(Beyond Pesticides, April 14, 2026) A novel study mapping pesticide mixtures and cancer risk, published in Nature Health, “reveals a robust spatial association between environmental pesticide exposure risk and cancer incidence.” The team of international researchers incorporates pesticide risk modeling with Peruvian National Cancer Institute (INEN) registry data to map pesticide-induced cancer clusters in Peru, finding significant associations between pesticide mixtures and cases of carcinogenicity. The study analyzes 31 active ingredients to identify pesticide-associated cancer hotspots, none of which are classified as carcinogenic on their own by international standards. When combined as pesticide mixtures, as experienced in real-world environments, heightened risks and synergistic effects are noted. “Collectively, these findings strongly support a mechanistic [causal] link between pesticide exposure and cancer, challenging assumptions of human non-carcinogenicity derived from reductionist experimental models,” the authors state. “This study redefines the exposome [measure of all environmental, dietary, lifestyle, and social exposures of an individual] as a lineage-conditioned, mechanistically tractable framework and shows how complex pesticide mixtures can contribute to carcinogenic trajectories, with profound and far-reaching implications for global health policy and socio-ecological equity.” Background An extensive body of scientific literature connects individual pesticide active ingredients to a wide array of health and environmental effects […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 7, 2026) In the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, a study of gestational (during pregnancy) exposure to the neonicotinoid insecticide thiacloprid shows epigenetic effects (alterations in genes without altering underlying DNA) within prostate tissues. To analyze the role of gene expression in subsequent generations after initial thiacloprid exposure, the authors exposed pregnant outbred Swiss mice to the insecticide in order to assess the offspring for multiple generations. As a result, the researchers from the Université de Rennes in France state, “Our study revealed that exposure to thiacloprid induces [cell] proliferation and is associated with epigenetic alterations in the sperm of genes important for prostate development.” Increased cell proliferation in the prostate can cause the development of conditions such as benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN), and lead to prostate cancer. The study also finds elevated levels of specific biomarkers within the prostates of both the first and third generations, including phosphorylated histone H3, a marker crucial for cell division. Hox gene expression in both generations was also impacted, which plays a role in prostate development, based on the altered DNA methylation (abnormal changes) in the sperm of the analyzed mice. “In this study, we […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 31, 2026) A statement decrying chemical company secrecy was released today by over 200 grassroots, health, farm, farmworker, environmental, and consumer groups, socially responsible corporations, over 340 citizens from 46 states, and international partners. The statement, released before the U.S. Supreme Court tomorrow reaches the final deadline for submission of amicus briefs in a case in which Bayer/Monsanto argues, with support of the Trump administration, that it should not be required to disclose on its product labels the potential hazards of its pesticide products. Oral arguments in the case will be heard on April 27, with a decision anticipated in June. Decades of law have upheld the legal argument that chemical companies are liable for their failure to warn users of their pesticides about the harm that they could cause. Bayer/Monsanto is attempting to reverse years of case law and billions of dollars in jury verdicts and future cases in which the company has been held liable for causing cancer but not warning product users. See statement, Stop Chemical Company Secrecy of Pesticide Product Hazards. Chemical Industry State Campaign The chemical industry last year launched a multi-pronged campaign to establish immunity from litigation by those who have […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 30, 2026) Through today, organizations, institutions, and corporations can sign on to a public statement calling for chemical companies to continue to be held liable for harming but not warning people who use their pesticide products. The statement, joined by grassroots, health, farm, farmworker, environmental and consumer groups, and socially responsible corporations, will be released tomorrow—just as U.S. Supreme Court begins on April 1 considering Monsanto/Bayer’s claim that the company is not responsible for failing to warn those whose cancer was found by a jury trial to be caused by its weed killer glyphosate (RoundupTM). Groups can sign on to the statement by 5:00pm (Eastern) by clicking here. In the case before the U.S. Supreme Court case, Monsanto v. Durnell, Monsanto/Bayer is seeking to overturn over $10 billion in jury verdicts and settlements and stop future litigation on their failure to warn about the potential cancer effects of glyphosate/RoundupTM. If Monsanto/Bayer wins, chemical companies will be able to legally withhold information on their pesticide product hazards not required to be disclosed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  Bayer/Monsanto wants to overturn decades of legal precedent, including a previous Supreme Court decision, which establishes EPA-required, minimum pesticide product label language, […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 25, 2026) A literature review, published in Diseases, showcases the wide body of scientific literature linking pesticide exposure to liver disease through both apoptotic (programmed cell death without triggering inflammation) and non-apoptotic (regulated cell death with an inflammatory response) pathways. “In summary, our study confirms that pesticides carry significant health risks and sheds light on the underreported mechanisms that can drive their overall toxicity as a whole and hepatotoxicity [liver] in particular,” the researchers state.  