A disturbing article in The Huffington Post highlights the campaign by a Haitian group that has committed to burning some 60,000 sacks of vegetable and corn seeds that Monsanto plans to donate to impoverished farming communities.

An article in The New Yorker by Harvard Medical School professor Dr. Jerome Groopman quotes ACSH's Dr. Elizabeth Whelan extensively. In the article, titled "Plastic Panic: How worried should we be about everyday chemicals? Dr. Groopman examines the charges against BPA and phthalates and concludes the evidence of their health consequences is "far from conclusive."
Dr. Whelan s comments included:

An ABC News report asks if the American Heart Association should be endorsing the Nintendo Wii video game system with its Healthy Check logo. Games like Wii Fit are supposedly designed to help video game enthusiasts stay active.

After unsuccessful attempts in New York state and Philadelphia, the prospect of a soda tax still refuses to die. The New York Times does not expect that to change: This soda debate is probably going to be around for some time. Cities and counties, desperate to find money to pay for schools and roads, are starting to see a soda tax as a way to raise revenue.

CBS’ 60 Minutes last night aired a report on phthalates, widely used to soften plastics, and the coverage was about what ACSH staffers expected from the news team that brought you the 1989 Alar scare.

CBS' 60 Minutes may be known for its investigative news, but on Sunday it failed to thoroughly examine the claims against phthalates, a group of chemicals that help to make plastic flexible. Sunday's segment perpetuates baseless allegations against these everyday chemicals, creating unfounded health scares in homes nationwide.

We're witnessing an assault on science, as activists attack phth

ACSH President Dr. Elizabeth Whelan recently wrote to Dr. Joseph Fraumeni at the National Cancer Institute, asking if NCI was planning on reviewing or critiquing a recent report of the President's Cancer Panel on environmental causes of cancer. Dr. Whelan, who critiqued the panel's report in a National Review Online article, noted that NCI features the panel's report on its website without comment.

ACSH s request for Dispatch-reader input on the issue of a mystifying Camel Snus ad yielded similar theories on the meaning of the Break Free and Stare Back slogans. Here are some responses:
I am wondering if Stare Back is a long-overdue call for nicotine users to stand up for themselves and face up to those who would ruin their lives by opposing [tobacco harm reduction].

A simple blood test followed by ultrasound exams as needed may help detect ovarian cancer tumors before they cause symptoms, according to a small study reported yesterday.