Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment

Babies Are Exposed to 42 'Forever Chemicals' Before Birth, Study Finds Babies are exposed to many more 'forever chemicals' before they're born than previously thought, new research suggests, as the potential harms of these substances continue to be investigated.

"When we look more comprehensively, we see that babies are exposed to far more #PFAS chemicals before birth than we previously realized..."

Common pesticides may disrupt placental health Pregnancy depends on a healthy placenta, but how environmental chemicals affect placental development is still poorly understood. Growing evidence suggests that exposure to common pesticides may increase the risk of pregnancy complications. In our new study examining pregnancy risks from pesticides, one pesticide stood out: naled. You might not have heard of naled – an … Continue reading Common pesticides may disrupt placental health

You've heard of the pesticides chlorpyrifos and malathion, but have you heard of naled? Dept. of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Science at UCSF Robinson Lab postdoc Lin Li, MD, PhD, explains how naled might affect placental health in our latest blog post. ⬇️

Health advocates clash with chemical industry as Congress proposes TSCA changes Scientists and health advocates say proposed changes to a key US chemicals safety law would upend protections for children and other vulnerable populations suffering from toxic exposures, while indust...

Project TENDR scientists urged policymakers to protect children from toxic chemicals that harm children's brains at a Hill briefing last week.

That means stopping the chemical lobby from gutting America's chemical safety law. #TSCA #ProtectKidsHealth

www.thenewlede.org/2026/02/heal...

Forever Chemicals Are Everywhere — But Avoiding These 2 Types Of Products Will Seriously Reduce Your Risk Environmental scientist Tasha Stoiber reveals some simple ways to limit contact with PFAS.

Your Friday reminder that there are easy ways to reduce your PFAS exposure, including something you may already be doing: washing your hands before eating.

Despite the snow storm our Hill briefing is still ON. Join us on Capitol Hill Wed, Feb 25 at 11:30 am ET.

Toxic Smoke and Mirrors: How a Petrochemical Giant Broke Its Promise Documents obtained by Hunterbrook show Indorama exposed thousands to carcinogens, violated environmental permits, and concealed toxic leaks from regulators.

A resident of the Golden Triangle of Texas on ethylene oxide exposure: “You live here, you’re gonna get cancer.”

Announcing new PRHE interim director Amy Padula PRHE announced earlier in February that Dr. Amy Padula, a leading PRHE researcher who was named one of 20 Pioneers under 40 in Environmental Health by the Collaborative on Health and the Environment and received a NIEHS Outstanding New Environmental Scientist R01 Award for her work on wildfire smoke and preterm birth, will serve as … Continue reading Announcing new PRHE interim director Amy Padula

Please join us in welcoming Dr. Amy Padula as PRHE’s new interim director! Discover more about her background and vision for PRHE's future in our newest blog post.

https://prheucsf.blog/2026/02/12/announcing-new-prhe-interim-director-amy-padula/

"This decision prioritizes the profits of big oil and gas companies and polluters over clean air and water, the health of kids and all people, and the progress we've made to respond to climate change," says Lisa Patel, MD, executive director of the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health

Today, the EPA chose to abandon its key duty by repealing the #EndangermentFinding. This decision will make people sicker and leave families to pay the cost, all while shielding polluters from accountability.

Our statement: medsocietiesforclimatehealth.org/statements/c... @lisapatel.bsky.social

Firefighters Wore Gear Containing “Forever Chemicals.” The Forest Service Knew and Stayed Silent for Years. As early as 2021, government officials were alerted to the presence of potentially dangerous chemicals known as PFAS in pants used by wildland firefighters, according to emails obtained by ProPublica.

Firefighters face elevated cancer risks compared to the general population, yet the health impacts on wildland firefighters remain less understood than those who respond to structural fires. #PFAS is likely one of the culprits.

As EPA weakens air pollution regulations, Black women stand to face the greatest health risks They already face the highest rates of asthma-related mortality in the nation. Dirtier air will make that worse.

