for millions of Americans.”

“Over the last 50 years tobacco control efforts have saved 8 million lives but the job is far from over,” said HHS Assistant Secretary for Health Howard K. Koh, M.D., M.P.H. “This report provides the impetus to accelerate public health and clinical strategies to drop overall smoking rates to less than 10% in the next decade. Our nation is now at a crossroads, and we must choose to end the tobacco epidemic once and for all.”

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Can't sleep? Quit smoking

As if  heart disease and cancer aren't enough of a motivation to quit smoking how about a good night's sleep?

Research from the Department of Environmental Medicine at the University of Rochester Medical Center (NY) suggests that smoking disrupts the "circadian clock" function in both the lungs and the brain. That means smoking ruins productive sleep, leading to cognitive dysfunction, mood disorders, depression and anxiety.

"This study has found a common pathway whereby cigarette smoke impacts both pulmonary and neurophysiological function. Further, the results suggest the possible therapeutic value of targeting this pathway with compounds that could improve both lung and brain functions in smokers," said Irfan Rahman, Ph.D. "We envisage that our findings will be the basis for future developments in the treatment of those patients who are suffering with tobacco smoke-mediated injuries and diseases.

"If you only stick to one New Year's resolution this year, make it quitting smoking," said Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of The FASEB Journal, where the study was published. "If you like having a good night's sleep, then that's just another reason to never smoke."

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Heavy kids exposed to air pollution have triple the risk for asthma

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Obese children exposed to high levels of air pollutants were nearly three times as likely to have asthma, compared with non-obese children and lower levels of pollution exposure, report researchers at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC).

Rates of childhood obesity and asthma have both increased dramatically in the past 30 years. The percentage of American children who are obese has increased from 7% in 1980 to 20% in 2008. Childhood asthma is up from 4% in 1980 to 10% in 2009. Rates are higher among urban minority populations.
The researchers followed 311 children in predominantly Dominican and African-American neighborhoods of New York City. They monitored indoor air in each child's home for two weeks at age 5 or 6, to measure exposure to a family of air pollutants, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). The child's height and weight were measured and respiratory questionnaires were administered. In all, 20% were found to have asthma and 20% were categorized as obese based on body mass index.

The researchers found that high PAH exposure was associated with asthma only among obese children. In particular, the association was with the alkylated forms of PAH, which are emitted by vehicles and by cigarette smoke, cooking, incense, burning candles, and various other indoor air pollution sources. A two- to three-fold increase in asthma risk was seen among obese children exposed to high levels of the PAH chemicals 1-methylphenanthrene and 9-methylphenanthrene. Exposure to PAH or obesity alone did not predict asthma.

"Our results suggest that obesity may magnify the effects of these air pollutants, putting children at greater risk for having asthma," says lead author Kyung Hwa Jung, PhD, associate research scientist in the Department of Medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

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Study: Exposure to tobacco smoke residue on surfaces just as bad as breathing it in.

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Third-hand smoke is just as deadly as first-hand smoke, says a scientist at the University of California, Riverside who, along with colleagues, conducted the first animal study of the effects of third-hand smoke.
While first-hand smoke refers to the smoke inhaled by a smoker and second-hand smoke to the exhaled smoke and other substances emanating from a burning cigarette that can get inhaled by others, third-hand smoke is the second-hand smoke that gets left on the surfaces of objects, ages over time and becomes progressively more toxic.

“We studied, on mice, the effects of third-hand smoke on several organ systems under conditions that simulated third-hand smoke exposure of humans,” said Manuela Martins-Green, a professor of cell biology who led the study.  “We found significant damage occurs in the liver and lung. Wounds in these mice took longer to heal.  Further, these mice displayed hyperactivity.”

The results of the study provide a basis for studies on the toxic effects of third-hand smoke in humans and serve to inform potential regulatory policies aimed at preventing involuntary exposure to third-hand smoke.

Third-hand smoke is a potential health threat to children, spouses of smokers and workers in environments where smoking is, or has been, allowed. Contamination of the homes of smokers by third-hand smoke is high, both on surfaces and in dust, including children’s bedrooms.  Re-emission of nicotine from contaminated indoor surfaces in these households can lead to nicotine exposure levels similar to that of smoking. Third-hand smoke, which contains strong carcinogens, has been found to persist in houses, apartments and hotel rooms after smokers move out.