In addition to analyzing the science on pesticide-induced apoptosis, the researchers “systematically illustrated an underappreciated mechanism of pesticide-induced overall and hepatic toxicity, i.e., the ability to induce non-apoptotic regulated cell death (RCD) pathways such as ferroptosis, necroptosis, and pyroptosis.” They continue, saying, “Importantly, our review stresses the contribution of pesticide-induced cell death modes to inflammation and immunity regulation in hepatic pathology.” Background Pesticides, as a comprehensive group, can be subdivided into classes based on their targets: rodenticides (rodents), herbicides (weeds), insecticides (insects), fungicides (fungi), nematicides (nematodes), acaricides (mites and ticks), and bactericides (bacteria). The use of these pesticides, particularly in agriculture, has skyrocketed over recent decades. As the authors state: “In 2019, the total pesticide market size was estimated to approach $85 […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 4, 2026) In the International Journal of Epidemiology, researchers from France assess the risks of kidney cancer with a wide range of agricultural activities and tasks, finding that occupational exposure heightens kidney cancer risk. In studying participants from the French AGRIculture and CANcer cohort (AGRICAN) with incident kidney cancer, elevated risks of disease development between 25-56% are documented for both men and women engaging in agricultural activities. In men, the authors find increased kidney cancer in those “working with rapeseed and sunflowers, and tasks related to other crops such as corn, wheat/barley, beet, and tobacco.” In women, an increased risk is noted for winegrowers and corn growers. “Pesticide use (on fields and/or seeds) was associated, for both sexes, with these crops, showing exposure-response relationships with crop area and work duration,” the researchers state. This study, of a large cohort of agricultural workers, highlights the disproportionate risks of adverse kidney health to farmworkers directly handling pesticides or encountering pesticide residues on recently treated products. According to the World Cancer Research Fund, kidney cancer is the 14th most common cancer worldwide, affecting men more often than women. Kidney cancer incidence and mortality have increased globally, with various causes, such […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 3, 2026) Research published in Critical Reviews in Toxicology (CRT) and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) documents the genetic and epigenetic (changes to gene function without altering the DNA sequence) effects to pesticide-exposed groups through early-life exposure and from transgenerational inheritance (passed down through generations). These studies highlight the complex nature of mechanisms of toxicity, as well as the various pesticide exposure routes that begin even prior to conception. The analyses evaluate general and specific pesticide exposure as reported in observational and laboratory research. Through a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies on “DNA damage, cytogenetic damage, DNA methylation, or gene expression outcomes associated with prenatal and early childhood pesticide exposure,” the CRT authors link genotoxic mechanisms and epigenetic alterations to adverse health outcomes while the PNAS study shows pesticide-induced epigenetic alterations in mammals across 20 generations that “suggest the maternal and paternal lineages can both induce and inherit epigenetic alterations that influence disease (e.g., kidney, testis, ovary, prostate) incidence, reproductive health (e.g., parturition, infertility), and overall fitness generationally.” As the CRT study states: “One of the main ways pesticides can cause harm is through genotoxicity—their ability to damage genetic material. This damage can […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 26, 2026) Published in PLOS ONE, research in Brazil “analyzed the impact of occupational/household chronic exposure to pesticides on the clinicopathological profile of breast cancer in rural women from Paraná southwest, a predominantly rural landscape with large pesticide uses,” finding that “pesticide exposure favors the occurrence of more aggressive breast cancer.” The study highlights the disproportionate risks of pesticides to farmworkers, focusing on women, as it compares exposed and unexposed populations and breast cancer tumor/disease characteristics. One of the study authors, Carolina Panis, PhD, discussed her earlier research at the Beyond Pesticides’ 42nd National Forum Series, The Pesticide Threat to Environmental Health: Advancing Holistic Solutions Aligned with Nature. In her previous work, Pesticide exposure and increased breast cancer risk in women population studies, Dr. Panis documents a number of pesticides that “can increase the risk of BC [breast cancer] development through various mutagenic [genetic mutations] and nonmutagenic mechanisms and can act directly as carcinogens or indirectly as biochemical modifiers and hormonal deregulators. The underlying mechanisms include endocrine disruption; genotoxicity; epigenetic changes [changes to gene function without changing DNA]; enhanced cell migration, invasion, and…” more. Dr. Panis and other researchers at the Forum support community-level understanding of the […]

