Pollution News and Research

Latest Pollution News and Research

Smokers lose ability to smell common odors, increased risk for laryngitis

As Americans prepare for a day without cigarettes and tobacco products as part of the American Cancer Society Great American Smokeout (November 20), new research gives them more reasons to extend that break to a lifetime, according to the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNSF).

4 Nov 2008

Frequent urination protects against bladder cancer

A new study has analysed the effect of urinary frequency on the risk of bladder cancer. The conditions of this research which is published in the latest number of the International Journal of Cancer, show a direct association between the number of times people get up at night to urinate and protection against bladder cancer.

30 Oct 2008

Lots of neighborhood greenness linked to lower children's body mass

In the first study to look at the effect of neighborhood greenness on inner city children's weight over time, researchers from the Indiana University School of Medicine, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and the University of Washington report that higher neighborhood greenness is associated with slower increases in children's body mass over a two year period, regardless of residential density.

28 Oct 2008

GE announces battery-free RFID sensor

GE Global Research has announced a battery-free, multi-detection radio-frequency identification (RFID) sensing platform that could enable a wide range of low cost wireless sensing products in healthcare, security, food packaging, water treatment and pollution prevention. GE's unique RFID sensors are built on traditional RFID tags.

14 Oct 2008

More appendicitis hospitalizations on "high ozone" days

Could there be a link between high levels of air pollution and the risk of appendicitis? New research presented at the 73rd Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology in Orlando, suggests a novel connection.

6 Oct 2008

New research blames pollution and everyday allergens for laryngitis

Researchers say everyday exposure to environmental tobacco smoke, allergens and air pollution may be the root of chronic cases of laryngitis.

23 Sep 2008

Risk assessment tool finds that blacks with breathing conditions have higher risk for developing lung cancer than whites

Blacks with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease -- including chronic bronchitis and some types of serious chronic asthma -- have a risk for developing lung cancer about twice as high as that of whites with the condition, according to a study published in the journal Cancer Prevention Research, Reuters reports.

10 Sep 2008

Prenatal exposure to pollution a culprit in obesity

According to new research a determining factor as to whether a child is fat or not may be decided before they have even been born.

8 Sep 2008

Living sensor can warn of arsenic pollution

Scientists studying arsenic pollution have discovered a living sensor that can spot contamination. They have also discovered new bacteria that can clean up arsenic spills even in previously untreatable cold areas, microbiologists heard today (Monday 8 September 2008) at the Society for General Microbiology's Autumn meeting being held this week at Trinity College, Dublin.

7 Sep 2008

Many people mistaken about the causes of cancer

A large international survey for the International Union Against Cancer (UICC) has revealed that many people have misconceptions about what causes cancer.

27 Aug 2008

Global survey highlights need for cancer prevention campaigns to correct misbeliefs

Many people hold mistaken beliefs about what causes cancer, tending to inflate the threat from environmental factors that have relatively little impact while minimizing the hazards of behaviours well established as cancer risk factors, according to the first global survey on the topic.

26 Aug 2008

Study compares student performance against environmental pollution

University of Michigan researchers are studying connections between air toxins and K-12 student performance in Michigan - and possibly whether air quality should be a factor when deciding where to build public schools.

30 Jul 2008

Direct link between air pollution and high blood pressure

The air people breathe while walking in the park, working in the garden or shopping downtown may be unhealthy enough to seriously spike their blood pressure, a new study suggests.

28 Jul 2008

Closing coal-fired power plants directly improves cognitive development in children

Closing coal-fired power plants can have a direct, positive impact on children's cognitive development and health according to a study released by the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health (CCCEH) at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health.

14 Jul 2008

Allergy to road traffic

Allergic diseases appear more often in children who grow up near busy roads. This is the result of a study of several thousand children, now published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

14 Jul 2008

Normal-looking sperm may have serious damage; scientists urge more care in selection

Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), where a single sperm is injected into an egg to fertilise it, is increasingly used to help infertile men father children. Although the sperm chosen for the procedure may appear quite normal, researchers in the US have found that many of them in fact have DNA damage, which can decrease the chances of pregnancy.

8 Jul 2008