The  team was surprised to find that the damage caused by third-hand smoke extends to several organs in the body.

“More recently we have found that exposure to third-hand smoke results in changes that can lead to type II diabetes even when the person is not obese,” Martins-Green said. “There is still much to learn about the specific mechanisms by which cigarette smoke residues harm nonsmokers, but that there is such an effect is now clear.  Children in environments where smoking is, or has been allowed, are at significant risk for suffering from multiple short-term and longer health problems, many of which may not manifest fully until later in life.”

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VIDEO: The truth about everyday chemicals

There are tens of thousands of chemicals in our air, water, and in the everyday products we use.

They are largely unregulated and few are adequately tested for safety.

They contribute to disease and are linked to conditions such as asthma, autism, ADHD, diabetes, cancers, infertility, cognitive disorders, obesity, reproductive disorders and birth defects.

Earth Focus looks at endocrine disruptors, ubiquitous chemicals that affect development, metabolism, fertility and intelligence at extremely low doses and at what measures could be taken to better ensure public safety.



Source: LinkTV

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Study Finds Widespread Exposure to Chemical Plastic Softeners Despite Partial Ban

Americans are being exposed to significantly lower levels of some phthalates that were banned from children’s articles in 2008, but exposures to other forms of these chemicals are rising steeply, according to a study led by researchers at UC San Francisco.

Phthalates, which are used to soften plastic, can be found in nail polish, fragrances, plastics and building materials, as well as the food supply. An accumulating body of scientific evidence suggests they can disrupt the endocrine system, which secretes hormones, and may have serious long-term health consequences.

Phthalate exposures to adult men have been linked to DNA damage in sperm and lower sperm quality, while exposures to pregnant women have been linked to alterations in the genital development of their male children, as well as cognitive and behavioral problems in boys and girls.

The paper, published in Environmental Health Perspectives, is the first to examine how phthalate exposures have changed over time in a large, representative sample of the U.S. population. It delineates trends in a decade’s worth of data—from 2001 to 2010—in exposure to eight phthalates among 11,000 people who took part in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“We were excited to see that exposure to some of the phthalates that are of public health concern actually went down,” said Ami Zota, ScD, MS, an assistant professor of environmental and occupational health at the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, who did the research when she was a postdoctoral fellow at UCSF’s Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment. “Unfortunately, our data also suggest that these are being replaced by other phthalates with potential adverse health effects.”

Like previous studies, this one found that nearly all of the study participants had been exposed to at least some of the phthalates that were measured, including those that have been partially banned. Six of the phthalates have been banned from use in children’s articles, such as toys. Three were permanently banned, and three were subject to an interim ban, pending further study, from use in toys that can be placed in a child’s mouth. The law took effect in January of 2009.

Exposures went up in the phthalates that Congress banned pending further study. They increased by 15 and 25 percent in the first two, but went up nearly 150 percent in DiNP, which industry is using to replace other phthalates. DiNP was recently added to the list of chemicals known by the state of California to cause cancer under California’s Proposition 65.

Energy-related pollution grew in 2013

A study by the U.S. Energy Information Administration shows that energy-related carbon dioxide pollution grew by 2 percent last year after declining for several years.

The increase is being blamed on an increase in coal consumption by the electric power industry. 

American cars and factories released 5.38 billion tons of carbon dioxide into the air in 2013, up from 5.27 billion in 2012, according to the report. 

AP reports that coal has regained some market share in recent months as natural gas prices have increased following historic lows in 2012. 

Source: AP

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Leading U.S. Health Groups Call for Bold Action to Cut Tobacco Use

As the United States marks the 50^th anniversary of the first Surgeon General's Report on Smoking and Health, seven leading public health and medical organizations today called for bold action by all levels of government to achieve three goals:

• Reduce smoking rates, currently at about 18 percent, to less than 10 percent within 10 years;
• Protect all Americans from American Academy of Pediatrics, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and Legacy within five years; and
• Ultimately eliminate the death and disease caused by tobacco use.

