The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines pesticides as any chemical substance used to regulate, prevent or destroy plants or pests – usually insects, rodents or microorganisms such as fungi and bacteria – or that acts as a nitrogen stabilizer in soil. More:

• Pesticides explained: the toxic chemicals in up to 70% of produce  –  The Guardian
• Pesticide residues found in 70% of produce sold in US even after washing  –  The Guardian
• Pesticides Industry Sales and Usage 2008 - 2012  –  US EPA
• Pesticide residues in food  –  FAO
• Pesticides as endocrine-disrupting chemicals  –  US EPA
• Health Effects of Chronic Pesticide Exposure: Cancer and Neurotoxicity (Research article)

The internet cheered in December when Trader Joe’s announced it would take meaningful steps towards making its packaging more sustainable. The supermarket chain outlined a plan that included reducing and eliminating excess waste, using materials that could realistically be recycled and avoiding harmful substances. It’s the last part that medical and environmental activists are keeping an eye on. More:

• Food packaging is full of toxic chemicals – here's how it could affect your health  –  The Guardian
• New Study Finds PFAS Chemicals in Takeout Food Packaging  –  Toxic-Free Future
• American Academy of Pediatrics Says Some Common Food Additives May Pose Health Risks to Children  –  American Academy of Pediatrics
• Basic Information on PFAS - Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)  –  US EPA

Surprising new research into dog sperm has reproductive biologists concerned about the fate of their own species. In a study, scientists found that two chemicals common in home environments damage the quality of sperm in both men and dogs. The culprits implicated are diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP), used to make new plastics more pliable, and polychlorinated biphenyl 153 (PCB153), found in older plastics and electrical equipment. More:

• Sperm counts are on the decline – could plastics be to blame?  –  The Guardian
• Independent and combined effects of diethylhexyl phthalate and polychlorinated biphenyl 153 on sperm quality in the human and dog. (Research article)

PFAS, short for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a group of at least 4,700 synthetic chemicals that have been in commercial production since the 1940s to make surfaces resist stains, water and grease. More:

• Why you need to know about PFAS, the chemicals in pizza boxes and rainwear  –  The Guardian
• The Problem With PFASs Found in Your Food, Clothes, and Home  –  NRDC

Human Exposure

• Fact Sheet: Draft Toxicity Assessments for GenX Chemicals and PFBS  –  US EPA
• How can I be exposed to PFAS?  –  US ATSDR
• PFAS Contamination Crisis - New Data Show 712 Sites in 49 States  –  EWG
• Update - Mapping the Expanding PFAS Crisis  –  EWG
• Serum concentrations of PFASs and exposure-related behaviors in African American and non-Hispanic white women (Research article)

PFAS regulation

• As EPA announces plan to tackle chemical pollution in drinking water, Washington looks to write its own rules  –  The Seattle Times
• Factsheet: Prohibition of Certain Toxic Substances Regulations  –  Environment Canada
• Pentagon Pushes for Weaker Standards on Chemicals Contaminating Drinking Water  –  The New York Times

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection has received results from only about 40% of the treatment plants or sludge composting facilities subjects to the new testing requirements for three types of per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances. While the early returns are not necessarily surprising, they illustrate the pervasiveness of these "forever chemicals" commonly known as PFAS, as well as the challenge ahead for the state and municipal treatment facilities that provide the sludge to farmers for use as fertilizer. More:

• Initial test results reveal ‘forever chemicals’ showing up in fertilizer sludge  –  Portland Press Herald
• Public health experts aim to stop spreading of sludge  –  Portland Press Herald

Earlier that day, after arriving at a Mount Sinai facility in New York City, I dropped off a urine sample that will be studied for 81 chemicals in lab tests far more advanced than at a regular doctor visit. We are exposed to synthetic chemicals in plastics, cosmetics and food every day. Could it be making us toxic? An environment reporter was tested for over 1,530 chemicals to find out. More