(Beyond Pesticides. February 24, 2026) Leukemia is the leading contributor to the clear rise in childhood cancer cases over the last few decades, and the general association of pesticide exposures with childhood leukemia is firmly established. Now, a new study is the first to assess the effect of pesticide exposures on the survival of children with leukemia. The study found a statistically significant link between residential rodenticide exposure and a higher risk in children of death from acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), with about 10% of the exposed children dying within five years of diagnosis. Crucially, pre- and post-natal periods were the most critical exposure windows—and the intervals when residents were most likely to use rodenticides. With proper treatment, about 80% of children diagnosed after age one with ALL can survive. The study, by University of California, Berkeley epidemiologist Seema Desai and colleagues at several other California state universities, used data from the California Childhood Leukemia Study (CCLS), an ongoing population-based case-control study identifying genetic and environmental risks for the range of leukemias occurring in children. Beyond Pesticides covered a 2009 study using the CCLS that found elevated risk of ALL in children living near agricultural pesticide applications, along with a […]

[Update on February 9, 2026: In a press release on Friday, February 6, titled “EPA Implements Strongest Protections in Agency History for Over-the-Top Dicamba Use on Cotton and Soybeans for Next Two Growing Seasons,” the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues to ignore the wide body of science that documents harms from dicamba, as well as the viability of alternative methods, in establishing what the agency is boasting are “the strongest protections in agency history for over-the-top (OTT) dicamba application on dicamba-tolerant cotton and soybean crops” as a direct response to the “strong advocacy of America’s cotton and soybean farmers.” These so-called “strong protections” are described as a way to ensure farmers can access the tools they “need” while also protecting the environment from dicamba’s harmful drift. In using “gold-standard science and radical transparency,” EPA created new label restrictions for the next two growing seasons that include “cutting the amount of dicamba that can be used annually in half, doubling required safety agents, requiring conservation practices to protect endangered species, and restricting applications during high temperatures when exposure and volatility risks increase.” Relying on unenforceable label restrictions and mitigation measures, however, fails to adequately protect health and the environment. See […]

(Beyond Pesticides, January 20, 2026) With Monday’s celebration and affirmation of Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and legacy, the question of adequate protection of the people and communities at greatest risk from toxic chemical production, transportation, use, and disposal looms large. This is especially true with the current diminished federal regulatory authority and Bayer/Monsanto’s U.S. Supreme Court challenge of chemical manufacturers’ responsibility to warn users of their products of hazards like cancer. Actions Being Taken In response to the chemical industry campaign to deny people the right to sue under longstanding failure to warn law, groups are calling for public support of U.S Senator Cory Booker’s (D-NJ) bill, Pesticide Injury Accountability Act(S. 2324) seeks to uphold this right  to sue. The groups are calling on the public to “Tell your U.S. Senator to co-sponsor S. 2324, the Pesticide Injury Accountability Act.” This bill will amend the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act of 1972 (FIFRA) to create a federal right of action for anyone who is harmed by a toxic pesticide.  In an additional action in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr., Beyond Pesticides is calling on the public to “Tell members of Congress to ensure that with the termination of environmental justice programs at EPA, they […]

(Beyond Pesticides, January 17, 2026) The public’s right to sue chemical manufacturers that do not warn of product hazards will be up for review by the U.S. Supreme Court later this year, the justices decided Friday. Bayer/Monsanto is challenging billions of dollars in jury verdicts, which affirm longstanding jurisprudence that holds manufacturers responsible for disclosing hazards even when not required to do so by regulatory authorities. In the case being challenged, Durnell, John L. v. Monsanto, the injured party successfully argued that a chemical manufacturer has a duty to warn of potential hazards on their product label even though the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) does not require the warning. The failure-to-warn in the Durnell case resulted in a jury verdict of $1.25 million, and the total number of jury verdicts and settlements on similar cases may amount to over $10 billion in liability if the Supreme Court upholds the lower courts and hundreds of thousands of other plaintiffs with the same claim. The cases involve exposure to the weed killer glyphosate (RoundupTM, which is the most widely used herbicide in the U.S. and worldwide, has been classified as posing a possible risk of cancer by the International Agency for […]

