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Children's Health Protection News and Events
Choose from the topics below to find the latest news about children's environmental health:
- Upcoming Events
- Recent Product Recalls
- General Children's Environmental Health News
- Children's Environmental Health News Where You Live
- Disaster-Related Environmental Health News
- News Archive
You will need Adobe Reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA's PDF page to learn more.
Upcoming Events
- May 2008: Asthma Awareness Month
- June 9-13, 2008: EPICOH-NEUROEH 2008 Conferences:
Multiple Exposures, Multiple Effects
- June 10, 2008: Clinical Directors Network Webinar: Chemical Exposures - Integrating
Environmental and Occupational Health into the Primary Care Setting
- June 23-27, 2008: National Tribal Conference on Environmental
Management
- June 7-12, 2009: 9th International
Conference on Mercury as a Global Pollutant
Recent Product Recalls
Below are the 10 most recent children's environmental health-related product recalls from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and other sources:
- Children's Storage Bins Sold at Lowe's Stores Recalled
- Nintendo Recalls Lapel Pins
- Avon Products Recalls Basketball and Flower Tables
- Wal-Mart Recalls Charm Key Chains
- Santa's Toy Corp. Recalls Push Toys
- FUNTASTIC Recalls Fake Teeth
- Michaels Stores Recalls Seasonal Writing Pens
- OKK Trading Recalls Toy Robots
- StyleMark Recalls Children’s "Main Street Drag" Sunglasses
- Educational Insights Recalls Ring Toss Games
View additional product recalls from the CPSC
or find resources on toy safety
and lead
poisoning from the American Academy of Pediatrics .
General Children's Environmental Health News
- As part of National Melanoma/Skin Cancer Detection and Prevention Month,
EPA’s SunWise program invites Americans to vote for the winner of
the 2008 Limit the Sun, Not the Fun national sun safety poster contest through May 31, 2008. This contest, co-sponsored with the
SHADE Foundation of America and WeatherBug Schools, gives children the
opportunity to create messages to help prevent skin cancer, the most common of
all cancers and one that will be diagnosed in over one million Americans in
2008 alone.
- On April 14, 2008, EPA announced that it was making Federal environmental regulation more transparent by providing online information as soon as the agency begins the development of a new rule. EPA is now using Action Initiation Lists (AILs) to notify the public about new rules and other regulatory actions. AILs will be posted on the EPA Web site at roughly the end of each month; each will provide summaries, agency contacts, and other information about the rules EPA has approved for development during the given month. View EPA's Action Initiation Lists.
- National Public Health Week was April 7-13, 2008. The American Public
Health Association encouraged individuals, families, and communities to
change their behavior in five important ways:
- Monday: Be Prepared. Inform yourself about the health impacts of climate change and climate change issues facing your community, and take actions to prepare for possible emergencies.
- Tuesday: Travel Differently. Leave the car at home one day, and take public transportation. Walk or bike, but if you need to drive, carpool – and telecommute if you can.
- Wednesday: Eat Differently. Buy food from a community farmer’s market that doesn’t travel across the country to get to you. Eat more vegetables, and less meat.
- Thursday: Green Your Work. Use recycled paper if you don’t already, and even if you do, print less often and on both sides of the paper. Set your computer to energy-saver mode and buy eco-friendly office furniture.
- Friday: Green Your Home. Seal and insulate your home and replace air filters frequently to cut costs and save energy. Reduce your use of wasteful products, and reuse or recycle the products you do use. Conserve water whenever possible.
- On March 31, 2008, EPA issued new rules for contractors who renovate or repair housing, child-care facilities or schools built before 1978. These new rules will further protect children from exposure to lead-based paint. For more information, including in Spanish, on EPA's lead program, or for copies of the rule and information on how to comply, visit www.epa.gov/lead.
- EPA has developed a new Web site that provides basic information about environmental risk assessments to the public. The site also offers links to key EPA tools, guidance, and guidelines used by scientists to help them develop risk assessments. Visit the new Risk Assessment Portal.
- The National Public Health Week “Health in the Balance Toolkit
” is available online. The toolkit includes fact sheets,
media outreach materials, suggested community events, resources, and activities
for children and teachers to use throughout National Public Health Week (April
7-13, 2008).
- On January 30, 2008, EPA announced the award of grants to help reduce environmental risks to pregnant women. The grants are projected to reach approximately 3,000 health care providers and 10,000 women of child-bearing age. Read a press release about the grants or view details of each grant.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention invites qualified applicants to apply for a 10 week summer program in Environmental Public Health at the National Center for Environmental Health/Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry in Atlanta, Georgia. The deadline for application is March 4, 2008. Learn more about the Collegiate Leaders In Environmental Health: Summer Undergraduate Internship 2008.
- The Department of Health and Human Services' Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry is offering a new educational case study on Trichloroethylene Toxicity. The study’s purpose is to inform the primary care provider’s knowledge about hazardous substances in the environment and to promote the adoption of medical practices that aid in the evaluation and care of potentially exposed patients. Learn more about the case study.
- The 2008 EPA Community Action for a Renewed Environment (CARE) Cooperative Agreement Request for Proposals (RFP) is now available. Approximately $3 million will be available in 2008 to support community-based partnerships to reduce pollution at the local level through the CARE program. Learn more about the CARE RFP.
- Migrant Clinicians Network has published a new Spanish-language educational "comic" book, "Lo Que Bien Empieza … Bien Acaba: Consejos para las mujeres para prevenir danos a la salud ya sus bebes causados por pesticidas (PDF)" (14 pp, 4MB), which addresses pesticide exposure and pregnant women.
