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Corporate-Spun Science Should Not Be Guiding Policy: Internal Monsanto documents reveal a startling decades-long campaign to suppress the science on glyphosate. Policymakers would be wise to adopt a more precautionary view, argues Carey Gillam in this must-read essay in Undark magazine.
Rise of the Anti-Women, Anti-Public Health Groups: The DC power crowd gathered at the recent “Independent Women’s Forum” gala sponsored by the chemical industry, a tobacco company and a right-wing extremist group. Stacy Malkan reports on this anti-public health confab dressed up as a celebration of women: The Politics of Infertility and Cancer
New Harvard Study Links Pesticides to Fertility Problems: In just the past few weeks, JAMA has published two studies raising serious concerns about pesticides and a physician's commentary urging people to eat organic food. We recap the recent science here:
Trying to get pregnant? Science suggests: eat organic and regulate the pesticide industry
See recent JAMA articles:
- Harvard researchers reported that women who regularly ate pesticide-treated fruits and vegetables had lower success rates getting pregnant with IVF.
- A UC San Diego study documented huge increases in human exposure to glyphosate.
- The Harvard study "comes at a time when multiple lines of evidence suggest that human fertility is on the decline," wrote Phillip Landrigan, MD, in a JAMA commentary. He urged physicians to educate their patients about pesticides and encourage them to eat organic.
The Big Washington Food Fight: Great news for consumers: the junk food trade association Grocery Manufacturers Association is losing members and its grip on swaying policy as companies disagree about how to respond to changing consumer tastes, reports Politico. Quote of note: “some congressional offices reported that they received more calls supporting GMO labeling than any other single policy issue.”
Weed Killer Vote Poisons European Politics: A dramatic U-turn from Germany tipped the EU vote in favor of licensing the use of glyphosate for five more years. The fallout "is poisoning German politics on the eve of grand coalition talks" and “fails to put the EU debate on glyphosate to rest,” reports Politico.
Herbicides Linked to Antibiotic Resistance: New University of Canterbury research links three commonly used herbicides - glyphosate, dicamba and 2,4-D - to antibiotic resistance at concentrations well below label application rates. The researcher Jack Heinemann said government regulators should look beyond the overuse of human antibiotics to help explain antibiotic resistance.
Le Monde English Translations: The award-winning investigation "The Monsanto Papers" by Stéphane Foucart and Stéphane Horel, published by Le Monde in June, has been translated into English and posted by Environmental Health News.
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For our right to know,
Gary, Carey, Stacy, Becky
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