"Is BPA linked with increased risk of miscarriage?" by Sense About Science. On 14th October 2013 the Independent, Daily Telegraph and Daily Mail reported a study which linked the chemical bisphenol-A (BPA) with increased risk of miscarriage, and advised pregnant women to avoid tinned foods. Read more at Sense About Science. … [Read more...]
Green Hype Undermines Breast Cancer Awareness
October 17, 2013
"Enviro Scare Tactics Undermine Breast Cancer Awareness Month," by Angela Logomasini. October is “breast cancer awareness month” thanks to a collaborative campaign arranged by public and private groups united in the mission to fight breast cancer. Their educational efforts can save lives by promoting early detection and healthy lifestyle choices. Yet environmental activists and media are using this campaign as an excuse to scare women about chemicals, and unintentionally, divert their attention … [Read more...]
USA Today Shoddy Reporting on BPA
October 10, 2013
"Women Should Worry about Shoddy Reporting, Not Chemicals," Julie Gunlock. Earlier this week, USA Today ran a story by reporter Liz Szabo who warned women “A growing number of health advocates are raising concerns about possible links between the estrogen-like chemical BPA and breast cancer.” Notice Liz says “health advocates” are concerned, not health professionals, scientists, toxicologists, breast cancer researchers, or oncologists. That’s right; Liz doesn’t actually talk to the experts in … [Read more...]
USA Today’s Alarmist Junk Science on BPA
October 9, 2013
"USA Today Spins Breast Cancer Scare Out Of Retracted Study Claim As New EPA Study Dismisses Risk," by Trevor Butterworth. USA Today reporter Liz Szabo has long rung the alarm bells on bisphenol A (BPA), devoting an entire full page article to promoting the repeatedly discredited claims of University of Missouri researcher Frederick vom Saal. Now, she has turned to vom Saal’s longtime collaborator, University of Tufts researcher Ana Soto to advance the claim BPA increased the risk of mammary … [Read more...]
Tackling BPA Junk Science
October 4, 2013
"Environmental Group Tries to Save Face, but Falls on It," by American Council on Science and Health. We at ACSH have written countless pieces on the absolute garbage science surrounding BPA—a chemical that has been in use for more than 50 years, and is used in the manufacturing process of various plastics. So, it is only natural that we give a huge shout-out to Trevor Butterworth, a journalist and master junk science (especially statistics) debunker, who has an impressive pedigree of editorial … [Read more...]
Politics Behind Proposed BPA Bans
October 3, 2013
"The EU, US Approaches to Endocrine Disruptors Have Been Appropriate Until Now," by Jeff Stier. When it comes to food safety, the European Union and the United States have some of the most effective scientific and regulatory programs in the world. So it came as a surprise when France flouted the studies and assurances of EU and US food safety regulators and sought to ban the use of Bisphenol A (BPA) in any food contact item starting in 2015. Read the full article on Euractiv. … [Read more...]
BPA Researchers Temper Cancer Claims in Rat Study
September 27, 2013
"Taxpayer-Funded Journal Walks Back BPA Cancer Claim After Statistical Meltdown," by Trevor Butterworth. First, bisphenol A – a chemical widely used in food packaging for safety reasons – caused breast cancer in rats at “human relevant” levels, according to a study published in the taxpayer funded scientific journal, Environmental Health Perspectives. Now, according to the same study, it doesn’t. After Forbes noted that the statistical data clearly showed BPA had no effects and did not cause … [Read more...]
Breast Cancer Fund’s Latest BPA Hype
September 16, 2013
"Pass the Microphone to Science: The Truth Behind BPA and Breast Cancer," By the BPA Coalition. Earlier this week, the US-based Breast Cancer Fund (BCF) published a report on BPA exposure during pregnancy. The report is described as a “comprehensive review of the scientific literature” despite its selective use of only older studies that support BCF’s conclusion that BPA “disrupts fetal development and sets the stage for later-life diseases, including breast cancer”. The report also … [Read more...]
Bisphenol A Science
September 6, 2013
"ACSH Advisor Nails It: Bad Studies About BPA," American Council on Science and Health. Dr. Geoffrey Kabat, in his blog on Forbes.com, elegantly reinforces a core ACSH message: That poor science is the basis for many of the scares promulgated by various activist groups. Dr. Kabat, a cancer epidemiologist at the Albert Einstein School of Medicine, has a history of debunking phony cancer scares, as he did in his recent book, Hyping Health Risks (Columbia University Press, 2008). Read the full … [Read more...]
Bisphenol A & Fertility
August 29, 2013
"What Do We Really Know About BPA And Fertility?" By Steve Hentges. Last week, a study published in the journal Human Reproduction reported that bisphenol-A (BPA), a compound widely used to make polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins, altered maturation of human oocytes in vitro. Specifically, at high concentrations of BPA, oocyte maturation decreased while the incidence of oocyte degeneration increased. In an accompanying press release, the authors suggested that BPA “may cause a significant … [Read more...]
