By Eddie Galdamez According to a 2019 peer-reviewed study in MEDICC, “chronic kidney disease has reached epidemic proportions in El Salvador.” The number of people affected by this silent illness is staggering; it is the second cause of death in men and the third cause…
By Stacy Malkan, Children’s Health Defense Waking Times Chlorpyrifos insecticides were introduced by Dow Chemical in 1965 and have been used widely in agricultural settings. Commonly known as the active ingredient in the brand names Dursban and Lorsban, chlorpyrifos is an organophosphate insecticide, acaricide and…
The loss of flowering plants and the widespread use of pesticides could be a double punch to wild bee populations. In a new study, researchers at the University of California, Davis, found that the combined threats reduced blue orchard bee reproduction by 57 percent and…
By Anthony McLennan Farmers in some countries prefer ducks and geese over pesticides when it comes to controlling bugs, snails, and weeds in crop plantations. It proves to be an organic solution as the birds eat the pests and then release their own waste back…
A previously banned insecticide, which was approved for agricultural use last year in the United States, is harmful for bees and other beneficial insects that are crucial for agriculture, and a second pesticide in widespread use also harms these insects. That is according to a…
In light of emerging evidence showing how a commonly used class of insecticides can spread through the environment to pollinators, predators and other insects they are not intended to kill, researchers are warning about the potential for widespread environmental contamination. In an opinion in the…
Scientists have estimated for the first time how nature-based solutions for agricultural pest control deliver US$ 14.6 to US$ 19.5 billion annually across 23 countries in the Asia-Pacific region. The new research, published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution, suggests that non-chemical crop protection…
Bird biodiversity is rapidly declining in the U.S. The overall bird population decreased by 29% since 1970, while grassland birds declined by an alarming 53%. Valuable for so much more than flight and song, birds hold a key place in ecosystems worldwide. When bird numbers…
In an analysis of how regulators review pesticides for their potential to cause cancer, researchers at Silent Spring Institute identified more than two dozen registered pesticides that were linked with mammary gland tumors in animal studies. The new findings raise concerns about how the US…
New research led by The University of Queensland has provided the first comprehensive analysis of pesticide mixtures in creeks and rivers discharging to the Great Barrier Reef. UQ’s School of Earth and Environmental Sciences researcher Associate Professor Michael Warne conducted the study with the Queensland…
The lives of honeybees are shortened – with evidence of physiological stress – when they are exposed to the suggested application rates of two commercially available and widely used pesticides, according to new Oregon State University research. In a study published in the journal PLOS…
New evidence identifies 64 pesticide residues in milkweed, the main food for monarch butterflies in the west. Milkweed samples from all of the locations studied in California’s Central Valley were contaminated with pesticides, sometimes at levels harmful to monarchs and other insects. The study raises…
Elevated blood levels of toxic chemicals found in pesticides, nonstick cookware, and fire retardants have been tied to an increased risk for celiac disease in young people, new research shows. According to NYU Grossman School of Medicine researchers who led the study, people with the…
Pesticide-coated seeds — such as neonicotinoids, many of which are highly toxic to both pest and beneficial insects — are increasingly used in the major field crops, but are underreported, in part, because farmers often do not know what pesticides are on their seeds, according…
By Mayukh Saha The bee population has seen a decrease of over 30% in the last hundred years in America and Europe. Declining habitat and climate change are among the top reasons for this decline, along with harmful pesticides. This Tuesday, scientists from the Imperial…
Jordan Davidson, EcoWatch Poor people in developing countries are far more likely to suffer from exposure to pesticides classified as having high hazard to human health or the environment, according to new data that Unearthed analyzed. The analysis shows that the world’s top five pesticide makers are making billions,…
By Alanna Ketler The Facts: Organic foods can often be expensive. Luckily, there is a simple solution we can easily use to wash our produce and reduce the amount of chemicals we are ingesting into our bodies. Reflect On: It’s easy to get discouraged with…
The landmark Food Quality Protection Act requires the Environmental Protection Agency to protect children’s health by applying an extra margin of safety to legal limits for pesticides in food. But an investigation by EWG, published this week in a peer-reviewed scientific journal, found that the…
Habitat loss, pesticide use and, surprisingly, artificial light are the three most serious threats endangering fireflies across the globe, raising the spectre of extinction for certain species and related impacts on biodiversity and ecotourism, according to a Tufts University-led team of biologists associated with the…
By Mayukh Saha In Switzerland, there are rows of wildflowers like red poppies and blue cornflowers planted among the crops. These beautiful wildflowers can serve as an eco-friendly way to reduce the usage of pesticides. Swiss farmers are trying to replace pesticides with these wildflowers…
