Green Options » birth defects

Can Diet Coke Kill You? Part 2

Zachary Shahan — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 11:10:11 +0000

Due to the great popularity of “Can Diet Coke Kill You?” combined with a lot of controversy over it, I have decided to write this follow-up post.

Most of the controversy over the last article was around the fact that the documentary I referenced cited data from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) but that organization itself claims there is no proven link between aspartame and cancer.

What was presented previously was a short explanation of why aspartame is expected to cause cancer and other health problems and a summary of some information presented in Sweet Misery, including findings from analyzing NCI and other data. This article, however, cites other scientific findings and discusses the economic-political history of this topic a little bit as well.

Read more of this story »

As Fisheries Deplete, Sea Veggies Offer Sustainable Nutrients to Our Diets

Scott Cooney — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 19:17:43 +0000

Depending on which studies you read, it appears that we will run out of fish, at least the plentiful bounty of diverse fish we’re getting all-to-accustomed to eating regularly. According to the book and upcoming documentary called The End of the Line, most of the fish we’re used to seeing: tuna, halibut, snapper, and the like, will effectively be gone from the world’s oceans by 2050.

Read more of this story »

Children with Birth Defects Win Landmark Suit in England

Jennifer Lance — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 14:41:44 +0000

As a parent of a child with birth defects, I often search for causes and suspect chemicals in our environment are to blame. For our family, we will probably never know, but that is not the case for the Corby group. Families in the Corby group blame the “massive demolition, excavation and redevelopment” of a former British Steel plant for their children’s birth defects. Many of these children have missing or deformed hands and feet. A recent high court decision ruled in their favor that the “atmospheric soup of toxic materials” was caused by negligence of Corby Borough Council.

Read more of this story »

Birth Defects Blamed on Toxic Waste Dump

Derek Markham — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 01:49:55 +0000

Over £1 million have been spent already on defense in a case brought against a UK council by families of kids born with webbed hands, or without fingers altogether, even though toxicology experts say that the rate of abnormality in Corby runs 10 times as high as the national average.

The families seek a multi-million pound award for the birth defects, claimed to be caused by a mismanagement of toxic waste dumps from the steel industry in Corby. Mothers say that they were exposed during the 80s and 90s, and the lead solicitor says he has medical evidence that proves the defects are linked to the dumps.

“We have now got medical reports that rule out alternative explanations for what caused the limb deformities in these children.” - Des Collins

Read more of this story »

Pesticides Cause Thousands of Fish to be Born With Two Heads

Michael A. Weber — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 16:26:53 +0000

Water contamination by toxic chemicals appears to be the cause of a mutation which resulted in the deaths of thousands of bass larvae in Australia. The two headed fish survived a mere 48 hours before dying off en masse.

Dr. Matt Landos of the Australian College of Veterinarian Sciences specializes in aquatic animals, and says that this is the first time he has ever seen anything like this. He sees no natural explanation for the deaths and is pinning the likely cause on the chemicals being used by a local macadamia nut plantation.

Read more of this story »

New Study Suggests Link Between Hairspray Exposure and Genital Birth Defect

Derek Markham — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 07:09:37 +0000

Women exposed to hairspray in the workplace in their first trimester of their pregnancy have more than double the risk of having a son with the genital birth defect hypospadias, according to a new study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.

The study was conducted by researchers from Imperial College London, University College Cork (Ireland), and Center for Research in Environmental Epidemiology (Spain) and is the first to show a significant link between hairspray and hypospadias, which is one of the most common birth defects of the male genitalia.

The causes of hypospadias are poorly understood. Instead of opening at the tip of the penis, a hypospadic urethra opens elsewhere along a line running from the tip along the underside to the base, usually corrected with surgery in the first year of the boy’s life.

Read more of this story »