Healthy Foods, Bad Advice
August 26, 2013
"Four Foods You Should Probably Eat," by American Council on Science and Health. CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta interviewed David Jack, an editor from Men’s Health about five foods one should supposedly never eat. And the ridiculous claims made by Jack were soaked right up by Gupta. James Cooper sums up the poor science behind each claim made by “nutrition expert” Jack in an on-point editorial in the Examiner entitled “Sanjay Gupta bats 1 in 5 on foods you should never eat.” The five foods were … [Read more...]
Junk Science on Chemical Effects on Children
August 22, 2013
"How Abysmal Scientific Research Is Used To Scare America's Parents," by Geoffrey Kabat. We have become accustomed to a steady barrage of reports of hazards lurking in our environment that MAY pose a threat our health and that of our children. These include, among others, low-level radiation exposure from nuclear power plants and nuclear waste; possible water contamination from hydraulic fracturing; and exposure to a wide range of chemicals, including pesticides and industrial pollutants, in … [Read more...]
Judge Cans Prop. 65 Label
August 6, 2013
"California Judge Rules on the Side of Sound Science – No Warning Labels Required," by American Council on Science and Health. In the culmination of a five-week trial, California’s Judge Brick ruled that health warnings would not be necessary on various fruit and vegetable products, 100% juices and baby foods, from companies including Del Monte, Dole, Gerber, Hain-Çelestial, J.M. Smucker, Seneca Foods and Welch’s. Read the full story on the American Council on Science and Health's website. … [Read more...]
The Data on BPA and Breast Cancer
August 5, 2013
"BPA And Breast Cancer: When Academics Spin Statistics," by Trevor Butterworth. A new study, funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), and published in a journal the institute subsidizes – Environmental Health Perspectives (EHP) – raises an alarm. This is not, in itself, unusual; EHP is a repository of alarming claims about the environment; but what makes this study different – and alarming in its own terms – is not the claim that “human relevant” exposure to … [Read more...]
BPA and Infertility
August 5, 2013
"An Alarming Call for BPA Research Funding," by Angela Logomasini. The headlines are out. The chemical Bisphenol A (BPA) is now “linked to infertility.” How do we know that? Researchers exposed immature eggs left over from fertility treatments to high levels of BPA in the lab. The result, notes The Boston Globe, was: “Only 35 percent of eggs exposed to the lowest levels of BPA had a normal number and configuration of chromosomes after they fully matured compared with 71 percent of those in a … [Read more...]
FDA Ban on BPA Based on Junk Science
July 16, 2013
"The BuzzFeed-ification of Science Reporting," by Lisa De Pasquale. For years I've been writing about how science reporting has devolved into hysteria and misinformation disguised as public service. TV reports lead with scare tactics like "Stay tuned for the killer in your kitchen cabinet!" with little regard to actual scientific evidence. It's gotten so ridiculous that even a TV provider makes fun of them in their commercial. Soon we'll be seeing reports on Sharknado preparation. Regarding the … [Read more...]
Precautionary Politics Attack Plastics, Medical Devices
July 16, 2013
"European Descent into Dark Age Ignorance Continues Apace," by American Council on Science and Health. When the EU adopted the anti-science “precautionary principle” as its guiding paradigm a decade or more ago, we don’t think anyone (except perhaps its anti-progress advocates) had any idea how low the regulatory process would stoop in service of its ideology. This misguided concept asserts that any process or substance which has not been “proven safe” should be restricted or banned out of an … [Read more...]
BPA Ban Not Related to Safety Concerns
July 15, 2013
"FDA Bans BPA in Already-BPA-Free Uses," by Gayle S. Putrich. The Food and Drug Administration will no longer permit the use of bisphenol A in packaging for baby formula. The controversial plastic feedstock was banned from baby bottles and cups last year. In issuing the new ban, however, FDA said it still considers BPA to be safe for packaging, but took its action because manufacturers have already abandoned its use in baby formula packaging. The plastics and chemical industry also said the … [Read more...]
Scientists Take Stand Against Junk Science
July 12, 2013
"Scientists Warn of Dangers of 'Precautionary Science,'" by Angela Logomasini. Eighteen scientists recently weighed in on the unscientific and dangerous nature of the so-called “precautionary principle” in the July issue of the journal Food and Chemical Toxicology. The article follows on the heels of a substantially similar letter to the EU president’s Chief Scientific Adviser that dozens of scientists signed in protest of the European Union’s draft regulation on endocrine active chemicals. … [Read more...]
Health Canada Declares BPA Safe–Again
June 21, 2013
"Canada: More Junk Science? The Anti-BPA Crusade Is Back," by Ronald L. Doering. The 25-year controversy involving BPA in food packaging won't go away. It continues to hang ominously like a black cloud over the food industry....Over the years Health Canada (HC) conducted periodic reviews of BPA to determine whether dietary exposure to it could pose a health risk to consumers. ... HC's Food Directorate has concluded again unequivocally that the current dietary exposure to B... HC has made a real … [Read more...]
