Could there really be too much of a good thing when it comes to fortifying foods with nutrients? The non-profit Environmental Working Group thinks so, especially when it comes to vitamin A, niacin and zinc — all of which are added to a variety of breakfast cereals and snack bars marketed to kids but with nutritional servings for adults. The group would like to see nutrition labels updated to reflect higher risks for kids, pregnant women and others.
Dear EarthTalk: What is the environmental impact of those “K-Cups” everyone seems to be using nowadays to make coffee at both home and office?
Dear EarthTalk: What are “dirty fuels” and why are they so called?
Reusing greywater—that is, the waste water from sinks, showers, tubs and washing machines—for landscape irrigation may be the next frontier in the greening of the American home, especially if you live in an arid region where water use is restricted. In fact, reusing your graywater may be the only way to keep your lawn and garden healthy without taking more than your fair share of the community’s precious freshwater reserves.
The FDA in encouraging food producers, restaurants and fast food chain to move away from heart-unhealthy trans fats, but the most common alternative, palm oil, isn’t much better for us while also wreaking havoc on tropical rainforests across Malaysia and Indonesia and adding to our climate woes.
Global warming and decades of mismanagement means that wildfires are on the increase across the American West and other fire-prone areas. We can all do our part by learning how to be “fire-safe” as well as by reducing our carbon footprints.
Dear EarthTalk: A recent study showed that Bisphenol A (BPA) was hardly the human health risk researchers once believed it to be. Should I still try to avoid products that may contain it?
While the potential risks of unleashing so many genetically engineered crops into our food supply aren’t known, researchers do think these so-called “frankencrops’ are already wreaking havoc as a result of pesticide resistance.
While only small section of the Antarctic continent is melting quickly, the result could be somewhere between four and ten feet in global sea level rise over the next 200-1000 years.
NRDC offers tips and suggestions on how to track and defend against new and existing polluters in local regions across the United States. Staying informed by attending public meetings, getting organized with likeminded neighbors, and finding experts to support your case are all important aspects of keeping polluters at bay.