• Is modern life poisoning me? I took the tests to find out  –  The Guardian
• Regulate to reduce chemical mixture risk  –  Science
• The Institute for Exposomic Research  –  Exposomic

Synthetic chemicals are in nearly everything we touch and consume. But some chemicals can be potentially harmful and a number of experts are anxious about possible long-term health effects of our everyday exposure. They say US regulations could be stronger. More

• Explained: the toxic threat in everyday products, from toys to plastic  –  The Guardian

Pesticides

• Pesticides explained: the toxic chemicals in up to 70% of produce  –  The Guardian
• Pesticide residues found in 70% of produce sold in US even after washing  –  The Guardian
• Food and Pesticides  –  US EPA
• 2018 Updates - Study Updates  –  US Agricultural Health Study

Flame Retardants

• PCBs, PBBs and Brominated Flame Retardants  –  US EPA
• Flame Retardants Fact Sheet  –  US NIH
• Top Tips for Avoiding Toxic Flame Retardants at Home  –  Toxic-Free Future
• EWG's tips to avoid Flame Retardants  –  EWG

PFAS chemicals, human exposure and health effects

• The Teflon Toxin  –  The Intercept
• An Overview of Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances and Interim Guidance for Clinicians  –  US ATSDR
• Toward a new comprehensive global database of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl substances  –  OECD
• Toxicological Profile for Perfluoroalkyls, Draft for Public Comment  –  US ATSDR
• A Toxic Threat  –  US Center for Science & Democracy
• PFAS -. What are the health effects?  –  US ATSDR
• PFOA and PFOS Harm Sperm and Cause Short Penises  –  The Intercept
• How can I be exposed to PFAS?  –  US ATSDR
• The Problem With PFASs Found in Your Food, Clothes, and Home  –  NRDC

A class of synthetic chemicals that contain fluorine atoms is grabbing headlines as emerging contaminants. More and more communities around the world are finding their drinking water supplies tainted with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). More:

• A guide to the PFAS found in our environment – C&EN
• What’s GenX still doing in the water downstream of a Chemours plant? – C&EN
• The hunt is on for GenX chemicals in people – C&EN
• What is the price of fire safety? – C&EN

• Studies show how homes can pollute indoor air – ScienceNews

From 1962 to 1971, the American military sprayed vast areas of Vietnam with Agent Orange, leaving dioxin contamination that has severely affected the health of three generations of Vietnamese. Now, the U.S. and Vietnamese governments have joined together in a massive cleanup project. More:

• Fifty Years After, A Daunting Cleanup of Vietnam’s Toxic Legacy – Yale E360
• Vietnam to relocate 300 residents near US air base for dioxin cleanup – VnExpress International
• Dioxins – The Collaborative on Health and the Environment
• Environmental Assessment of Dioxin Contamination at Bien Hoa Airbase – US AID
• Environmental health risk assessment of dioxin in foods and the sustainability of public health interventions at severe dioxin hot spots in Vietnam (PhD Thesis) 

International chemical regulators unanimously approved a global ban on the use of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a toxic chemical used to manufacture nonstick and stain-resistant coatings in clothing, fast-food wrappers, carpets, and other consumer and industrial products. More:

• UN Chemical Regulators Approve PFOA Ban, With Exemptions – Bloomberg Environment

Decades after Dupont and 3M first discovered that the perfluorinated chemicals making them fortunes could be transmitted from mothers to babies, millions of women around the world are passing dangerous amounts of these toxic compounds to their children, according to a report. More:

• High Levels of Toxic PFAS Chemicals Pollute Breast Milk – The Intercept
• Bad Chemistry – The Intercept
• The Teflon Toxin- DuPont and the Chemistry of Deception – The Intercept
• Crying Over Spilled Milk - The Latest Victims of PFAS Contamination in New Mexico – BBJ Group
• The Teflon Toxin Goes to China – The Intercept
• A Little Story About the Monsters In Your Closet - Report – Greenpeace
• Football World Cup Merchandise by adidas, Puma and Nike - Detox product test – Greenpeace