BPA Replacements Not Better
May 7, 2013
"BPA Replacement Faces Same Attacks as BPA," by Kenneth Artz. As anti-chemical activists attempt to ban the safe but controversial chemical Bisphenol A from plastic products, a new study claims the most viable replacement chemical presents greater human health concerns than the exhaustively tested Bisphenol A. Read the full article in Climate and Environment News. … [Read more...]
BPA and other Chemicals Don’t Belong on Prop 65 List
April 25, 2013
"Why BPA (And Other Chemicals) Don’t Belong On Proposition 65," by Angela Logomasini. If you want to have fun in California’s Disneyland, avoid reading the warning signs saying that products used in the park may give you cancer and reproductive problems! They’re not just a buzz kill, they are plain dumb and misinformed. But it’s state law that they be there. You can find them in Starbucks and many other places throughout the state too. Read the full article on OpenMarket.org. … [Read more...]
BPA Not Toxic
April 24, 2013
"BPA Delisted: Not 'Toxic,'" Angela Logomasini On April 11, California regulators placed the chemical Bisphenol A on its list of “toxic” substances under its Proposition 65 law. BPA has been used safely for more than 60 years to make hard, clear plastics and resins that line metal food containers to prevent development of dangerous pathogens. Dr. Gilbert Ross explains ... Read the full article on IWF's Inkwell blog. … [Read more...]
ACSH Scientists Speak on BPA
April 23, 2013
"BPA added to California's Proposition 65 list" by American Council on Science and Health. … [Read more...]
BPA Listing on Proposition 65 Halted (for now)
April 23, 2013
"BPA on Prop 65 list: Now You See it, Now You Don’t, Thankfully," By Gil Ross. After the politically-motivated listing of the plastic hardener Bisphenol-A (BPA) was at last squeezed onto California’s nefarious Proposition 65 list of allegedly toxic chemicals, a local Sacramento judge kicked it off, correctly stating that the chemical’s listing flew in the face of scientific and regulatory evidence. A division of California’s environmental agency finally figured out a way to list BPA, a … [Read more...]
NRDC’s Junk Claims on “Endocrine-Disrupting” Chemicals
April 19, 2013
"National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) Champions Shoddy Journalism on Endocrine Active Chemicals," By Jon Entine. As Jon Entine of the Genetic Literacy Project reports, the NRDC is not exactly known for scientific nuance. So, there was little surprise when blogger Mae Wu took to the cyberwaves recently to plug an NBC Dateline story promoting the alleged dangers of “endocrine disrupting” chemicals.According to Wu, we should all be shocked—yes shocked—that an NBC producer and her family found … [Read more...]
Thoughtful Review of BPA Science
April 19, 2013
"Are Concerns About BPA Overblown?" By Chris Kresser. By now I’m sure most of you have heard claims that bisphenol A (BPA) is a harmful chemical that should be avoided as much as possible. Perhaps you even read that on this blog. Researchers, clinicians, environmental groups and the media have all sounded the alarm on BPA, pointing to a large body of animal evidence which suggests that it has estrogenic effects (i.e. increases estrogen activity) which in turn cause numerous health problems, … [Read more...]
History Lesson on BPA by Dr. Joe Schwarcz
April 19, 2013
"Let’s Preserve our Sanity when it Comes to Canned Food" by Joe Schwarcz. It may not be quite on a par with the Manhattan Project or with the challenge of beating the Soviets to the moon, but the race to find a substitute for the lacquer used to line food cans is heating up. The canning industry is frantically trying to find a replacement for the epoxy resin currently being used because of concerns that bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical that has been vilified as an “endocrine disruptor,” might be … [Read more...]
BPA Listing on Proposition 65
April 12, 2013
"Another Chemical Misadventure," by American Council on Science and Health. Yesterday’s Dispatch took note of the new momentum (or lack thereof) for “reform” of the chemical law known as TSCA, which if enacted would needlessly tighten already protective regulations about chemical safety. Now we learn that, in the same spirit of hyper-precaution based on nothing other than political agenda, the powers-that-be in the high levels of California Health (actually the Office of Environmental Health … [Read more...]
Scientist describes Fear of BPA-Baby Bottles as “Completely Mad”
April 11, 2013
"BPA Bottles Harm Babies? Only If You Batter Them With One, Says Top British Scientist," By Trevor Butterworth. After stepping down as chief scientific advisor to the British government on April 1, Sir John Beddington Sir John Beddington exhaled a long list of real and nonsense risks that politicians should do more to fight for and against at a valedictory discussion held at the UK’s Science Media Centre. Of particular interest to readers of this column are his comments on the failure of … [Read more...]
BPA Science
March 28, 2013
"A Tipping Point on BPA?" Julie Gunlock Over on Forbes, Trevor Butterworth examines whether we're starting to see a tipping point in the controversy over the chemical bisphenol-A, better known as BPA (which I've written about previously here, here, and here). Butterworth suggests we might be seeing something resembling comity emerging from the two camps--the regulatory agencies around the world who say the evidence does not show a risk to humans and the anti-chemical and environmental activists … [Read more...]