(Beyond Pesticides, December 10, 2025) On November 21, 2025, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a branch of the World Health Organization (WHO), designated the endocrine-disrupting herbicide atrazine (as well as the herbicide alachlor) as “probably carcinogenic to humans.” Manufactured by the multinational, China-based pesticide corporation Syngenta, atrazine has been linked to various adverse health effects and runoff into waterways across the continental United States for years. Tyrone Hayes, PhD, researcher and professor of Integrative Biology at the University of California, Berkeley, who studies the endocrine-disrupting properties of atrazine and other chemicals, has said that atrazine induces cancer by turning on the enzyme aromatase. Dr. Hayes told conferees of Beyond Pesticides’ 31st National Pesticide Forum that: “[W]hat is concerning about aromatase expression and estrogen in mammals is breast cancer and prostate cancer. With regard to prostate cancer, there is an 8.4-fold increase in prostate cancer in men who work in atrazine factories and bag atrazine. There is at least one correlational study, which I didn’t publish, that shows women whose well water is contaminated with atrazine are more likely to develop breast cancer than women who live in the same community, but don’t drink the well water. (Kettles, […]

(Beyond Pesticides, December 4, 2025) In a news release last week on November 26, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) “issued a comprehensive fact-check addressing dangerous misinformation circulating about EPA’s recent pesticide approvals” that, according to health and environmental advocates, continues to deceive the public about the true risks for health and the environment from petrochemical pesticides including, but not limited to, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Also published on November 26, coverage titled The EPA Is Embracing PFAS Pesticides. These Are The Health Risks in Time further highlights EPA’s deficiencies and the threats of PFAS, which Beyond Pesticides has extensively covered. (See here and here.)  The controversy erupted as a result of EPA’s latest proposal to allow a new fluorinated pesticide to the list of four other similar compounds now widely available for use in homes and gardens, buildings, and agriculture. The newest pesticide proposed for EPA registration, epyrifenacil (agricultural weed killer), joins cyclobutrifluram (soil fungicide/nematicide), isocycloseram (household and agricultural insecticide), diflufenican (lawn and agricultural weed killer), and trifludimoxazin (agricultural weed killer), making a total of five PFAS pesticide proposals this year that have been associated with national and worldwide contamination of food, land, and water. Two of these, cyclobutrifluram and isocycloseram, have been approved. “Instead of constraining the use of fluorinated pesticides—persistent and highly toxic […]

(Beyond Pesticides, December 3, 2025) Childhood cancers are on the rise globally; in the U.S. cancer is the second most common cause of death in children between one and 14 years old, and the fourth most common in adolescents. A recent study of Nebraska pesticide use and pediatric cancer incidence by researchers from the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the University of Idaho Department of Fish and Wildlife Sciences found positive associations between pesticides and overall cancer, brain and central nervous system cancers, and leukemia among children (defined as under age 20). The study’s lead author, Jabeen Taiba, PhD, of the University of Nebraska Medical Center, will discuss the study results on December 4, 2025, at the second session of Beyond Pesticides’ 42nd National Pesticide Forum, The Pesticide Threat to Environmental Health – Advancing Holistic Solutions Aligned with Nature. The first session recordings and materials are available here. The authors’ emphasis on evaluating mixtures, and their innovative technical methods for doing so, highlight the direction environmental health research and regulation must take. Studying pesticides singly is an inadequate approach, according to the authors, because pesticides are not applied individually anymore, but very often in mixtures of herbicides, insecticides, and […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 25, 2025) Chemical pollution is having a profound impact on men’s overall health and reproductive function. Endocrine-disrupting chemicals—which prominently include pesticides—are a major factor. The Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) a European organization funded by the European Union (EU) and several private foundations, has issued a strong call for attention to – and action on – the precipitous decline in male reproductive health owing to chemical exposures, including pesticides. In a new report, Chemical pollution and men’s health: A hidden crisis in Europe, the group states, “The scientific evidence is clear. The costs of chemical