chemicals

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Germ Killer We've Used for 40 Years Gets FDA Review

Researchers to complete review of triclosan ordered back in the '70s

(Newser) - It's been on the market for more than 40 years, and it's found in everything from antibacterial soap to toothpaste to toys. But there's a chance that the FDA is about to declare the chemical triclosan unsafe, in a review due to be completed this year. The...

Scientists Spot 'Precursor to Life' in Deep Space

Milky Way chemical could help seed planetary life

(Newser) - Astronomers have spotted hints of a precursor to chemical to life about 1,000 light-years away, LiveScience reports. Detected in a star-forming region of the Milky Way, the chemical—called hydroxylamine—is theoretically able to mix with other compounds, form amino acids, and seed other planets with life. "It'...

Flame-Retardant Chemical Lurks in Soda, Sports Drinks

Brominated vegetable oil is in 10% of the drinks America buys

(Newser) - Nasty or neutral? Brominated vegetable oil, a long-used drink additive tucked into the ingredients list of about 10% of the drinks sold in America, finds itself the subject of fresh debate. It's used in Mountain Dew, Gatorade, and other citrus drinks in order to distribute that lemon/lime/orange flavor evenly,...

Hazmat Alert Issued After Train Derails in Kentucky

Top-level hazmat warning issued

(Newser) - Officials have issued the highest-level hazardous material warning in Kentucky after the derailment of a freight train. The train, which was carrying chemicals including hydrogen chloride and hydrochloric acid, derailed in West Point, the Courier-Journal reports. A highway has been closed across two counties, and residents are being evacuated. Thus...

Chemical Plant Pollution Growing as Global Threat

Pesticides alone could cost $90B in sub-Saharan Africa between 2005 and 2020

(Newser) - Pesticide poisoning is worsening in sub-Saharan Africa, and the tab for illnesses in the region between 2005 and 2020 could hit $90 billion, the UN warns—more than the aid available. As the production of chemicals in general skyrockets, the UN Environment Program report notes that health and the environment...

Antibacterial Soap Ingredient Spells Trouble for Muscles
Antibacterial Soap Ingredient
Spells Trouble for Muscles
in case you missed it
Aug 18, 2012 12:47 PM CDT

Antibacterial Soap Ingredient Spells Trouble for Muscles

Triclosan inhibited muscle function of human heart cells in test tubes

(Newser) - If you're an antibacterial-soap junkie, it might be time to cut back. A three-part study suggests triclosan, a common chemical found in such products, slows muscle function in both human and animals. A paper published yesterday outlines the experiments: Scientists exposed human heart and skeletal muscle cells to levels...

Johnson & Johnson Booting Harsh Chemicals by 2015

And for baby products, even sooner

(Newser) - By 2015, almost every single Johnson & Johnson product will no longer contain dangerous chemicals, the company pledged yesterday. It had already promised to remove "chemicals of concern" from baby products by the end of next year, and is still on track to do so. Now it also plans...

Elderly Termites Grow Suicide Backpacks
 Elderly Termites 
 Grow Suicide 
 Backpacks 
weird science
Jul 27, 2012 4:58 PM CDT

Elderly Termites Grow Suicide Backpacks

... and then explode them when enemies invade

(Newser) - Some termites grow up to be suicide bombers. Researchers observing the termite species Neocapritermes taracua found that certain workers, when they became elderly, grew a pair of dark blue spots between their abdomen and torso. When invaders raided their colony, these aging workers bit the intruders and then exploded the...

Scientists Invent Paint-On Batteries

Spray-painted power source is half a millimeter thick

(Newser) - If you tend to associate spray paint with nefarious behavior involving graffiti, prepare to have your mind blown. Scientists have invented batteries that can be spray painted onto any surface. Researchers at Rice University demoed the new technology by coating steel, glass, and a beer mug with painted-on batteries. "...

Chemical Fumes Sicken 80 at Indiana Pool

Bad mix of chemicals creates chlorine gas

(Newser) - At least 80 people, most of them children, were hospitalized after being overcome by chemical fumes at a public pool in Indianapolis. Investigators say a toxic out-of-balance mix of chemicals was pumped into the pool, creating chlorine gas, reports the Indianapolis Star . The gas wasn't as lethal as the...

