This week, EWG broke down the harms of endocrine disruptors, a group of chemicals that can be found in food, water and many consumer products. These harms include neurological and behavioral problems; reproductive issues like changes to fertility, early puberty and risk of low birth weight; obesity, diabetes, immune system impacts, cardiovascular and respiratory problems, and some types of cancer.
And in the latest guest article by Stefanie Sacks, a Culinary Nutritionist and Author of “What the Fork Are You Eating?”, laid out how to make healthier food choices part of a busy daily routine.
Here’s some news you can use going into the weekend.
Children’s health
Glossy: Johnson & Johnson leans on beauty trends to create Vivvi & Bloom baby care brand
All products were formulated without parabens, sulfates and dyes, and were verified by the Environmental Working Group, which has actively promoted clean beauty.
CDC find glyphosate in children
CBS News: Weed-killing chemical found in majority of U.S. urine samples
"Glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide in the country, yet until now we had very little data on exposure," Alexis Temkin, a toxicologist at the Environmental Working Group, said Monday in a statement. Reprinted by MSN Health & Fitness; Internewscast; IQ Stock; Vietname Explorer; KWTV-TV (Oklahoma City); 4+ additional media outlets
The Hill: Herbicide chemical linked to cancer found in majority of urine samples in CDC study
Alexis Temkin, a toxicologist at EWG, said that “glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide in the country, yet until now we had very little data on exposure.” Reprinted by WTRF-TV (Wheeling, W.Va.); NewsBreak; KGET-TV (Bakersfield, Calif.); WSYR-TV (Syracuse, N.Y.); WTNH-TV (New Haven, Conn.); 85+ additional media outlets
HealthDay News: Weed Killer Glyphosate Found in Most Americans' Urine
"Glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide in the country, yet unto now we had very little data on exposure," said Alex Temkin, a toxicologist at the Environmental Working Group, in a statement issued Monday. Reprinted by US News; The Mountaineer (Waynesville, N.C.); News-Topic (Lenoir, N.C.); Carolina Panorama (Columbia, S.C.); My Leader (Jefferson County, Mo.); 80+ additional media outlets
“Glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide in the country, yet until now we had very little data on exposure,” said Environmental Working Group toxicologist Alexis Temkin in a statement.
Civil Eats: The Field Report: In DC, Lawmakers Push ‘Common Sense’ Food Waste Solution
“The Environmental Protection Agency should take concrete regulatory action to dramatically lower the levels of glyphosate in the food supply and protect children’s health,” said Alexis Temkin, a toxicologist with the Environmental Working Group, in a news release about the analysis.
Deseret News: Weed killer believed to cause cancer found in most Americans' urine, CDC study shows
The Environmental Working Group reported that its previous tests and those of other public interest groups “have found glyphosate in popular breakfast cereals and other foods American adults and children love to eat.”
Salon: Weedkiller chemical glyphosate is found in 4 out of 5 Americans' urine
Given the observed ways in which the weedkiller chemical has infiltrated so many facets of life, perhaps it is not surprising that so many people have glyphosate in their bodies. In 2019, a study by the Environmental Working Group revealed that the chemical was present in 17 of 21 oat-based cereal and snack products at levels considered unsafe for children.
Truthout: Appeals Court Rules Lawsuit Linking Roundup to Cancer Diagnosis Can Move Forward
“Glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide in the country, yet until now we had very little data on exposure,” said Alexis Temkin, a toxicologist with the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit environmental advocacy organization.
"Glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide in the country, yet until now we had very little data on exposure," Alexis Temkin, a toxicologist at the Environmental Working Group, said Monday in a statement. Reprinted by WWOR-TV (Secaucus, N.J.); WTXF-TV (Philadelphia); WJBK-TV (Detroit); WFLD-TV (Chicago); WTVT-TV (Tampa, Fla.); 2+ additional media outlets
Food Safety Administration Act
American Ag Network: DeLauro, Durbin Introduce Food Safety Administration Act
The legislation is endorsed by the Center for Food Safety, Consumer Reports, Environmental Working Group, Friends of the Earth and others.