pollution – human and economic – are mounting. The solutions exist. What we need now is the political will to act.” The report was written by Rosaella Cannarella, M.D., PhD, an endocrinologist at the Division of Endocrinology, Metabolic Diseases and Nutrition, University of Catania (Italy). HEAL’s report details alarming indications of catastrophe in male reproductive health: prostate cancer, testicular cancer, crashing sperm counts, and numerous developmental problems including cryptorchidism, urogenital malformations, and hypospadias. The report highlights pesticides, microplastics, phthalates, bisphenols, PFAS and heavy metals as the likely environmental sources of the crisis. There is evidence that all of these endocrine disrupting chemicals […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 21, 2025) “How do we respond when told that the solution to ubiquitous and hazardous toxic chemicals in our lives (in our air, food, water, soil, on farms, in parks, playing fields, and schoolyards) is a reduction in their use that continues to allow unnecessary toxic chemical dependency and poisoning?  Do we accept partial restrictions of pesticide use, despite the availability of cost-effective alternatives that stop the toxic assault and help to prevent the most serious associated diseases that invade and attack our bodies, our loved ones, our families, and our communities—with breast cancer, prostate and testicular cancer, pediatric cancer, infertility, and more?”   These are the questions being asked about the most prevalent cancers in the U.S. and worldwide at the upcoming 2nd Session of the National Forum, The Pesticide Threat to Environmental Health: Advancing Holistic Solutions Aligned with Nature, scheduled for December 4, 1:00-3:30pm (EST).  ‍️➡️ Link to register The Forum brings together cutting-edge science and medical experts from Brazil, Italy, Belgium, Rwanda, Canada, and the United States to sharpen the voices of advocates who are saying that the time for action to eliminate the current reliance on petrochemical pesticides and fertilizers is past due […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 14, 2025) A literature review in Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety finds a sex-specific relationship between pesticide exposure and thyroid cancer, with heightened risks for women. “Thyroid cancer (TC) is one of the most common endocrine malignancies worldwide, yet the association between pesticide exposure and TC has not been systematically summarized,” the authors state. “This study aimed to elucidate the relationship between pesticide exposure and TC, focusing on insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides.” In the U.S., approximately 44,020 new cases and 2,290 deaths are estimated for 2025, according to the American Cancer Society, with thyroid cancer as the ninth most common cancer in women. (See research here.) TC ranks globally as the tenth most common cancer, representing a worldwide threat to both men and women. (See here.) The current study considers scientific literature on thyroid cancer and pesticide exposure by pesticide type to extract data and statistically analyze the link between exposure and risk of TC. The results indicate a positive association between exposure to insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides and thyroid cancer, with the sex-based analysis revealing the risk of TC is higher in females. Study Background and Importance As the researchers write, thyroid cancer “is one of the […]

(Beyond Pesticides, October 1, 2025) A novel study in Scientific Reports combines computational analyses with toxicological data to identify pathways affected by exposure to the weed killer glyphosate. The analyses identify glyphosate targets that correlate with kidney injury and kidney cancer, revealing pathways with significant glyphosate-induced alterations, including the dysregulation of nitrogen metabolism that leads to ammonia accumulation and oxidative stress, both of which contribute to renal (kidney) damage and carcinogenesis (development of cancer). “This study provides a comprehensive investigation into the molecular mechanisms by which glyphosate may contribute to kidney injury and kidney cancer, employing an array of bioinformatics tools for target prediction, toxicity assessment, pathway enrichment analysis, molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation,” the researchers state. The results of the analyses and simulations highlight the molecular mechanisms underlying glyphosate’s nephrotoxic (damaging to kidneys) and carcinogenic (cancer-causing) effects. Study Importance and Background Glyphosate, known as a broad-spectrum systemic herbicide, has been used for agricultural and nonagricultural purposes for decades and is the most extensively used herbicide worldwide. This widespread use is largely due to its application to genetically engineered, glyphosate-tolerant crops. Both glyphosate and its main metabolite (breakdown product), aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA), are detected in water, soil, and food, […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 26, 2025) A scientific review in World’s Poultry Science Journal highlights the adverse health effects on avian species from exposure to the widely used weed killer glyphosate (Roundupᵀᴹ) throughout the process of poultry production. The herbicide enters the poultry production system through residues in genetically engineered feed. An earlier article in Scientific Reports