"Black women already have the highest death rates due to asthma, a condition caused and exacerbated by air pollution. ... Black children are also 8x more likely to die from an asthma attack than White children."

https://19thnews.org/2026/02/epa-air-pollution-black-women-health/

Industry lobbies Congress to weaken protections against toxic chemicals | Sharyl Attkisson Industry-backed lawmakers are pushing changes to safety law that would block lawsuits and weaken protections against toxic exposures.

The chemical lobby is trying to weaken America's main chemical safety law. If they succeed, people will be exposed to a lot more toxic chemicals and chronic disease.

https://sharylattkisson.com/2026/02/industry-lobbies-congress-to-weaken-protections-against-toxic-chemicals/

Tear gas and pepper spray can have lasting health effects The chemicals are widely used for crowd control, but their long-term health risks are poorly understood.

“These are chemical weapons that are harmful to the human body and harmful to particularly vulnerable folks, like children,” says Asha Hassan, an epidemiologist at the University of Minnesota

https://www.sciencenews.org/article/tear-gas-pepper-spray-health-effects

Want to learn how "how industry actors manipulate science, lobby policymakers, and undermine democratic decision-making to maintain profits at the expense of human and environmental health"? Check out CIEL's new report.

https://www.ciel.org/reports/science-denial-toxic-chemical-regulation/

Firefighters are helping us understand the impact of 'forever chemicals' : Short Wave PFAS make pans nonstick, clothes waterproof and furniture stain resistant. They're so ubiquitous, they're even inside of us. Now, researchers are looking for more insights in firefighters' blood.

Firefighters are some of the most highly exposed to #PFAS chemicals. Now they are also on the frontlines of science to uncover what those toxic chemicals are doing to our health.

https://www.npr.org/2026/02/02/nx-s1-5683233/science-firefighters-pfas-forever-chemical-blood

Trump Is Making It a Lot Easier for Polluters to Pollute - Center for Progressive Reform To the extent that people think about the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) at all, they likely think of an institution that works to safeguard our health and well-being, and that of our environment. So, The New York Times made quite a splash recently when it reported that the agency had adopted a new policy under which it would stop considering the health benefits of two of the most harmful and pervasive air pollutants: fine particulate matter and ozone.

"[The Trump administration's] response—unsurprisingly—is to cook the books so that the benefits of reducing fine particulate matter and ozone emissions magically disappear."

https://progressivereform.org/cpr-blog/trump-making-it-a-lot-easier-for-polluters-to-pollute/

The EPA just erased a century of public health progress Former Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Dean Michelle A. Williams on the EPA’s incorrect and morally wrong decision.

"The math has consistently shown that protecting human health is one of the best investments a society can make. For every dollar spent reducing [air] pollution, we get back as much as $77 in health benefits."

https://www.statnews.com/2026/02/02/epa-value-statistical-life-public-health-betrayal/

S.F. opens health clinic to tackle pollution in Bayview-Hunters Point — a long time coming Fears of exposure to radiation from the Hunters Point Shipyard prompted the Department of Public Health to open the clinic.

"The opening of the clinic comes months after the Health Dept blasted the Navy for failing to report findings of airborne plutonium at the shipyard at twice the recommended “action level"...

https://missionlocal.org/2026/01/sf-bayview-environmental-health-clinic/

Forever Chemicals Linked to Multiple Sclerosis in Concerning New Study People who are exposed to certain forever chemicals may be at greater risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), according to new research.

"People with the highest concentrations of PFOS and PCBs had approximately twice as high odds of being diagnosed with MS, compared with those with the lowest concentrations."

https://www.sciencealert.com/forever-chemicals-linked-to-multiple-sclerosis-in-concerning-new-study

The Polluters Down the Street—EPA Changes Put Lives at Risk | Nonprofit Quarterly | Civic News. Empowering Nonprofits. Advancing Justice. In a policy reversal under Trump, the EPA will no longer consider human lives saved when setting air pollution guidelines. Instead, it will measure the cost to the industry.

“If we fail to factor in the health and societal costs ... costs of keeping pollution to a minimum will be seen as burdensome ... and we will reverse decades of environmental and public health progress."

https://nonprofitquarterly.org/the-polluters-down-the-street-epa-changes-put-lives-at-risk/

Plastic emissions could double health damage by 2040 Plastic pollution could double its harm to human health in the coming decades if current production trends continue, according to a new study that links rising risks directly to the manufacture of new plastics.