The seven groups issuing the call to action are the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and Legacy®.

These seven organizations issued the following joint statement:

The first Surgeon General's Report on Smoking and Health, issued on January 11, 1964, was a historic turning point in the nation's fight against tobacco use. Our organizations celebrate the remarkable progress of the past 50 years.  The United States has cut smoking rates by more than half (from 42.4 percent in 1965 to 18 percent today) and per capita consumption of cigarettes by more than 70 percent.

While smoking was allowed almost everywhere in 1964, today nearly half the nation's population is protected by smoke-free laws that apply to all workplaces, restaurants and bars.  Reductions in smoking have saved millions of lives and are responsible for 30 percent of the increase in the life expectancy of Americans since 1964, according to a study published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

The fight against tobacco has been a tremendous public health achievement. However, the battle is far from over.  Tobacco use is still the number one cause of preventable death in the United States.  Smoking kills more than 440,000 Americans each year, sickens millions more and costs the nation $193 billion annually in health care expenditures and lost productivity.  About 44 million adults still smoke, and more than 3,000 kids try their first cigarette each day.  It is unacceptable that tobacco still kills so many Americans, lures so many children, devastates so many families and places such a huge burden on our nation's health care system.

Over the past 50 years, we have developed proven strategies that can achieve these goals if they are fully and effectively implemented.  These strategies include tobacco tax increases, comprehensive smoke-free workplace laws, hard-hitting mass media campaigns, health insurance coverage to ensure smokers have access to quit-smoking treatments, and well-funded, sustained programs to prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit.  In 2009, these measures were supplemented with a powerful new tool when the Food and Drug Administration was granted authority to regulate the manufacturing, marketing and sale of tobacco products, for the first time empowering a federal agency to rein in the tobacco industry's harmful practices.

We have the tools to end the tobacco epidemic for good.  We cannot afford to wait another 50 years.

Related materials: Downloadable charts showing progress since 1964

SOURCE: Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids

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EPA Awards Funding to Reduce Pesticide Risk Including Risks to Bees

Louisiana State, Penn State and University of Vermont at the forefront of groundbreaking technology

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced agricultural grants for Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices to reduce the use of potentially harmful pesticides and lower risk to bees all while controlling pests and saving money.

“These collaborative projects can provide innovative solutions to reduce pesticide risks to pollinators and crops,” said James Jones, assistant administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. “Initiatives such as these will encourage others to adopt promising technologies and practices across the nation to reduce pesticide risks while maximizing crop production and protecting public health.”

IPM relies on easy-to-implement, environmentally-sensitive practices that prevent pests from becoming a threat. These practices involve monitoring and identifying pests and taking preventive action before pesticides are used. If pesticides are needed, methods such as targeted spraying may be used. These grants will expand public-private stewardship efforts and reduce pesticide risk in agriculture.

The Agricultural IPM Grants are awarded to:

The Louisiana State University project to minimize impacts to bees from insecticides used in mosquito control. Mosquito control is critical for public health; however, insecticides can be hazardous to bees. Bees are essential for crop production and ensuring a healthy food supply. Practices and guidelines resulting from the project will be distributed to mosquito control districts and beekeepers throughout the U.S.

The University of Vermont project to reduce pesticide use and improve pest control while increasing crop yields on 75 acres of hops in the Northeast. The awardees will also develop and distribute outreach materials to help farmers adopt these practices. The project’s goal is to reduce herbicide and fungicide applications by 50 percent while decreasing downy mildew, a plant disease.

The Pennsylvania State University project to protect bees and crops by reducing reliance on neonicotinoid pesticide seed treatments and exploring the benefits of growing crops without them. IPM in no-till grain fields will be used to control slugs and other pests that damage corn and soybeans. Researchers will share their findings with mid-Atlantic growers and agricultural professionals.


For more information on the EPA’s Regional Agricultural IPM Grants: http://www.epa.gov/pestwise/grants/regionalaggrants.html

Fetal BPA exposure increases risk of prostate cancer later in life

Fetal exposure to a commonly used chemical found in products such as water bottles, soup can liners and paper receipts can increase the risk for prostate cancer later in life, according to a study from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Bisphenol A, or BPA, is widely used to soften plastics. Steering clear of the chemical is nearly impossible, says Gail Prins, professor of physiology at UIC and lead author of the paper.