- On November 2, 2007, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published new guidelines for interpreting and managing blood lead levels below 10 micrograms per deciliter (µg/dL) in children. In 1991, the CDC defined the blood lead level (BLL) that should prompt public health actions as 10 µg/dL. Research conducted since then has strengthened the evidence that children's physical and mental development can be affected at BLLs lower than 10 µg/dL. Read the full report.
- HealthySEAT Version 2 is now available. Manage all of your school environmental health and safety issues with this fully integrated, flexible, and free software tool from EPA.
- On October 22, 2007, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced the results of a study that determined that home lead test kits are unreliable. CPSC staff used commonly available test kits on a variety of paints and other products containing different levels of lead. Many of the tests performed using the kits did not detect lead when it was there and some indicated lead was present when it was not. None of the kits consistently detected lead in products if the lead was covered with a non-leaded coating. Based on the study, consumers should not use lead test kits to evaluate consumer products for potential lead hazards. Learn more about this study.
- The Data Resource Center for Child and Adolescent Health (DRC) provides
access to data findings and technical assistance on the health and
health-related services for children, youth, and families in the United States.
The DRC Web site includes national and state-based data on over 100 indicators
from the National Survey of Children’s Health and the National Survey of
Children with Special Health Care Needs. Search the DRC Web
site .
- On October 11, 2007, EPA
announced the
winners of the 2007 Children’s
Environmental Health Excellence Award. Learn
about the winners.
- On September 26, 2007, EPA issued a final rule to help reduce lead in drinking water. Specifically, the agency will require water suppliers to provide consumers with information to help them make decisions about how to limit their exposure to lead in drinking water. View a copy of the rule or learn more about lead in drinking water.
- EPA’s Child and Aging Health Division released the " Children's Environmental Health: 2007 Highlights; Environment, Health, and a Focus on Children (PDF)" (20 pp, 2.6MB). The annual report highlights EPA's recent efforts to protect children’s health by addressing threats where they develop, grow, and thrive. Improving school environments, addressing indoor and outdoor air quality, and reducing exposures to chemicals and pesticides are a few of the activities described in the report. Read EPA's press release announcing the publication of the report.
Disaster-Related Environmental Health News
Wildfire-Related Environmental Health News:
- October 2007 California Wildfire Information
- Health Risks of Wild Fires for Children (PDF) (4 pp, 96K) from the University of California Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit
Hurricane Katrina-Related Environmental Health News:
- Questions and answers about children’s health and hurricane and flood disasters (from EPA)
- EPA is urging residents returning to hurricane-affected areas especially to protect children from hazards left behind by storms. Information for parents and caregivers is available on a variety topics, for example, safe water, asthma, contaminated toys, and others. View a news release and questions and answers about protecting children's health after hurricanes and flood disasters.
- EPA
has developed informational
flyers on possible environmental
and
health
issues
-
including
carbon monoxide
poisoning,
mold, and
drinking
water - for
residents
returning to
hurricane
impacted
areas.
View the
informational
flyers.
- On
October
7,
2005,
the Pediatric
Environmental
Health
Specialty
Units
and
the American
Academy
of
Pediatrics
issued
a joint statement detailing
clinician
recommendations
regarding
the
return
of
children
to areas impacted by
flooding
and or
hurricanes. The
recommendations
also apply
to pregnant women.
Read
the joint statement
(PDF) (3 pp, 100K) .
- Health professionals
can contact Pediatric Environmental Health
Specialty
Units (PEHSUs),
a
national
network of clinics,
for
free
clinical
advice
by
phone
about potential
pediatric
environmental
health
concerns
affecting
both
the
child and
the
family.
To
learn
more,
visit: http://www.aoec.org/PEHSU.htm
.
- Cleanup activities related to returning to homes and businesses after Hurricane Katrina can pose significant health and environmental challenges. People may be exposed to potentially life-threatening hazards posed by leaking natural gas lines, and carbon monoxide poisoning from using un-vented fuel-burning equipment indoors. During a flood cleanup, failure to remove contaminated materials and to reduce moisture and humidity may present serious long-term health risks from micro-organisms, such as bacteria and mold. View EPA’s September 14, 2005 news release regarding precautions you can take to protect yourself and your children from potential environmental hazards resulting from flooding.
- On
September
13,
2005,
the
U.S.
Consumer
Product
Safety
Commission
warned
of
new
dangers among
Gulf
Coast
victims
of
Hurricane Katrina from
deadly CO
poisonings.
Read important new safety tips for
residents able
to return home
after the
hurricane
.
- On September 11, 2005, EPA and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality posted data from New Orleans flood water chemical samples collected from six locations on September 3. Chemical results indicate that the concentration of lead exceeded EPA drinking water action levels. These levels are of a concern if a child ingests large amounts of the flood water. Based on the chemical analyses and the presence of high levels of E. coli, EPA and CDC provided health guidance on September 7 to avoid human contact with the flood water when possible. EPA in coordination with federal, state and local agencies will continue to release data as it becomes available. View the test results or visit EPA’s Hurricane Katrina response Web page at www.epa.gov/katrina.
- The National
Library of Medicine has
compiled a
new
Hurricane Katrina
Web
page
on toxic
chemical
and
environmental health information
resources for health workers
and
the interested
public.
Links are
provided
to
information
on chemicals
that
may be
released
as
a result
of the
Katrina
disaster and
on environmental health concerns following the wind and
flood
damage.