"The most effective way to reduce plastic-related health damage, the authors said, is to produce less new plastic."

https://www.dw.com/en/plastic-emissions-could-double-health-damage-by-2040/a-75677138

“It appears the EPA is putting more importance upon the cost to industry than the cost to the public. I’m worried this will mean more air pollution will be emitted as a result.”

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jan/28/trump-epa-environmental-rollbacks

Toxic chemicals permeate the food we eat. Here’s how to design them out Just over 60 years ago, scientist and conservationist Rachel Carson warned that modern societies were contaminating the ecosystems they depend on with “dangerous and even lethal materials”.

"The question is no longer whether action is possible, but how much longer we can afford the consequences of delay."

https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/society-equity/toxic-chemicals-permeate-food-we-eat-heres-how-design-them-out--ecmii-2026-01-28/

Leadership change announced at PRHE Tracey J. Woodruff, PhD, MPH, the former EPA scientist and Alison S. Carlson Endowed Professor who has led the UC San Francisco Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment (PRHE) since 2007, is leaving for Stanford University, where she will launch a new research and policy group focused on toxic chemicals. She will be departing PRHE … Continue reading Leadership change announced at PRHE

BIG NEWS from PRHE. We wish Dr. Tracey Woodruff all the best in her new venture and congratulate Dr. Amy Padula on taking the reins at PRHE.

https://prheucsf.blog/2026/01/27/leadership-change-announced-at-prhe/

Republicans and Democrats agree EPA’s new chemical reviews are too slow But at a hearing on potential changes to the Toxic Substances Control Act, they disagreed on how to speed the process

See this messaging about new chemical reviews being too slow? That is industry messaging. As Dr. Woodruff testified, the majority of delays are because industry hasn't provided data or signed paperwork.

https://cen.acs.org/policy/legislation-/tsca-update-epa-new-chemical-reviews/104/web/2026/01

Chewing Gum Releases 1000s of Microplastics Into Bloodstream Major sources include plastic pellets, personal care products, paint and resins, synthetic textiles and the breakdown of larger plastics like bags and containers.

“Nothing surprises me about how many places plastic is in anymore, but it is sad and surprising that things in our food…could be releasing microplastics.”

https://goodmenproject.com/featured-content/chewing-gum-releases-1000s-of-microplastics-into-bloodstream/#google_vignette

Column: 'Unleashing American Energy' is a death sentence for Americans "Climate change isn’t just a rising bar on a graph. Parents have lost children. Houses have been washed away. Global warming is a humanitarian crisis, as much as it is a scientific one, and far more than it is an economic one."

EPA policies under the current administration are sacrificing people's health in favor of big polluters. We must do better. #TakeDownToxics

https://www.dailytarheel.com/article/opinion-column-trump-epa-decision-20260125

Opinion | The Trump Administration Now Thinks Clean Air Is Worthless Average Americans could experience significant hits to their health and their pocketbooks.

"Health experts foresee [EPA's] new practice resulting in higher asthma rates, more heart attacks and more dementia — as well as more premature deaths."

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/opinion/epa-air-pollution-asthma-deaths.html

"These changes [to TSCA] are a wholesale destruction of the law."

"The purpose of TSCA is to protect people and the environment from harmful chemicals. The proposed changes to this law are alarming: they remove public health guardrails, undermine EPA’s ability to protect people from harmful chemicals, and will lead to more death and disease."

Environment Subcommittee: Chemicals in Commerce: Legislative Proposal to Modernize America’s Chemical Safety Law, Strengthen Critical Supply Chains, and Grow Domestic Manufacturing The Committee on Energy and Commerce is the oldest standing legislative committee in the U.S. House of Representatives and is vested with the broadest jurisdiction of any congressional authorizing committee.

The hearing on a proposal to gut TSCA has begun. You can watch live at the link.

https://energycommerce.house.gov/events/environment-subcommittee-chemicals-in-commerce-legislative-proposal-to-modernize-america-s-chemical-safety-law-strengthen-critical-supply-chains-and-grow-domestic-manufacturing