PFAS Pollution

• PFAS Pollution Across the Middle East and Asia – IPEN
• Study on Contamination of Perfluorinated Compounds (PFCs) in Water Environment and Industrial Wastewater – Academia.edu

Exposure to PFAS

• Concentrations of perfluoroalkyl substances in foods and the dietary exposure among Taiwan general population and pregnant women (Research article)
• Exposure to Perfluorinated Alkyl Substances and Health Outcomes in Children (Research article)
• Analysis of PFOA in dosed CD-1 mice. Part 2- Disposition of PFOA in tissues and fluids from pregnant and lactating mice and their pups (Research article)

PFAS in Human Milk

• Breastfeeding may expose infants to toxic chemicals – Harvard SPH
• Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in human breast milk and current analytical methods (Research article)
• Concentrations of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in human embryonic and fetal organs from first, second, and third trimester pregnancies (Research article)
• Perfluorinated Compounds in Human Milk from Massachusetts, U.S.A. (Research article)
• Levels of perfluorinated compounds in human breast milk in Jordan: the impact of sociodemographic characteristics (Research article)
• Perfluorinated Compounds in Human Breast Milk From Several Asian Countries, and in Infant Formula and Dairy Milk from the United States (Research article)

• The dangers of modern magic – UN Environment
• Predicting global killer whale population collapse from PCB pollution (Research article)
• Bioaccumulation of persistent organic pollutants in the deepest ocean fauna (Research abstract)

Scientists are ramping up research on the possible health effects of a large group of common but little-understood chemicals used in water-resistant clothing, stain-resistant furniture, nonstick cookware and many other consumer products. More:

• Scientists Dig Into Hard Questions About The Fluorinated Pollutants Known As PFAS – NPR
• Basic Information on PFAS – US EPA
• Per- and poly-fluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) – Washington State Department of Ecology
• GenX and other PFAS in the Cape Fear River Basin – NC DPH
• C8 Study Publications – C8 Science Panel
• A Chemical Category-Based Prioritization Approach for Selecting 75 Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) for Tiered Toxicity and Toxicokinetic Testing (Scientific article)
• Serum Vaccine Antibody Concentrations in Children Exposed to Perfluorinated Compounds (Research article)

• Recycled plastics warning: Toxic chemicals found in toys sold in Canada – CTV Vancouver
• Toxic Chemicals Found in Canadian Toys & Consumer Products Made of Recycled – Canadian Environmental Law Association
• Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) – Environment and Climate Change Canada
• Human Health State of the Science Report on Decabromodiphenyl Ether (decaBDE) – Environment and Climate Change Canada

• Should You Be Concerned About PFAS Chemicals? – Consumer Reports
• Harmful Chemicals Might Be Lurking in Fast-Food Packaging – Consumer Reports
• The Madrid Statement on Poly- and Perfluoroalkyl Substances (PFASs) – EHP
• Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances in the Environment: Terminology, Classification, and Origins (Scientific article)
• In-Home Water Filtration Systems for PFAS Reduction – Michigan.gov

Monitoring and Exposure

• PFAS Contamination Crisis- New Data Show 610 Sites in 43 States (Interactive map)
• Biomonitoring Summary – CDC
• PFAS Exposure Assessments – US ATSDR
• Per- and Polyfluorinated Substances (PFAS) Factsheet – US CDC
• Serum concentrations of PFASs and exposure-related behaviors in African American and non-Hispanic white women (Research article)

Health Effects

• Toxicological Profile- Perfluoroalkyls – US - ATSDR
• What are the health effects? – US - ATSDR
• C8 Science Panel – The Science Panel Website