“Previous studies have shown that people who avoided all contact with plastics or other BPA-containing objects for up to a month or more still had BPA in their urine, which means they must have come into contact with BPA in the last 24 to 48 hours, since it clears the body rather quickly,” said Prins, who is director of the UIC andrology laboratory. “It’s very hard to avoid.”

Exposure of the fetus to BPA in utero is of particular concern, because the chemical, which mimics the hormone estrogen, has been linked to several kinds of cancer, including prostate cancer, in rodent models. The new findings show that human prostate tissue is also susceptible.

“Our research provides the first direct evidence that exposure to BPA during development, at the levels we see in our day-to-day lives, increases the risk for prostate cancer in human prostate tissue,” Prins said. “The findings of adverse effects of BPA in human tissue are highly relevant and should encourage agencies like the Food and Drug Administration to re-evaluate their policies in the near future.”

Prins investigated the effect of BPA on human cells by implanting human prostate stem cells taken from deceased young-adult men into mice. Prostate stem cells are very long-lived. They arise during early fetal development and produce and maintain a man’s prostate tissue throughout his life.

To mimic exposure to BPA during embryonic development, for two weeks following implantation the mice were fed BPA — in amounts in line with those seen in pregnant American women — as the cells produced humanized prostate tissue.

“The amount of BPA we fed the mice was equivalent to levels ingested by the average person,” Prins said. “We didn’t feed them exorbitantly high doses.”

After the tissue was allowed to mature for one month, the mice were given estrogen to mimic the naturally rising estrogen levels seen in aging men. This rise in estrogen later in life is one of the known drivers of prostate cancer.

Tissue was collected after two to four months and analyzed for prostate disease. Prins found that a third of tissue samples taken from mice fed BPA had either pre-cancerous lesions or prostate cancer, compared to only 12 percent in a control group of mice fed oil. If the prostate stem cells were exposed to BPA before implantation and again as they produced prostate tissue in the mice, 45 percent of the tissue samples had pre-cancerous lesions or cancer.

“We believe that BPA actually reprograms the stem cells to be more sensitive to estrogen throughout life, leading to a life-long increased susceptibility to diseases including cancer,” Prins said.

The study was published in the journal Endocrinology.

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Root May Help Reduce the Risk of Lung Cancer in Smokers Say University Researchers

New research from the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy and Masonic Cancer Center has found that consumption of the root of Piper methysticum, or kava, a plant native to the South Pacific Islands, may prevent the development of tobacco smoke-induced lung cancer.

In addition, the research team has identified the naturally occurring components of kava that appear responsible for all the cancer-preventative benefits. By using a patent-pending blend of these active kava ingredients, the research team was also able to avoid liver damage, a rare side effect previously associated with various commercially available kava-containing dietary supplements.

In the latest study, the University of Minnesota research team found daily consumption of a kava-derived dietary supplement prevented the formation of 99 percent of tumors in a mouse lung tumorigenesis model that is routinely used in predicting lung cancer behavior in humans. The unprecedented level of tumor prevention was coupled with the finding that some mice developed no tumors at all. DNA damage resulting from tobacco carcinogens was also significantly reduced by way of prevention, providing a clue to what is potentially behind kava's effectiveness.

The findings open up the future possibility of health care professionals recommending or prescribing kava-derived products in the form of dietary supplements or drugs for current tobacco smokers to reduce their risk of developing lung cancer. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, smoking increases the risk of developing lung cancer 13-fold for women and 23-fold for men.

The research may also help explain the low rate of cancer incidence where kava is traditionally consumed. Rates of cancer in the South Pacific Islands of Vanuatu, Fiji and Western Samoa are dramatically lower than those in countries with no kava consumption. Similarly, despite tobacco smoking rates comparable to those of the United States, the occurrence of lung cancer in Fiji is just 5 to 10 percent of the U.S. lung cancer occurrence rate.

However, not all commercially available kava products on the market today are equal and many may carry the risk of liver injury.