The Fence Post: Durbin, DeLauro introduce bill to create new food safety agency
The legislation also is supported by the Center for Food Safety, Consumer Federation of America, the Environmental Working Group and Friends of the Earth. Reprinted by Agri-Pulse
Food Safety News: Public action groups call for separate food arm at FDA to streamline food safety
Consumer groups continue to call for faster and more efficient work from FDA on a variety of topics including heavy metals in baby food and the recent outbreak of cronobacter from infant formula. The advocacy groups include Consumer Reports, STOP Foodborne illness, the Environmental Working Group, and Healthy Babies Bright Futures. Reprinted by BankBit; Before It’s News; LexBlog; NewsBreak; Agri Food Tech News
Mashed: Why The FDA's Recall Process Is Coming Under Fire
A handful of prominent advocacy groups are behind the push for separating the food section of the FDA into an entirely new arm, says Food Safety News. Those include Healthy Babies Bright Futures, STOP Foodborne Illness, the Environmental Working Group, and Consumer Reports. Reprinted by MSN News
WTVW-TV (Evansville, Ind.): Senators introduce Food Safety Administration Act
The legislation is endorsed by Center for Food Safety, Consumer Federation of America, Consumer Reports, Defend Our Health, Environmental Working Group, Friends of the Earth, Healthy Babies Bright Futures, STOP Foodborne Illness, Center for Environmental Health, and Consumer Federation of America.
Titanium dioxide in candy
Good Housekeeping: Is Titanium Dioxide Safe to Eat? How It's Really Used in Skittles
Some consumer advocacy groups and health agencies — particularly, those at the Environmental Working Group — have been pushing federal officers at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to reconsider their existing rules on the additive, which is commonly found in processed snacks and sweets. Reprinted by MSN Health & Fitness
PopSugar: Titanium Dioxide Found in Skittles and Starbursts
Skittles are not the only sweet treat under speculation: the Environmental Working Group (EWG) found titanium dioxide in more than 3,000 other ultraprocessed foods, including Starbursts and Hostess Donettes. Reprinted by Quick Telecast; Pedfire
Algae blooms
Food & Environment Reporting Network: As weather warms, algae blooms on waterways nationwide
No federal agency currently tracks algal blooms, but the nonprofit Environmental Working Group produces an interactive map based on news stories and other sources.
Water Hub: Issue briefing: Toxic algae
Trackers from the Environmental Working Group and NRDC show that all 50 states have reported blooms, and reports have tripled since 2010.
Cleaning products
NPR: Start cleaning your home more sustainably with these tips: Life Kit
Moram will often look up unfamiliar ingredients with the Environmental Working Group, an advocacy organization that specializes in researching toxins and pollutants and advocating for corporate accountability.
Skin Deep® cosmetics database
Inside EPA: DTSC Scales Back Proposed Green Chemistry Listing For Toluene Products
“While manufacturers may claim these [toluene traces] are contaminants, or impurities, studies show that chronic exposure to even small amounts of toluene, at low mean levels of 11 and 42 ppm, can result in health impacts such as fatigue, recent short-term memory problems, concentration difficulties, and mood changes,” read earlier comments from The California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative, Clean Water Action, Breast Cancer Prevention Partners, and Environmental Working Group.
Everyday Health: What Are 'Natural' Skin-Care Products, and Are They Better for You?
While the FDA says that some of these ingredients of concern, including phthalates and parabens, are safe as used, research points to these as potential endocrine disruptors, or chemicals that affect your hormones and may increase your risk of cancer or fertility problems, according to the Environmental Working Group (EWG).
Fast Company: This sleek beauty line brings the magic of French drugstore brands to the U.S.
As Doré and Yeston were creating their products, they partnered with the Environmental Working Group (EWG), which certifies products to be free of chemicals known to be toxic.
Consumer guides
Environmental Health News: What is environmental health?
Explore the Environmental Working Group's guides to check your products for toxic chemicals. Reprinted byNewslanes; Honest Columnist
EWG VERIFIED®: Cosmetics
New York Times: 'French Girl Beauty' Has a New Offering
Still, it took two years to refine formulas. Ms. Doré and Ms. Yeston wanted to have their line verified by the Environmental Working Group, whose trademarked EWG VERIFIED stamp indicates that a product meets its standards and is free of certain ingredients and chemicals. Reprinted by Akilli Gundem
Forbes: The Best Women's Perfumes In Every Scent-Floral, Citrus, Musk And More
Henry Rose reveals 100 percent of the ingredients used to create its fragrances, which are also EWG-verified.
NewBeauty: 7 Things to Look For When Shopping for 'Clean Beauty'
Christina Ross, senior scientist at Credo Beauty, points to Environmental Working Group (EWG) Verified as another third-party certification to look out for, which verifies the product is free from EWG’s chemicals of concern.
