In Fallujah, one of the Iraq war’s bloodiest battle sites, researchers find harm to newborns. A new study said more than half of the babies evaluated were born with a birth defect between 2007 and 2010. That was up from about one in 10 before U.S. military campaigns were carried out in Fallujah in 2004. The defects included congenital heart problems, brain dysfunctions and malformed limbs. High levels of miscarriage and lead and mercury contamination also were discovered. There is “compelling evidence” to link the health problems to military assaults, said a University of Michigan toxicologist who was one of the lead authors. The World Health Organization is due to issue a report next month. The Independent
More state regulators launch investigations of pharmacy linked to meningitis outbreak. The most aggressive states have been Michigan and Massachusetts, which is home to the New England Compounding Center, which produced the tainted steroid injections blamed for the outbreak. The states claim that the company violated licensing regulations preventing the business from shipping large quantities of drugs. A survey found that such other states as Indiana, Minnesota, Ohio, New Hampshire and Tennessee also have launched investigations or scheduled administrative hearings on possible violations. According to the official tally, 205 cases of meningitis have been reported, and 15 people have died. Reuters, Bloomberg
Federal regulators failed to pursue recalls after they found cadmium-tainted jewelry on store shelves. The failure to take action came despite a promise by the Consumer Product Safety Commission to keep the toxic trinkets out of children’s hands. More than two years after it was revealed that some Chinese factories substituted cadmium for banned lead, the CPSC still hasn’t determined the extent of the contamination. In addition, the CPSC allowed Wal-Mart Stores and Meijer, a smaller Midwest chain, to pull from shelves jewelry that flunked safety testing without a formal recall and without telling parents who previously purchased such items. Cadmium is considered a probable human carcinogen. The Associated Press
Environmental Protection Agency reexamining more than 460 former lead smelter sites. The federal regulators are evaluating health hazards from toxic lead emissions from smelter smokestacks that penetrated the soil in nearby neighborhoods. The EPA effort, prompted by a USA Today investigation, involves locations in dozens of states. The sites come from a list the EPA received in 2001 of forgotten lead smelters that primarily operated and shut down during the 1930s through the 1960s, before the era of environmental regulation. The EPA was warned by the researcher who compiled the list about the likely contamination, but U.S. and state regulators took minimal action. USA Today
Businesses sue to block New York’s ban on large sugary drinks. The state court suit against Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s anti-obesity initiative — brought by beverage companies, restaurateurs and other business interests – contends that the city’s Board of Health lacks the authority to enact such regulations. Last month the board voted, effective March 12, to ban restaurants, mobile food carts, movie theaters, stadiums and other outlets from selling sugary drinks larger than 16 ounces. A Bloomberg spokesman said, “Industry tried to stop the city’s smoking ban. Industry sued the city to stop calorie counts. Not only did those efforts fail, but our policies have been adopted in cities and states across the country.” The Wall Street Journal, The Associated Press
Compiled by Stuart Silverstein