Turning Point for BPA Science?
March 27, 2013
"Leading Environmental Group Scientist Praises FDA's Ground-Breaking Research On BPA: A Tipping Point In The Controversy?" by Trevor Butterworth. A trio of scientists from the Food and Drug Administration trooped up to the American Association for the Advancement of Science conference in Boston in February to talk about the work the agency has been doing in conjunction with the National Toxicology Program on bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical used in a huge range of applications from food safety … [Read more...]
Scientist takes on Chemophobia
March 27, 2013
"Relax - Food Chemicals can't Hurt You," Joe Schwarcz I don’t think Einstein had chemical anxiety or the number of chemicals in our urine in mind when he famously stated that “not everything that counts can be measured and not everything that can be measured counts.” But I think the quote has great relevance given that scarcely a day goes by without some concerned group clamouring about our exposure to “untested” chemicals and lamenting the “fact” that we have become a nation of “unwitting … [Read more...]
BPA and Media Bias
March 19, 2013
"The Spin Does not Stop Here," by Paul Alexander Both the right and the left complain about media bias, when news organizations favor one political ideology over another. But can pure science be subjected to media bias? These days, a debate is raging that could have a profound effect on business, especially food production manufacturing. It centers on a chemical named Bisphenol A, or BPA. Read the full article on the Daily Caller. … [Read more...]
Junk Science in the News
March 18, 2013
"How Junk Science Distorts What We Read, And The Way We're Governed," by By Kerri Tolockzko. There is an enormous difference between political activism and medical science. Standing between should be media investigating instead of just taking notes, and physicians reviewing studies with an objective eye for methodology and intent, not simply taking a researcher’s word for it. Read the full article on Forbes.com. … [Read more...]
Chemophobia and BPA
March 18, 2013
"Stroking Chemophobia," by Keith Kloor In recent years, people have become increasingly concerned about unwanted substances lurking in their furniture and food. These are industrial chemicals we are exposed to every day and that have been found to accumulate in our bodies, “endangering our health in ways we have yet to understand,” CNN asserted in 2007. Read the full article at Discover Magazine. … [Read more...]
Study on BPA and Asthma Questioned
March 6, 2013
"Maybe the Worst Paper Ever?," By Josh Bloom. A paper (BPA.pdf) published in the March issue of The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology about the association between bisphenol A (BPA) and childhood asthma is nothing short of mind-boggling. Possibly enough so to create a new acronym of data interpretation-- GIMBIO--garbage in, mind-blowing idiocy out. Read the full article in Medical Progress Today. … [Read more...]
Experts Critical of BPA Study on Fetal Brain Development
March 1, 2013
"Experts Criticise Study Linking Chemical BPA with Baby Brain Problems," by Sunanda Creagh. A new study that found the common plastic ingredient bisphenol A (BPA) may harm a baby’s brain development in-utero has been described as ‘misleading’ and ‘not relevant’ by Australian experts. Read the full article on The Conversation. … [Read more...]
Scientist Speaks out on BPA Science
February 27, 2013
"Anti BPA Crusade Discrediting Science And Environmental Health, Says Leading, Independent Expert," By Trevor Butterworth. Professor Richard Sharpe is a leading expert on male reproductive health, directing a research team at the UK’s Medical Research Council (MRC) Centre for Reproductive Health at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. The MRC, which is celebrating its centenary this year, is one of the world’s oldest medical research institutes, publicly funded and wholly independent of … [Read more...]
No Harm from BPA
February 21, 2013
"WSJ: No Ill Effect Found in Human BPA Exposure," by Joe Bast. Bisphenol A, known as BPA, has been the target of environmentalist concern for many years. But just like DDT, atrazine, and even dioxin, this much-studied chemical has never been found to cause any harm. Read the full article at Somewhat Reasonable. … [Read more...]
Study: BPA Unlikely Endocrine Disrupter
February 20, 2013
"Bisphenol A Exposure in Humans May Be Too Low to Cause Problems by Mimicking Estrogen," by Science Daily. Feb. 15, 2013 — A controversial component of plastic bottles and canned food linings that have helped make the world's food supply safer has recently come under attack: bisphenol A. Widely known as BPA, it has the potential to mimic the sex hormone estrogen if blood and tissue levels are high enough. Now, an analysis of almost 150 BPA exposure studies shows that in the general population, … [Read more...]
BPA Safety Study
February 20, 2013
"Yet More Evidence that BPA is Safe," by Julie Gunlock. The chem-nannies have been very effective in scaring women (particularly moms) about BPA—a chemical used in a variety of everyday items from eyeglasses to plastic food containers to water bottles. Today, the chemical is banned in all baby bottles and other baby products (only because industry requested an across-the-board ban, not because BPA was found to be toxic) and attempts are being made nationwide to ban the chemical entirely. Read … [Read more...]