In Europe, where kava had been routinely used to treat anxiety, kava products were temporarily pulled from the market after being linked to liver problems. Many factors have been hypothesized to contribute to the rare problems, and although a definitive cause has not been identified, current products in the market typically carry a liver injury warning. Prior to liver toxicity concerns, Hawaii served as one of the largest sources of commercially available kava.

"I wouldn't recommend using kava supplements on the market today with the hopes of receiving cancer prevention benefits," said Chengguo Xing, Ph.D., an associate professor of medicinal chemistry at the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy and a member of Masonic Cancer Center. "Although occasional use of currently available kava supplements is likely to have a low risk of liver injury, they may not safely provide the intended chemopreventative benefits."

Preliminary data from University of Minnesota has identified the potential compound behind kava-related liver problems and human clinical trials for the new, patent-pending kava supplement enriched with cancer-preventative benefits alone are planned. The University of Minnesota research team is also pursuing development of kava-derived drugs that may aid in both the prevention and treatment of other types of cancers.

The findings are published in the journal Cancer Prevention Research.

Thank-you to all our clients, reps and suppliers! Best wishes for the holiday season!

As this year is quickly winding to a close, our team at AllerAir and Electrocorp would like to take a moment to say thank-you for your role in our continued success.

We wish you a memorable holiday season and a happy 2014.

Greek economic crisis leads to air pollution increase as people turn to cheaper fuel sources

Freedigitalphotos.net

A new study has revealed that Greece's economic woes have had a spin-off effect on air quality.

The research, led by Constantinos Sioutas of the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, show that the concentration of fine airbrone particulate has jumped 30 percent in the hardest his region of Greece.

"People need to stay warm...economic hardship has compelled residents to burn low quality fuel, such as wood and waste materials, that pollutes the air," says Sioutas

The choice may have serious long-term health effects. These fine particles – measuring less than 2.5 microns in diameter (approximately 1/30th the diameter of a human hair) – are especially dangerous as they are known to lodge deep into the tissue of lungs.

Unemployment in Greece climbed above 27 percent in 2013. Meanwhile, heating oil prices have nearly tripled. Many residents have turned to wood, even trash as a fuel source.

Community and health leaders demand clean air in St. Louis; Utility may face leagl action after decades of coal pollution

An environmental group says it plans to sue Missouri utility provider Ameren, over repeated violations of federal clean air act.

The Sierra Club says that the Ameren Corporation has racked up nearly 10,000 violations of the Clean Air Act since 2008 at coal-fired power plants in St. Louis, Jefferson and Franklin counties.

In an ironic twist the company's own data may be it's downfall in the case. Ameren reports data from its coal plants’ monitoring systems quarterly to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR). In an effort to investigate and protect Missouri’s air, the Sierra Club requested the data from Missouri DNR, which revealed egregious violations of the Clean Air Act by exceeding the opacity limits allowed in Ameren’s permit on thousands of occasions between 2008 and 2013.

“Particle pollution can get deep down into lungs and cause respiratory and pulmonary problems,” said Dr. William Kincaid, MD, MPH, former Director of Health for the City of St. Louis and current Chairman of the St. Louis Regional Asthma Consortium. Opacity is one way of measuring particle pollution. "Ameren’s own data shows that it recorded close to 10,000 opacity violations, which means that St. Louis communities are repeatedly exposed to unlawful amounts of dangerous pollution."

Ameren’s Meramec coal plant emits sits just a mile down the road from an elementary schools.

“We can’t allow our children to be exposed to this dangerous coal pollution anymore," said Karl Frank, Jr., St. Louis County Father and former Mehlville School Board member. "It is time for Ameren to start investing in more clean energy like wind and solar so we can halt the consequences of coal pollution on our children.”

Research by the Clean Air Task Force has shown that pollution from Ameren’s Labadie coal plant in Franklin County, Meramec coal plant in St. Louis County and Rush Island coal plant in Jefferson County contribute to 3,870 asthma attacks, 360 heart attacks and 226 premature deaths every year.

The Ameren Corporation (NYSE: AEE) is a Fortune 500 company with assets of $23 billion. It serves 2.4 million electric customers and more than 900,000 natural gas customers in Illinois and Missouri.

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