Culprit for Epidemics of Autism, Obesity: Fungicide?
Culprit for Epidemics of Autism, Obesity: Fungicide?
study says
May 22, 2012 12:14 PM CDT

Culprit for Epidemics of Autism, Obesity: Fungicide?

New study suggests chemicals' effects linger for generations

(Newser) - Can the recent increase in autism, obesity, and anxiety disorders be traced back to chemical exposure? That's what a new study involving pregnant rats suggests, AFP reports. Pregnant rats who were exposed to the common fungicide vinclozolin had descendants who, three generations later, weighed more, were less sociable, and...

Chemical Regulators Aren&#39;t Protecting Us
Chemical Regulators
Aren't Protecting Us
Nicholas Kristof
May 3, 2012 12:47 PM CDT

Chemical Regulators Aren't Protecting Us

Nicholas Kristof says lobbying is keeping harmful chemicals legal

(Newser) - Male frogs born with female organs. Male fish laying eggs. Male alligators with tiny penises. These are just some of the bizarre effects we've seen in nature thanks to hormone-mimicking chemicals, Nicholas Kristof laments in the New York Times. Despite this, the same class of chemicals is nearly unavoidable...

Eyeless Shrimp? Report Raises Concerns in Gulf

Mutant creatures showing up after BP spill, says Al Jazeera English

(Newser) - Shrimp missing their eyeballs (and even eye sockets), fish covered in lesions, deformed crabs, and other mutated sea creatures are showing up in unsettling numbers in the Gulf of Mexico two years after the giant BP oil spill, according to an investigation by Al Jazeera English . "The fishermen have...

Vast Fire Breaks Out at Texas Chemical Plant

Nearby school evacuated

(Newser) - Massive plumes of black smoke billowed from a raging fire at a chemical plant south of Dallas today, prompting evacuations for some schools and residents and sending others to take shelter inside with doors and windows shut to avoid possible exposure to any dangerous gases. Bright orange flames engulfed the...

Could Toxins in Tattoo Ink Cause Skin Cancer?

Much remains unknown about the long-term risks

(Newser) - Before you get a butterfly stamped on your back, take heed: Tattoo inks can cause rashes, infections, and inflammation, and doctors still aren’t sure how the inks’ chemicals—which eventually migrate into the lymph nodes—behave in the long term. A chemical in black inks called benzo(a)pyrene, for example,...

Acid Dad Charged With Attempted Murder

Jorge Barahona allegedly abused children found doused in chemicals

(Newser) - Jorge Barahona, the man whose adopted twin children were found doused in toxic chemicals inside his truck on the side of the highway Monday, has been charged with attempted murder for the injuries sustained by 10-year-old Victor, the Miami Herald reports. Barahona, who has not been charged in the death...

Don't Touch That Receipt! It May Be Toxic
Don't Touch That Receipt!
It May Be Toxic
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Jul 31, 2010 6:00 AM CDT

Don't Touch That Receipt! It May Be Toxic

40% of receipts tested were slathered with bisphenol A

(Newser) - Sheesh: The same toxic chemical—bisphenol A—that's shown up in baby bottles and canned goods is apparently also all over the receipts you get from stores and restaurants, and in much greater amounts. BPA was found in the coating used on cash register receipts in 40% of businesses tested,...

Chemicals Used on Oil Spill Pose New Hazards

Less oil reaches shore, but toxins remain in the water

(Newser) - BP has begun using huge amounts of chemical dispersants to contain the oil slick that has tripled in only a day and is now the size of Puerto Rico. (AP has more on the growing size here .) And while those chemicals—being used above and below the surface—will...

Your Shampoo Is Chock Full of Toxins

Few ingredients contribute to cleaning

(Newser) - Most of what’s in shampoo does nothing to cleanse—instead, it “strokes your emotions,” writes Bill Bunn in Salon. If your hair is greasy, you simply need detergent. But shampoos contain a variety of other ingredients—two-thirds by volume—intended to make you feel good about the...

Cyborg Bugs Could Warn of Fires, Chemical Attacks

(Newser) - Cyborg bugs may sound like creatures in a Michael Bay movie, but they could save your life, New Scientist reports. The Pentagon is trying to implant electrodes in crickets and cicadas—which communicate via wingbeats—and program them to “speak” differently around certain chemicals. “The insect itself might...

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