Bad Advice from Prevention Magazine
February 11, 2013
"Prevention Magazine: Preventing Informed Health Choices," by Angela Logomasini. It’s growing increasingly difficult to find reliable health advice. In the past, I thought Prevention magazine was a good source, but they seem to have fallen prey to dangerous junk science and selective reporting. Consider just a few examples of their questionable claims: Read the full article on IWF's Inkwell blog. … [Read more...]
Ban on BPA for Cash Register Receipts
February 4, 2013
"Suffolk County, NY Bans BPA in Cash Register Receipts," by Alyssa Carducci. Suffolk County, New York became the first government entity in the nation to ban Bisphenol-A from cash register receipts. The decision by the Suffolk County Legislature defies the findings of government health and science bodies around the world. Read the full article in Environment & Climate News. … [Read more...]
Dr. Oz’s Political Science
February 4, 2013
"Quack Alert: Dr. Oz on Bisphenol A," by Angela Logomasini. Television personalities that advise us on personal health—mental or physical—have dominated daytime television for some time now. It’s great when these shows offer helpful, positive advice. So why then do they have to ruin it by getting political and spouting junk or incomplete science? Dr. Oz is the perfect example. Read the full story on IWF's Inkwell Blog. … [Read more...]
Mom Questions Dr. Oz on BPA
January 31, 2013
"Dr. Oz Promotes False BPA Claims, Sarah Bowman." I'm a mom, so I watch Dr. Oz, like many mothers do. As a concerned consumer, I always want what's best for my boys. When I saw Dr. Oz promoting a segment on Wednesday titled, "The Chemicals You're Feeding to Your Kids," of course I tuned in. Dr. Oz had an "expert" from the Environmental Working Group on his show. She cited a Harvard study where the test subjects ate one can of soup per day, which "increased their BPA output by 1,000 percent." … [Read more...]
BPA on California’s Prop 65 List
January 29, 2013
"Scientists Worldwide: BPA is Safe; CAL-EPA and NRDC: No, It’s Not," by American Council on Science and Health. Were we surprised or even disappointed that the California EPA just ruled that the plastic hardener bisphenol-A (BPA) would be subject to warning labels according to their Prop 65 law, or that the Natural Resources Defense Council would be jumping with joy over it? Not really — given the chemophobia of both of those groups, the surprise is that it took Cal-EPA this long; and that the … [Read more...]
Greens Complain About “BPA Free” Bottles
January 29, 2013
"Greens Complain About BPA-Free Products They Helped Spur," by Angela Logomasini Anti-chemical environmental activists rarely consider the consequences of their policies. They demonize chemicals that have been used safely for decades and advance chemical bans based on weak science without considering whether the replacement products will be any safer. Read the full article on OpenMarket.org. … [Read more...]
“Green”Bottles Pose New Risks
January 29, 2013
"Problematic Green Advice On Reusable Bottles," by Angela Logomasini Environmental activists launched a campaign several years ago to demonize and promote bans on bottled water, suggesting that people find more “energy efficient” and “environmentally sound” alternatives, including reusable plastic or metal water bottles. Some even recommended the dangerously breakable reusable glass bottle! CEI pointed out why the greens’ advice was not only unnecessary but also carried drawbacks, including the … [Read more...]
BPA “Science”
January 16, 2013
"Dumb And Dumber BPA 'Science'” by Angela Logomasini Rationalizations to support claims that the chemical bisphenol A (BPA) poses a real and serious health threat have gone from dumb to dumber! Even reputable researchers make their case by regularly citing one inconclusive study to suggest another inconclusive study is meaningful. But science doesn’t work that way. Read the full article on OpenMarket.org. … [Read more...]
Chemical Alarmism
January 15, 2013
"Selling Scary Stories on Chemicals," by Julie Gunlock Alarmists have it easy. If they want to spread scary stories and outright lies, they have a more-than-willing press to help them do just that. Take this article in yesterday's Philadelphia Inquirer's Health section entitled: "The EPA's most worrisome toxins." Read the full article on the IWF Inkwell Blog. … [Read more...]
Mother Debunks BPA Hype on “Stossel”
January 11, 2013
The Independent Women's Forum's Senior Fellow, Julie Gunlock takes on hype related to Bisphenol A and chemicals in general on FOX Business Network's "Stossel." Gunlock outlines why smart moms like her need not fall for the false claims and alarmism related to trace chemicals in consumer products. Watch it now. … [Read more...]
BPA and Cash Register Receipts
January 4, 2013
"More Nonsense About BPA," by American Council on Science and Health. Sometimes the latest junk-science news makes us want to bang our heads against the wall. New York’s Suffolk County has just passed the “Safer Sales Slip Act,” banning the use of bisphenol A (BPA) in thermal cash register slips. Fox 5 News in New York did interview ACSH’s Dr. Gilbert Ross about the ban — for a few moments, we guess to “balance” Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone’s claims that BPA is an “endocrine … [Read more...]
