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Water

PFAS Chemicals

Getting ‘forever chemicals’ out of drinking water: EWG’s guide to PFAS water filters

Taking ‘forever chemicals’ out of drinking water: EWG’s guide to PFAS water filters. Discover the most effective water filters for reducing PFAS contamination in your water. EWG's extensive tests...

July 11, 2023

EWG investigation: Dangerous agricultural chemical chlormequat found in popular oat-based products

A new EWG investigation finds for the first time troubling concentrations of the toxic agricultural chemical chlormequat in oat-based products sold in the U.S., including everyday brands marketed to...

January 31, 2023

Federal & State Energy Policy

Power and profit: How PG&E fails California ratepayers and what to do about it

EWG’s utility business model would create a more balanced policy and regulatory regime for PG&E customers. It is designed to hold the company responsible for its investment patterns and shift...

June 16, 2022

All Research

Displaying 49 - 72 of 183

Water

California

Cancer-Causing Pesticide ‘Garbage’ Taints Tap Water for Millions in California

April 11, 2017

TCP is just one example of the widespread contamination of drinking water from agriculture chemicals.

Many Fast Food Wrappers Still Coated in PFCs, Kin to Carcinogenic Teflon Chemical

February 1, 2017

Exposure to PFCs has been linked to testicular and kidney cancer, thyroid disease, pregnancy-induced hypertension and preeclampsia, ulcerative colitis and high cholesterol.

Chemical Policy

Under New Safety Law, EPA Picks First 10 Chemicals for Review

December 7, 2016

The safety reviews could lead to bans or restrictions on a number of hazardous chemicals in consumer products and workplaces, including asbestos, paint strippers

California

Federal & State Energy Policy

Toxic Chemicals May Contaminate Oil Field Wastewater Used to Grow Calif. Crops

October 26, 2016

In the last three years, farmers have irrigated 95,000 acres of food crops with billions of gallons of oil field wastewater possibly tainted with toxic chemicals.

Children’s Health

Dangerous Monsanto Chemical Remains in Thousands of Schools

October 5, 2016

Schools serving up to 14 million students may be contaminated with unsafe concentrations of PCBs leaching from caulks, sealants, and other aging building materials.

Chromium-6

'Erin Brockovich' Carcinogen in Tap Water of More than 200 Million Americans

September 20, 2016

In the film "Erin Brockovich," the environmental crusader confronts the lawyer of a power company that polluted the tap water of Hinkley, Calif., with a carcinogenic chemical called chromium-6. When...

Chemical Policy

Under New Safety Law, 20 Toxic Chemicals EPA Should Act On Now

July 21, 2016

The vast catalogue of chemicals that have never been evaluated for safety makes it urgent for the EPA move quickly to tackle the backlog

Children’s Health

Flame Retardants

Reproductive Health

California Policy Linked to Higher Flame Retardant Exposures

July 11, 2016

The new study by EWG and Duke University researchers shows that the exposures to the two chemicals were higher in Calif. than in a similar study done earlier in N.J.

BPA

Food

Food Chemicals

BPA Bombshell

June 17, 2016

Exposure to BPA has been linked to cancer, infertility, brain, nervous system and cardiovascular abnormalities, diabetes, obesity and other serious disorders.

Chemical Policy

Off the Books II: More Secret Chemicals

May 9, 2016

Code names for untested chemicals, secret production amounts reported by unnamed companies, discharges of undisclosed amounts of pollutants – these occurrences are not the fantastical inventions of...

Children’s Health

Mercury

Food

Mercury in Seafood

March 16, 2016

In 2014, federal agencies issued draft recommendations that women who are pregnant, breastfeeding or might become pregnant and young children eat more fish that is lower in mercury. Their advice is...

Cosmetics

Reproductive Health

Nailed

October 19, 2015

It's not surprising that many nail polishes contain potentially toxic chemicals. Now a study conducted by researchers at Duke University and EWG finds that at least one of those chemicals could be...

Potassium Bromate

October 14, 2015

Few foods evoke an image of wholesomeness like fresh-baked bread. But the flour used in many commercial baked goods may include an additive that's been linked to cancer.

