Latest DDT Stories

Infant girls exposed to high levels of the pesticide DDT while still inside the womb are three times more likely to develop hypertension when they become adults, according to a new study led by the University of California, Davis. Previous studies have shown that adults exposed to DDT (dichlorodiplhenyltrichloroethane) are at an increased risk of high blood pressure. But this study, published online March 12 in Environmental Health Perspectives, is the first to link prenatal DDT exposure...

The highest levels ever of DDT in breast milk have been measured in mothers living in malaria-stricken villages in South Africa. The values lie well over the limits set by the World Health Organization. DDT has been used for many years in South Africa, sprayed indoors to fight malaria. It works, but it exposes the inhabitants to other risks not yet fully known. “To our ears, spraying DDT inside people’s homes sounds absurd. But it is one of the most effective agents against malaria....

Links Prop. 37 Opponents to False Corporate Health Claims about Cigarettes, DDT, Agent Orange SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 27, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Yes on Proposition 37 California Right to Know Campaign launched a $150,000 early media blitz today directly challenging the record of deceit of the big corporations that are now working to deny Californians the right to know what's in their food. Proposition 37, which will be on the California ballot in November, would be the...

HARRISBURG, Pa., Aug. 23, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Pennsylvania's peregrine falcons had another successful nesting season in 2012, according to Dr. F. Arthur McMorris, Pennsylvania Game Commission peregrine falcon program coordinator. "We confirmed 32 pairs of falcons nesting across the Commonwealth, and 22 of them bred successfully, raising 62 young falcons," Dr. McMorris said. "Also, we banded 42 of the young falcons in an ongoing effort to assist the recovery of the...

In most comprehensive review of a decade of data researchers confirm indoor insecticide treatments, dramatically reduce malaria; study finds world’s best drug still effective in African malaria 'hot zone' while researchers question for how long A pair of provocative studies in the July 2012 issue of The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (AJTMH) provides a window into the intense ground war now underway against malaria. In one review, researchers offer new evidence...

Findings show need to reevaluate fungicide safety, researchers say Chlorothalonil, one of the world's most common fungicides used pervasively on food crops and golf courses, was lethal to a wide variety of freshwater organisms in a new study, University of South Florida researchers said Wednesday. Biologists Taegan McMahon and Jason Rohr, co-authors of the study published in the journal Ecology Letters, report that chlorothalonil killed amphibians, snails, zooplankton, algae, and...

Report says there is reason for hope in the fight against malaria and offers new opportunities to improve the marketplace for bed nets The universal coverage campaign for bed nets succeeded in dramatically extending access to these life-saving products, though recent gains may be in jeopardy unless rapid action is taken. Over 560 million long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLINs) are required through 2015 alone to achieve and maintain universal coverage in Africa, at a total global cost...

Funding cuts for malaria control are the single most common reason for the resurgence of the deadly disease, according to a new study that has linked overall weakened malaria control programs to the majority of global resurgences since 1930. The study, published in the April 24 issue of the open-access Malaria Journal, analyzed the causes of 75 documented episodes of malaria resurgence throughout the world over the past 80 years, both in countries that were close to eliminating the disease...

New research findings highlight how deposits of animal droppings are scientifically important for determining the impact of environmental change on threatened species. Analysis of 50 years' bird droppings inside a large decommissioned chimney on Queen's campus, provided evidence that DDT and bird diet may have played a role, in a long-term decline for populations of insect-eating birds in North America. The chimney had been a roosting spot for chimney swifts. "Certainly there are many...

WASHINGTON, April 13, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following is the daily "Profile America" feature from the U.S. Census Bureau: (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110428/DC91889LOGO) FRIDAY, APRIL 13: "SILENT SPRING" AT 50 Profile America -- Friday, April 13th. One of the most influential books of the last century was published on this date 50 years ago -- Rachel Carson's "Silent Spring." The book, which warned of the dangers of indiscriminate use of chemical...