Author: PRHE

PRHE’s mission is to create a healthier environment for human reproduction and development through advancing scientific inquiry, clinical care and health policies that prevent exposures to harmful chemicals in our environment.

EPA’s deficient evaluation of the carcinogen 1,3-butadiene leaves the public at risk

~ PRHE

You may not be familiar with the toxic chemical 1,3-butadiene, but it’s everywhere. The U.S. chemical industry makes and uses enormous quantities of it every year—from 1 to 5 billion pounds. It’s used to make materials like synthetic rubber and plastics. EPA’s evaluation of 1,3-butadiene under the Toxics Substances Control Act (TSCA) found that this … Continue reading EPA’s deficient evaluation of the carcinogen 1,3-butadiene leaves the public at risk

The chemical industry wants to block a new EPA rule protecting people from cancer-causing TCE – and Congress may help them

~ PRHE

Right now, Congress is considering overturning an EPA rule that would stop people in the U.S. from getting cancer, birth defects and Parkinson's disease from a toxic chemical that has already poisoned millions of Americans, including our soldiers.   TCE (trichloroethylene) is a highly toxic solvent linked to serious health harms, even at very low … Continue reading The chemical industry wants to block a new EPA rule protecting people from cancer-causing TCE – and Congress may help them

10 ways the Trump administration is “making America toxic again”

~ PRHE ~ 1 Comment

Our goal is to get toxins out of the environment, poisons out of our food supply, and keep our children healthy and strong.” – President Trump during his State of the Union address, March 4, 2025 We agree. This is a goal we have been working toward since our inception. However, while this administration says … Continue reading 10 ways the Trump administration is “making America toxic again”

Advice for a new administration to protect people from toxic chemicals

~ PRHE

First, they started the process of rolling back a Biden-era initiative to replace lead pipes. Then they took steps to delay a long-needed rule banning most uses of trichloroethylene (TCE), a chemical linked to cancer. These are just two moves the Trump Administration and Republican-led Congress made in their first weeks that expose people to … Continue reading Advice for a new administration to protect people from toxic chemicals

Scientists launch new tool to prioritize people’s health in government decision-making

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As rising chronic disease trends are driven, in part, by exposures to harmful chemicals, pollutants, and plastics, a team of more than 30 environmental health experts led by scientists at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) developed the first decision-making framework for environmental health that prioritizes prevention rather than continuing to allow environmental harms that … Continue reading Scientists launch new tool to prioritize people’s health in government decision-making

Statement on RFK Jr Confirmation to HHS Secretary

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Dr. Tracey J. Woodruff, PhD, professor and director of the Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment and the EaRTH Center at UCSF issued the following statement today upon Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s confirmation as Secretary of Health and Human Services. We face an epidemic of chronic disease fueled by industrial polluters including the chemical, … Continue reading Statement on RFK Jr Confirmation to HHS Secretary

New Center to End Corporate Harm launches

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Health-harming products including fossil fuels, plastics, petrochemicals, tobacco, alcohol and ultra-processed foods are contributing to a rise in chronic disease Industries that produce health-harming products have waged a decades-long assault on science and regulations designed to protect health, ultimately rigging rules in their favor, say scientists behind a new Center to End Corporate Harm at … Continue reading New Center to End Corporate Harm launches

Microplastics may be leading to lung and colon cancers

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A review of 3,000 studies also suggests these minute plastic air particles may be causing male and female infertility. Tires and degrading garbage shed tiny pieces of plastic into the air, creating a form of air pollution that UC San Francisco researchers suspect may be causing respiratory and other illnesses. A review of some 3,000 … Continue reading Microplastics may be leading to lung and colon cancers

Experts urge new administration to adopt guiding principles

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To protect health, the Trump administration must cut ties to polluting industries and ensure scientific integrity in decision-making, scientists say. Chronic disease, including cancer, diabetes, and neurological disease, is on the rise, in part driven by exposures to health-harming chemicals from fossil fuels and plastics according to scientists from the UC San Francisco Program on … Continue reading Experts urge new administration to adopt guiding principles