BPA, Mice, and Obesity
January 4, 2013
"Mice Study Questions BPA-Obesity Link," by Angela Logomasini Science is a long-term process that only brings meaning when numerous, scientifically robust studies produce consistent results. But when it comes to politically loaded issues — such as chemical safety — a single study with a “weak association” and a small pool of subjects can capture headlines ad nauseam, creating the impression that consumers face a looming public health crisis where none really exists. Read the full article on … [Read more...]
Top Chemical Scares of 2012
January 4, 2013
"Top Ten Chemical Scares of 2012," by Angela Logomasini This past year, there must have been thousands of green-group-inspired news stories hyping risks regarding numerous chemicals. Regulators too have engaged in efforts to demonize various products unfairly, placing them on “concern” lists and demanding that companies expend enormous amounts of money to study, test, and re-study chemicals that have been safely used for decades. Below is my top-ten list of 2012 green alarms along with links … [Read more...]
Biggest Chemical Alarm Story of 2012
January 4, 2013
"BPA Resin Replacements May be More Harmful," By Angela Logomasini As the year winds down, it’s a good time to look back at what was one of the biggest alarm stories of the year: the alleged health impact of the chemical Bisphenol A (BPA). Were the claims true, and what might we expect to happen in 2013? Read the full story in The Hill Congress Blog. … [Read more...]
Challenge to BPA Heart Disease Study
December 7, 2012
"In Reversal, Bedrock Studies Linking Bisphenol A (BPA) to Heart Disease Challenged," by Jon Entine. Studies supposedly linking the plastic additive to diabetes, heart disease and coronary artery disease have been called a “bombshell” by anti-BPA NGOs and many journalists. Now those conclusions, and a central contention of campaigners, is in doubt. The most explosive claim of anti-BPA campaigners—that the plastic additive BPA causes an array of heart-related diseases—is in question, according … [Read more...]
BPA Junk Science Exposed
December 6, 2012
"Researchers Repudiate BPA Junk Science," by Angela Logomasini The chemical bisphenol A (BPA) — which is used to make hard, clear plastics and resins that line food containers — regularly appears in news headlines claiming the substance causes everything from heart disease to obesity. But a new study on the topic shows that much of this “research” is little more than junk science. Many of the alarming BPA studies suffer from a common flaw: they rely on National Health and Nutrition … [Read more...]
NRDC Misinformation on Breast Cancer
December 4, 2012
"For cynical manipulation of science, NRDC never disappoints," by American Council on Science and Health. Last week, the respected scientific journal Nature published a superb editorial castigating the Breast Cancer Coalition, a nonprofit ostensibly devoted to reducing the toll of breast cancer. The editorial pointed out that the goal put forward by the BCC, to “cure breast cancer by 2020” was irresponsible, given the complexity of cancer in general and breast cancer specifically. Read the … [Read more...]
Plastics Chemistry
November 8, 2012
"Plastics Chemists: Don't Be Ashamed," by Enrico Uva There’s irony in having small bits of floatable plastic debris in the Pacific, even if the trash, although worrisome, doesn’t look like anything most of the public imagines. Millions of years ago, many of the hydrogen and carbon atoms within these man-made polymers were part of marine life. Death, deposition and pressure simplified the organic molecules of the dead. Then a species that indirectly evolved from these oceanic ancestors … [Read more...]
BPA Safety
November 2, 2012
"BPA is Safe...Say Scientists for the Billionth Time; Media Ignores," Julie Gunlock Look, folks get it. The mainstream media simply chooses to ignore certain stories (read: Benghazi). It's a reality and, in general, I don't spend too much time worrying about it. But when it comes to my health, my children's health and my bottom line, I tend to get a little testy that the mainstream media is selecting to ignore certain very important health-related stories. Read the full article on the IWF … [Read more...]
Botched BPA News Coverage
November 1, 2012
"Bisphenol A (BPA) Found Not Harmful, Yet Again -- So Why Did So Many Reporters and NGOs Botch Coverage, Yet Again?," by Jon Entine. One of the most disturbing trends in science reporting is what The New York Times’ Andrew Revkin calls “single-study syndrome”— the increasing tendency of reporters and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to trumpet research that supports a pre-determined perspective, no matter how tenuous—or dubious—a study might be. Read the full article on Forbes.com. … [Read more...]
Scare Tactics Undermine Fight Against Breast Cancer
October 31, 2012
"Scare Tactics Distract from Finding a Cure,"by Carrie Lukas. With Halloween this week, one might assume that orange and black are the hands-down winners for favorite marketing décor. Yet pumpkins and witches hats have a formidable challenger in the pink ribbons signifying breast cancer awareness month, which currently adorn everything from grocery shelves to athletes’ uniforms. Read the full story on Townhall. … [Read more...]
Bad Science and Bisphenol A
October 10, 2012
"The Controversy Around BPA: Bad Reporting On Bad Science," by Henry Miller. Americans are constantly bombarded by the “science of things that aren’t so,” a phrase coined by Nobel Prize-winning chemist Irving Langmuir. Whether it is studies examining chemicals, sugary drinks or any number of other ordinary things, the number and frequency of news reports about relatively benign activities and substances that appear under alarmist headlines are rapidly increasing. Read the full article on … [Read more...]