concludes that glyphosate’s (GLP) “widespread application on feed crops leaves residues in the feed,” while residues are “found to be common in conventional eggs acquired from grocery stores.” In analyzing the biochemical, toxicological, and ecological impacts of glyphosate on poultry, particularly chickens, the authors find a wide body of evidence linking glyphosate and its metabolite (breakdown product) aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) to debilitating hazards that extend beyond mortality. These sublethal effects include disruption of the gut microbiome and gastrointestinal disease; decreased productivity and diminished reproductive health; hepatic and kidney toxicity; growth and developmental impacts, including teratogenicity and embryotoxicity; endocrine disruption and oxidative stress; and impaired immune functions. The effects of glyphosate, as have long been documented in the scientific literature and covered by Beyond Pesticides here, range from negative impacts on biodiversity and the environment to food safety risks and human health implications. Residues of […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 18, 2025)  With pesticide manufacturers pushing to stop cancer victims (and others suffering adverse effects) from suing them under longstanding ”failure to warn law,“ U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) is proposing to uphold this unequivocal right to protection. Senator Booker has introduced the Pesticide Injury Accountability Act (S. 2324) to protect the rights of farmers and consumers to hold pesticide manufacturers responsible for the harm caused by their toxic products. This effort comes in the wake of congressional and state legislative attacks on “failure-to-warn” liability claims that are taking place in response to extraordinary jury verdicts against Bayer/Monsanto for harm caused by glyphosate weed killer products like Roundup.ᵀᴹ 📣 Beyond Pesticides, with allied organizations across the U.S., is asking the public to “Tell your U.S. Senator to co-sponsor S. 2324, the Pesticide Injury Accountability Act.” This bill will amend the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act of 1972 (FIFRA) to create a federal right of action for anyone who is harmed by a toxic pesticide.  Despite growing peer-reviewed scientific evidence linking widely used pesticides to a host of health harms, including cancers, birth defects, endocrine disruption, Parkinson’s disease, and infertility, the chemical industry and its allies in elective office are pushing to deny victims access to […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 14, 2025) A review in Clinical and Experimental Obstetrics & Gynecology links various classes of environmental pollutants including pesticides and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), both of which Beyond Pesticides has extensively covered, to adverse effects on the female reproductive system and common mechanisms of toxicity. These chemicals “disrupt the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis (HPG), impair ovarian function, and contribute to reproductive dysfunction through mechanisms such as oxidative stress, hormonal disruption, and epigenetic [gene expression or behavior] modifications,” the authors say. This leads to menstrual irregularities, infertility, and pregnancy complications, as well as increases in the risk of reproductive system disorders such as endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), and ovarian cancer, among others. “Additionally, transgenerational effects mediated by epigenetic modifications, germ cell damage, and placental transfer may adversely affect offspring health, increasing the risk of reproductive dysfunction, neurodevelopmental disorders, metabolic diseases, and cancer,” the researchers explain. This study, integrating recent epidemiological and experimental findings, provides an overview of major chemical classes that threaten women’s health and highlights the need for immediate action. As the authors point out, female reproductive health is important not only for those who choose to plan for a family but also for the overall well-being […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 1, 2025) On June 30, Kyle Kunkler started work as deputy assistant administrator for pesticides in U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. Mr. Kunkler is an experienced agribusiness lobbyist, having come directly from the American Soybean Association, where he was director of government affairs. He joins Nancy Beck, PhD, herself a migrant from the American Chemistry Council. Not coincidentally, a mere three weeks after Mr. Kunkler’s appointment, EPA opened the floodgates to allow use of the controversial herbicide dicamba to flow unrestricted once again through the nation’s ecosystems. Dicamba has been associated with phytotoxic crop/plant damage (leaf damage, stunted growth, or death) and cancer. Three formulations of the herbicide whose registrations had been vacated via litigation will be reinstated by EPA after a public comment period that expires on August 22 at 11:59 PM EDT. Dicamba is manifestly one of the worst ideas the pesticide industry has ever devised, according to many farmers and pesticide safety advocates. Because of resistance to other herbicides, pesticide scientists developed the “[insert pesticide]-ready” concept in which a crop plant is genetically engineered to resist exposure to a herbicide, “Roundup-Ready” seeds being the most obvious example, so […]