Who What Wear: I Wore a Different Perfume Every Day for a Month-These 12 Earned Me Compliments
It's gorgeous, and like all of Henry Rose's fragrances, it's verified by the Environmental Working Group and certified by the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute.
Food chemicals
Clean Eating: Green Beauty vs Clean Beauty: What's the Difference?
The Environmental Working Group (EWG) is a great resource. DiPietro suggests looking at the EWG’s ingredient rating system, which lists ingredients from a 1 (not harmful) to 5 (evidence of harm) and provides links to the research including a summary of health concerns.
PFAS
USA Today: Across the US, towns warn of toxic PFAS chemicals in drinking water. Here's what to know.
The Environmental Working Group, a national environmental nonprofit that advocates for strict limits on PFAS, maintains a map of all known locations where PFAS has been found in drinking water. Reprinted by NewsBreak; Aditya Pandey News; Daily Magazine; Tip Sale Tips; World News Era; 1+ additional media outlets
“Yet here we are, 20-plus years later and we still don’t know for sure where these chemicals are being used and where they are being released,” said David Andrews, a senior scientist at the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit research organization that has studied PFAS and advocated for federal regulations since the early 2000s. Reprinted by NewsBreak; The Dispatch/Argus (Ill.); The Southern Illinoisan (Carbondale, Ill.); The Pantagraph (Bloomington-Normal, Ill.); Journal Gazette & Times Courier (Mattoon, Ill.); 5+ additional media outlets
Sampling of New Orleans east bank drinking water in 2020 by the Environmental Working Group found 10 different PFAS substances, totaling 41.8 ppt. Reprinted by Honest Columnist; Reporter Wings
Known as PFAS or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, these chemicals have been linked to cancers, reduced efficacy of vaccines and reproductive harm among other problems, according to the nonprofit Environmental Working Group. Reprinted by The Billings Gazette (Billings, Mont.); Ravalli Republic (Bitterroot Valley, Mont.); Independent Record (Helena, Mont.); Montana Standard (Butte, Mont.); Fire Engineering Online
Parkersburg News and Sentinel (W.Va.): Chemours to challenge EPA’s GenX guideline
The Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit advocacy group that has been studying PFAS for more than 20 years, says the chemicals “have been linked to serious health problems, including increased risk of cancer and harm to the reproductive and immune systems.” Reprinted by Marietta Times (Ohio)
Inside EPA: Environmentalists Scrutinizing Less-Stringent PFBS Water Health Advisory
In a new analysis conducted by the environmental organization Environmental Working Group (EWG) on DOD data in the wake of EPA’s release of its new HALs, the group found that 104 military sites have groundwater levels of PFBS “far above” EPA’s HAL for the chemical.
Inside EPA: White House Opposes More PFAS Restrictions On Pentagon Purchases
“Prohibiting the DOD’s purchase of certain everyday items containing intentionally added PFAS is urgently needed to protect service members,” said EWG Legislative Attorney Melanie Benesh in a July 12 statement to Inside EPA.
Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce™
The nonprofit advocacy organization Environmental Working Group releases "Dirty Dozen" and "Clean Fifteen" lists each year using data from the Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug Administration. Reprinted by Yahoo News
MSN Lifestyle: 25 everyday foods that are bad for you
According to EWG’s Dirty Dozen™ list, strawberries top the list of fruits and vegetables containing the most pesticides. Analysis of a single sample revealed residue from no less than 22 different pesticides, and a third of the samples tested contained 10 or more toxic products.
EWG Guide to Sunscreens
Bloomberg News: Not all sunscreen ingredients are created equal
But lately sunscreen makers have been dropping it. Now only 30% of chemical sunscreens contain the ingredient, half as many as in 2019, according to the Environmental Working Group.
Buzzfeed: Here Are The 6 Sunscreens I Absolutely Swear By As Someone Who Wears SPF Every Day
The Environmental Working Group, an organization that researches the health effects of consumer products, gives this product a three out of ten (one being the best) for its excellent UVA/UVB balance.
Glam: This Is The Big Problem With Aerosol Spray Sunscreens
Part of the problem with spray sunscreens is what is the spray aspect. According to Nneka Leiba, the vice president of healthy living science at the Environmental Working Group, spray sunscreens can release tiny particles that can get deep into the lungs.