More than 100 pesticides and 21 drugs were detected in the 29 waterways analysed in 10 European nations, including the UK. A quarter of the chemicals identified are banned, while half of the streams analysed had at least one pesticide above permitted levels. More:

• Pesticides and antibiotics polluting streams across Europe – The Guardian
• EU bans UK's most-used pesticide over health and environment fears – The Guardian
• Pesticide residues found on 93% of organic Swiss farms – The Guardian
• English rivers polluted by powerful insecticides, first tests reveal – The Guardian
• Study links insecticide use to invertebrate die-offs – The Guardian
• Farmers told to follow best practice as pesticides found in public water – Irish Examiner
• Farms could slash pesticide use without losses, research reveals – The Guardian

On a chilly day in November 2017, Beth Markesino sat in the county health department. She pushed up the sleeve of her sweater and extended her arm. A medical technician drew her blood. During her visit to the facility, Markesino spotted several people she knew and said hi to them. They were getting blood work done too. More:

• The hunt is on for GenX chemicals in people – C&EN
• What’s GenX still doing in the water downstream of a Chemours plant? – C&EN
• North Carolina Stop Gen-X In Our Water (Facebook Group)

Exposure and Health Effects

• The GenX Exposure Study – NC Center for Human Health and the Environment
• Adverse Maternal, Fetal, and Postnatal Effects of Hexafluoropropylene Oxide Dimer Acid (GenX) from Oral Gestational Exposure in Sprague-Dawley Rats (Research article)
• Comparative Hepatotoxicity of Novel PFOA Alternatives (Perfluoropolyether Carboxylic Acids) on Male Mice (Research abstract)

Water Monitoring

• Legacy and Emerging Perfluoroalkyl Substances Are Important Drinking Water Contaminants in the Cape Fear River Watershed of North Carolina (Research article)
• Recently Detected Drinking Water Contaminants: GenX and Other Per‐ and Polyfluoroalkyl Ether Acids (Research abstract)

I am an environmental toxicologist studying how man-made chemicals affect our health. I was always interested in understanding how our current health is shaped by chemical exposures during the embryonic and early postnatal period – life stages that are particularly sensitive to environmental stressors. More:

• Kids exposed to flame retardant PBDE are at risk for lifelong liver – The Conversation
• Technical Fact Sheet – Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) – US EPA

Flame retardants in people and in the environment

• Total Consumer Exposure to Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers in North America and Europe (Research article)
• After the PBDE Phase-Out: A Broad Suite of Flame Retardants in Repeat House Dust Samples from California (Research article)
• Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers in the Environment and in People: A Meta-Analysis of Concentrations (Research article)

Health Effects

• PBDE-47 and PBDE mixture (DE-71) toxicities and liver transcriptomic changes at PND 22 after in utero/postnatal exposure in the rat (Research article)
• In utero and lactational exposure to BDE-47 promotes obesity development in mouse offspring fed a high-fat diet: impaired lipid metabolism and intestinal dysbiosis (Research article)
• Developmental Exposure to 2,2′,4,4′–Tetrabromodiphenyl Ether Induces Long-Lasting Changes in Liver Metabolism in Male Mice (Research article)
• Developmental Exposure to 2,2′,4,4′-Tetrabromodiphenyl Ether Permanently Alters Blood-Liver Balance of Lipids in Male Mice (Research article)

It all began with a question. Julia Common, the chief beekeeper at Hives for Humanity, a Vancouver-based, non-profit organization of urban beekeepers, was asked repeatedly, “How clean is the honey from downtown Vancouver?”. More:

• How clean is your city? Just ask the bees – The Conversation
• Honey as a biomonitor for a changing world (Research abstract)
• Identifying Sources of Environmental Contamination in European Honey Bees (Apis mellifera) Using Trace Elements and Lead Isotopic Compositions - Environmental Science & Technology (Research article)
• Physicochemical Properties, Minerals, Trace Elements, and Heavy Metals in Honey of Different Origins: A Comprehensive Review (Research article)