JAMA: Green Beans May Cause Obesity
October 3, 2012
"Medical Junk Science: Canned Veggies May Make Kids Fat," by Angela Logomasini Can feeding your child canned soup and vegetables make make her fat? According to study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), it just might — but only if your child is white. That’s the latest junk science “finding” from yet another study designed to condemn the chemical bisphenol A (BPA). Despite obvious flaws with the study and the implausibility of its findings, newspapers around … [Read more...]
BPA Science and Politics
October 2, 2012
"Before You Call for a Ban on BPA, Ask Yourself if the Science Supports it," by By Mitchell Cheeseman It is ironic that Jeanne Rizzo’s post on behalf of the Breast Cancer Fund states that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) “is tasked with making decisions in favor of public health based on scientific evidence—not on politics…,” when it’s clear that she wants the opposite. She wants FDA to ignore the scientific evidence and make a public health decision based on her beliefs and politics. Her … [Read more...]
Canada and BPA Safety
October 1, 2012
"Canada Does an About-Face on BPA — Again" by ACSH. Last week, the Canadian government reaffirmed the safe use of bisphenol A (BPA) in food packaging, upholding its 2008 stance that dietary exposure to the chemical does not pose a health risk to the general population, including newborns and young children. Although this report is reassuring, Canada is responsible for much of the anti-chemical hysteria surrounding plastics and chemicals today. Read the full article in ACSH Dispatch. … [Read more...]
Junk Science, BPA, and Obesity
September 24, 2012
"The BPA Wars: Junk Science and Junk Journalism," by Alan Caruba On Tuesday, September 18, FoxNews.com posted an article by Alex Crees, a health news reporter, “Chemical BPA linked to obesity in children, teens.” If Ms. Crees had done any research to verify the facts she recounted in “a new study”, she would have known it was yet another bogus effort to correlate eating food with BPA. Bisphenol-A, more commonly called BPA, is a chemical that has been in wide, safe use for over 50 years. It is … [Read more...]
BPA & Obesity
September 24, 2012
"Blame Game Alert: Now It's the Food Wrapper!" by Julie Gunlock. Boy, it sure is hard to keep track of all these supposed causes of obesity: happy meals, school lunches, video games, television commercials, cartoons, lack of community parks, violent neighborhoods, soda, fat, salt, sugar, ice cream, milk, beef, fast food, energy drinks, sugary cereals... Now, it's chemicals. The latest screaming headline blames ... Read the full article on the IWF Blog. … [Read more...]
Campbell’s Soup, BPA, and Corrupt Science
September 18, 2012
"Campbell's Big Fat Green BPA Lie -- and the Sustainability Activists that Enabled It," by Jon Entine. How did the world’s largest soup company go from pariah to paragon over its use of the controversial chemical bisphenol A? It lied, and credulous NGOs and chemophobic campaigners played willing patsies. Here’s an ugly story of what happens when ideology corrupts science. Read the full story on Forbes.com. … [Read more...]
Exposé on Campbell’s Soup and BPA
September 18, 2012
"Campbell’s Promises More Than It Can Deliver," by American Council on Science and Health. And while we’re on the topic of BPA, we’d like to applaud ACSH colleague Jon Entine’s recent exposé of the disconnect between public relations and scientific evidence that has resulted from uninformed public outcry over the chemical. “How did the world’s largest soup company go from pariah to paragon over its use of the controversial chemical bisphenol A?” Entine asks in his investigative piece for … [Read more...]
Meaningless BPA Study on Obesity
September 18, 2012
"BPA-Obesity Study Virtually Meaningless," by American Council on Science and Health. In April of this year, the FDA rejected a petition by the Natural Resources Defense Council to ban the use of bisphenol A (BPA) in food packaging. We at ACSH applauded the agency’s decision, which was based on a research review finding that normal levels of exposure to this chemical — used to protect canned foods from contamination and spoiling — do not pose a health risk to humans. So we were more than a … [Read more...]
Environmental Left At Odds with Science
September 18, 2012
"Great New Book on Science and the Environment," by Todd Meyers. One of the consistent issues we address here is the gap between the science and Washington's environmental policy - even as policymakers and politicians claim to be following the science. Now there is a great book from the editor of Real Clear Science highlighting the many ways left-wing environmentalists ignore the science when it is inconvenient to their ideology. "Science Left Behind," by Alex Berezow and Hank Campbell … [Read more...]
BPA Bans May Increase Risk of Food-Borne Illnesses
August 30, 2012
"Green Calls for BPA Bans Are Dangerous," by Angela Logomasini This past July the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned the use of the chemical Bisphenol A (BPA) to make baby bottles and sippy cups. Environmental activists would like you to believe the move was designed to protect public health and that more bans are necessary. But the greens are wrong on both counts -- and their advice could imperil public health. Read the full story on Real Clear Policy. … [Read more...]
