(Press-News.org) People are being exposed to higher levels of the substitute for BPA in cash register thermal paper receipts and many of the other products that engendered concerns about the health effects of bisphenol A, according to a new study. Believed to be the first analysis of occurrence of bisphenol S (BPS) in thermal and recycled paper and paper currency, the report appears in ACS' journal Environmental Science & Technology.
Kurunthachalam Kannan and colleagues point out that growing evidence of the potentially toxic effects of BPA has led some manufacturers to replace it with BPS in thermal paper and other products. BPS is closely related to BPA, with some of the same estrogen-mimicking effects, and unanswered questions exist about whether it is safer. Nevertheless, very little is known about BPS occurrence in the environment, the scientists noted. To fill that knowledge gap, they analyzed 16 types of paper from the U.S., Japan, Korea and Vietnam.
The study detected BPS in all the receipt paper they tested, 87 percent of the samples of paper currency and 52 percent of recycled paper. The researchers estimate that people may be absorbing BPS through their skin in larger doses than they absorbed BPA when it was more widely used – 19 times more BPS than BPA. People who handle thermal paper in their jobs may be absorbing much more BPS.
###
The authors acknowledge funding from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the Department of Science and Technology of Shandong Province.
Widespread exposure to BPA substitute is occurring from cash register receipts, other paper
2012-07-12
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
White rot fungus boosts ethanol production from corn stalks, cobs and leaves
2012-07-12
Scientists are reporting new evidence that a white rot fungus shows promise in the search for a way to use waste corn stalks, cobs and leaves – rather than corn itself – to produce ethanol to extend supplies of gasoline. Their study on using the fungus to break down the tough cellulose and related material in this so-called "corn stover" to free up sugars for ethanol fermentation appears in the ACS' journal Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research.
Yebo Li and colleagues explain that corn ethanol supplies are facing a crunch because corn is critical for animal feed ...
Rio+20 sustainability conference gets mixed reviews
2012-07-12
Although a walkout by disgruntled activists may have grabbed headlines, the UN Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro last month did produce hundreds of individual commitments from participants with potential for having major impacts. That's the topic of the cover story of this week's Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society.
C&EN Senior Correspondent Cheryl Hogue explains that the Rio+20 conference brought together representatives from companies, governments, ...
NASA sees Tropical Storm Daniel move over cooler water
2012-07-12
Tropical Storm Daniel was once a hurricane and now a rapidly weakening tropical storm as a result of moving over cooler waters. NASA's Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite provided a look at just how cool the waters are that have sapped Daniel's strength.
The TRMM satellite flew above weakening tropical storm Daniel on July 10, 2012 at 0003 UTC. TRMM's Microwave Imager (TMI) and Precipitation Radar (PR) data from that pass showed that only light to moderate rainfall (.0.78 to 1.57 inches/20 to 40 mm/hour) was occurring with the weakening storm.
At NASA's ...
Live Fire Tests with FDNY Will Guide Improvements in Fire Department Tactics
2012-07-12
In the name of science, but with aim of saving lives, preventing injuries and reducing property losses, members of the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) spent much of the first two weeks in July setting fire to 20 abandoned townhouses on Governors Island, about a kilometer from the southern tip of Manhattan.
In a series of "live burn" experiments, conducted in collaboration with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and Underwriters Laboratories (UL), New York firefighters challenged the conventional wisdom on, and tested new tactics for, controlling ...
NIST issues guidance for pediatric electronic health records
2012-07-12
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released a guide to help improve the design of electronic health records for pediatric patients so that the design focus is on the users—the doctors, nurses and other clinicians who treat children.
While hospitals and medical practices are accelerating their adoption of electronic health records, these records systems often are not ideal for supporting children's health care needs. Young patients' physiology is different from adults—and varies widely over the course of their growing years. Tasks that are routine ...
Fossil turtle from Colombia round like car tire
2012-07-12
Paleontologist Carlos Jaramillo's group at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama and colleagues at North Carolina State University and the Florida Museum of Natural History discovered a new species of fossil turtle that lived 60 million years ago in what is now northwestern South America. The team's findings were published in the Journal of Paleontology.
The new turtle species is named Puentemys mushaisaensis because it was found in La Puente pit in Cerrejón Coal Mine, a place made famous for the discoveries, not only of the extinct Titanoboa, the world's ...
NIST updates guidelines for mobile device security
2012-07-12
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released a proposed update to its guidelines for securing mobile devices—such as smart phones and tablets—that are used by the federal government. NIST is asking for public comment on the draft document.
Mobile devices allow workers, including government employees, to work in multiple locations and to improve their efficiency. But the same features that make these devices desirable make them a security challenge. Mobile devices can easily be lost or stolen, and users may be tempted to download nonsecure apps ...
NIST releases test framework for upgrading smart electrical meters
2012-07-12
Next-generation "smart" electrical meters for residential and commercial buildings will have computerized operating systems just as laptops or mobile devices do. On July 10, 2012, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) published its first-ever draft guidelines* to help utility companies test their procedures for upgrading meters securely from a remote location.
The draft publication offers a generic set of testing criteria to help any utility determine whether its method of upgrading meters conforms with the security and functionality requirements in ...
NIST releases second draft of federal ID credential security standard for comment
2012-07-12
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released the second-round draft version of its updated security standard for identity credentials in the Personal Identity Verification cards (PIV cards) that all federal employees and contractors must use. NIST is requesting comments from the public on the document, which is intended to be the last draft before the final version is published.
The document is the next step toward updating Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 201, which was published in February 2005. Among its requirements are that ...
Concussions affect college players at high rates too, study says
2012-07-12
BALTIMORE, MD – As interest in concussion rates and prevention strategies at all levels continues to grow, one population that appears to have increasing head injury rates is collegiate football players. Research presented today at the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine's (AOSSM) Annual Meeting in Baltimore highlights that the concussion rate in three college football programs has doubled in recent years.
"We monitored concussions at three service academies in the 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 football seasons, and saw the combined number of reports increased ...