Water

Teflon Chemical Harmful at Smallest Doses

August 20, 2015

Every time they drink a glass of tap water, people in the mid-Ohio River Valley of West Virginia and Ohio may be consuming unsafe amounts of an industrial chemical linked to cancer, birth defects...

Rethinking Carcinogens

July 16, 2015

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. That old adage is certainly true for cancer. Despite great advances in treatments and therapies, preventing the disease from ever occurring will always...

BPA

Cookware & Food Containers

Food

Food Chemicals

BPA in Canned Food

June 3, 2015

You may know that bisphenol A, a synthetic estrogen found in the epoxy coatings of food cans, has been linked to many health problems. Many companies have publicly pledged to stop using BPA in their...

PFAS Chemicals

Cookware & Food Containers

Poisoned Legacy

May 1, 2015

In 2005 the Environmental Protection Agency fined chemical giant DuPont a record $16.5 million over its decades-long cover-up of the health hazards of C8, also known as PFOA. One of a family of...

Chemical Policy

States Lead the Way

March 9, 2015

States are leading the way when it comes to protecting people from dangerous chemicals. And it's a good thing, because the federal Toxic Substances Control Act, on the books since President Ford...

Flame Retardants

Reproductive Health

NO ESCAPE:

August 4, 2014

Ten years ago, the Environmental Protection Agency and health advocates forced flame retardant chemicals called polybrominated diphenyl ethers, or PBDEs, from the market. These chemicals were showing...

Mercury

Five Things FDA and EPA Didn’t Tell You About Seafood Safety

June 25, 2014

Earlier this month the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released updated consumer guidelines on fish consumption. The two agencies said that because of the...

2,4-D Herbicide & GMO Crops

June 22, 2014

A fight is brewing over Dow's Enlist Duo, an extraordinarily potent weed-killer designed to kill the new generation of so-called “superweeds” that have mutated to withstand blasts of Monsanto's...

Men's Health

March 18, 2014

Most men know by now that good lifestyle choices – such as exercising regularly, eating a healthy diet, not smoking and drinking in moderation – make a big difference in staying healthy. Men may too...

Food

Food Chemicals

Nearly 500 ways to make a yoga mat sandwich

February 27, 2014

If you've planked on a yoga mat, slipped on flip-flops, extracted a cell phone from protective padding or lined an attic with foam insulation, chances are you've had a brush with an industrial...

Mercury

US Seafood Advice Flawed on Mercury, Omega-3s

January 21, 2014

People who follow the federal government's guidelines on seafood consumption are likely to consume too much mercury, a dangerous neurotoxin, or too few beneficial omega-3 fatty acids, according to a...

Expert Spotlight

Chemical companies provide quarterly reports on production and sales figures to shareholders. Why shouldn’t the public and EPA receive similar reports every year about commonly used chemicals, some of which could pose a serious health risk?”

David Andrews, Ph.D.

Senior Scientist, Chemical Research: Chemistry and Toxicology

All Experts

News & Insights

Food

Meat and Dairy Alternatives

7 reasons to add more plants to your diet

January 18, 2024

You probably know plant-based and plant-forward diets have considerable benefits. But you might not know the exact benefits.. Do they help your health? The environment?

Cosmetics

Reproductive Health

Hundreds of chemicals in everyday consumer products may increase breast cancer risk

January 17, 2024

More than 900 chemicals found in cosmetics, drinking water, food and cleaning supplies used by millions of Americans every day may cause biological changes linked to risk of developing breast cancer...

Cleaning Supplies

Companies fight to keep consumers in the dark about chemicals in cleaners

January 12, 2024

During the cold winter months you may spend more time inside than out. And you may do more cleaning, especially because it’s also the flu and COVID season. But before you reach for that spray cleaner...

Factory Farms

Farm Pollution

E. coli from factory farms threatens America's leafy greens

January 11, 2024

A single enormous cattle feeding operation potentially threatens the safety of thousands of acres of leafy greens grown in the U.S. during the colder months, an EWG analysis shows.

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Articles by David Andrews, Ph.D.