Scientific Integrity Lacking at New York Times
August 28, 2012
"Scientific Illiteracy Is An Attack On Science Integrity," by Hank Campbell. New York Times opinion columnist Nick Kristof is at it again. Despite pleas, even from people inclined to like the New York Times and people inclined to side with him politically, he refuses to talk about science a little less or at least learn a little more. Read the full article on Science 2.0. … [Read more...]
Nick Kristof and BPA Science
August 27, 2012
"Why Nick Kristof's Scientific Illiteracy Threatens Us All," by Trevor Butterworth. Last May, Deborah Blum, a Pulitzer-winning science writer and a professor of journalism at the University of Wisconsin, published a column pleading with the New York Times’ opinion columnist Nick Kristof to stop writing about chemical risk: "if we, as journalists, are going to demand meticulous standards for the study and oversight of chemical compounds then we should try to be meticulous ourselves in making … [Read more...]
BPA and Heart Disease Study
August 17, 2012
"Lastest Junk Science on BPA And Heart Disease," By Angela Logomasini Earlier this week, we learned from the wonderful world of junk science that eating egg yolks is as dangerous as smoking. Now we learn that eating canned vegetables will harden your arteries! These stories are hard to believe for good reasons, but they sure do make catchy headlines for news sites and green bloggers. Read the full article on OpenMarket.org. … [Read more...]
BPA Bans and Media Hype
August 14, 2012
"The Media’s War on Business – and Science – Gets Personal," by Lisa De Pasquale. The media only asserts its role as watchdog when it reiterates stereotypes they’ve created. Meanwhile, they ignore that the small number of studies that claim to find enigmatic “links” to BPA consumption and a host of problems also profit from their findings. It’s to researchers’ advantage to report a link, no matter how miniscule, so their funding doesn’t dry up. Yet we don’t see special reports from the … [Read more...]
BPA Packaging is Safe
August 9, 2012
"BPA is Safe in Food Contact Materials," By Dr. Mitchell A. Cheeseman. The recent opinion piece by Dr. Laura Vandenberg (August 5) with its staggeringly one-sided presentation of “facts” represents all that is wrong with the debate over bisphenol A, or BPA. Instead of an objective consideration of the science, Dr. Vandenberg distorts information about BPA. Dr. Vandenberg’s reference of the “Chapel Hill” study conducted five years ago, conveniently neglects to mention that, since that study in … [Read more...]
BPA, Phthalates, and Junk Science
July 18, 2012
"More Junk Science on Chemicals," by Julie Gunlock. Last month, a new study, published in the journal NeuroToxicology, examined human exposure to two chemicals which are currently the darlings of anti-chemical activists groups: phthalates (which I’ve written about here) and BPA (which I’ve written about here and here). This new study on "lifestyle behaviors" made headlines because it showed a small population of Old Order Mennonite women (who live much like the Amish and reject modern … [Read more...]
BPA Ban for no Good Reason
July 18, 2012
"FDA Bans BPA in Baby Bottles Based on Pressure, not Science," by American Council on Science and Health. In April, we lauded the FDA for ignoring chemophobic hype when the agency refused to ban the use of bisphenol A (BPA) in food packaging, cans, and other consumer products. Despite activist pressure — including a lawsuit by the Natural Resources Defense Council — the FDA stuck to its scientific guns and determined that BPA posed no health threats to consumers. Imagine our disappointment, … [Read more...]
Chemophobic Misinformation and BPA
June 28, 2012
"Extent of Chemophobic Misinformation: Worse than we Thought," by American Council on Science and Health. We’d like to give a shout-out to Julia Seymour of the Business & Media Institute of the Virginia-based Media Research Center. Seymour recently conducted a content analysis of mainstream media (The New York Times, The Washington Post, ABC, CBS, and NBC news reports, among many others), identifying the scare tactics they've used to exacerbate the phobia so many people have of food-packaging … [Read more...]
Bisphenol A Exhonerated
April 4, 2012
"Witch Hunt Continues on Bisphenol A," by Angela Logomasini This week the Food and Drug Administration(FDA)yet again reaffirmed the safety of the chemical Bisphenol A (BPA), but the witch hunt for evidence against BPA safety continues. Environmental activists and others still won’t accept the findings — encouraging more government spending to study the chemical. But no matter how much the feds spend, researchers are unlikely to find anything new to condemn BPA. Read the full story on … [Read more...]
Cancer Rates, BPA, and Makeup
March 30, 2012
"Cancer rates dropping in the U.S.," by American Council on Science and Health. ACSH is happy to note, yet again, that both U.S. cancer incidence and death rates continue to fall. The latest report, issued annually since 1998 and published in the journal Cancer, is compiled by various health agencies including the CDC and the American Cancer Society and includes nearly every cancer case reported through 2008. According to the statistics, the rate of new cancer cases has been decreasing at a … [Read more...]
