Pollution News and Research

Latest Pollution News and Research

Long-term monitoring of young leukaemia survivors necessary to identify declining lung health: Researchers

Children who have survived leukaemia may need to have regular monitoring to ensure their lungs remain healthy if they had a bone marrow transplantation during their treatment, US scientists have said.

23 Apr 2010

Ozone and primary pollutants from traffic increase asthma-related emergency department visits in children

Both ozone and primary pollutants from traffic substantially increase asthma-related emergency department visits in children, especially during the warm season, according to researchers from the Department of Environmental Health at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University in Atlanta.

22 Apr 2010

Reuters examines uneven economic growth, welfare programs in India

Reuters reports on the recent efforts by India's government to expand welfare programs throughout the country: "Since helping the Congress party win re-election last year, welfare has fast become the government's knee-jerk answer to policy dilemmas as it tries to ease food inflation, help growth trickle down to the poor, and win hearts and minds in" the country, the news service writes.

21 Apr 2010

Prenatal exposure to pollutants can affect children's cognitive development: CCCEH study

A study by the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health carried out in Krakow, Poland has found that prenatal exposure to pollutants can adversely affect children's cognitive development at age 5, confirming previous findings in a New York City study.

21 Apr 2010

Breathe California names CODA Automotive as winner of Clean Air Award

CODA Automotive, a California-based electric car and battery company, was named a Clean Air Award winner in the technology development category by Breathe California. The award, presented today in San Francisco, highlights standout efforts to combat climate change and air pollution in the business, government, education and non-profit sectors.

17 Apr 2010

WHO issues guidance on ash cloud from Iceland volcanic explosion

The ash cloud from the volcanic explosion in Iceland contains fine particles, similar to those emitted from other sources of particulate matter (PM); but as long as ash remains in the upper atmosphere, there will not likely be an increased risk of health effects, according to WHO.

17 Apr 2010

Japanese ministry approves DIQUAS Ophthalmic Solution 3% for dry eye treatment

Santen Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. and Inspire Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare granted approval for the new dry eye treatment drug, DIQUAS Ophthalmic Solution 3% (generic name: diquafosol tetrasodium), on April 16, 2010.

From Santen Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. 17 Apr 2010

Long-term monitoring and education needed to protect lungs of young patients

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital investigators have identified childhood cancer survivors who are at increased risk for deteriorating lung health, in part due to the lifesaving bone marrow transplants they underwent years earlier.

16 Apr 2010

UA Superfund Research Program to study contaminated dust, water and health issues

Metal-laden dust and contaminated water, and their health effects, will be the focus of multiple projects for the University of Arizona's Superfund Research Program during the next five years. The National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences recently notified UA that the Superfund Research Program, funded since 1989, will receive an additional $14 million in grant funding through 2015 to conduct the research.

15 Apr 2010

Excessive cleanliness can cause allergies

Allergies have become a widespread in developed countries: hay fever, eczema, hives and asthma are all increasingly prevalent. The reason? Excessive cleanliness is to blame according to Dr. Guy Delespesse, a professor at the Universit- de Montr-al Faculty of Medicine.

15 Apr 2010

New computer system may help reduce air quality problems

The Universidad Politécnica de Madrid's School of Computing has developed a computer system that can robustly and efficiently control and forecast air pollution.

15 Apr 2010

Dual evacuation following noxious gas leak

According to the Public Services Association there has been a constant leak of noxious fumes from a Newcastle office building for years and the source needs to be identified. The building has RTA call centre staff and Commonwealth Bank customer service representatives as its tenants.

14 Apr 2010

Woodford Reserve $1,000 Mint Julep Cup: The Barnstable Brown Kentucky Diabetes & Obesity Center beneficiary

Woodford Reserve bourbon will celebrate the glamour and glitz of the Kentucky Derby® with the Ultimate Kentucky Derby Luxury: the world's most exclusive mint julep cup. The Woodford Reserve $1,000 Mint Julep Cup Experience will feature a collection of 73 silver cups designed by Tiffany & Co. exclusively for Woodford Reserve. Proceeds from the cups will benefit The Barnstable Brown Kentucky Diabetes & Obesity Center.

13 Apr 2010

Health care experts brand plan for a “Big Australia” as disaster waiting to happen

Increased immigration rates are set to make Australia’s population hit 36 million by the year 2050 according to Federal Government estimates. This would be a huge leap from the present 22,300,000 people that the nation has today. The added population is being seen as a necessity to ensure economical survival for the country.

13 Apr 2010

New research highlights adverse effects of air pollution on human reproduction

Exposure to an increased level of air pollutants, especially nitrogen dioxide, has been associated with lower likelihoods of successful pregnancy among women undergoing in vitro fertilization, according to a team of fertility researchers.

13 Apr 2010

Genes influence chronic kidney disease risk: Research

A team of researchers from the United States and Europe has identified more than a dozen genes that may play a role in the etiology of common forms of kidney disease. The team, known as the CKDGen Consortium, examined common variations in DNA sequences in more than 65,000 individuals of European descent. Common variations in several genes were found to be more frequent among people with poor kidney function or chronic kidney disease than in those with normal kidney function.

13 Apr 2010

Hunter Valley cancer cluster report to be made public

Cancer cases may have manifested as brain tumors in the local population in Upper Hunter Valley as a result of pollution from mines and power stations. With five residents in a single block in Singleton being diagnosed with brain tumors a public inquiry to establish just how harmful dust and toxins from the mines and power stations are had been constituted by the state government.

13 Apr 2010