Stories by Brian Bienkowski

A national study links cadmium to cells aging too soon

Statins, prescribed to lower cholesterol and reduce risks of heart attacks and strokes, seem to diminish inflammation that occurs after people breathe airborne particles

As concerns mount over people’s exposure to the plasticizer bisphenol A in everyday products, it’s also contaminating the air near facilities that make it

There is growing evidence that long-term pesticide use is linked to to alterations in farmers' mental health

Babies born to mothers with high levels of perchlorate during their first trimester are more likely to have lower IQs later in life, according to a new study

A persistent chemical formerly used in Scotchgard still contaminates most fish in U.S. rivers and the Great Lakes

Health experts are questioning the Environmental Protection Agency and Michigan state officials for their decades-long delays in cleanup of a Superfund site that is killing songbirds in yards, possibly leaving people at risk, too

A chemical plant-turned-Superfund site may be to blame

Federal officials now recommend consumption of at least 8 ounces of low-mercury fish per week

When a mile-wide tornado roared through Joplin, Mo., it killed 158 people and injured thousands, and it also kicked up toxic remnants from the city’s industrial past that are still haunting its residents on the third anniversary of the disaster

Young frogs exposed to flame retardants have weakened immune systems, which could leave them more susceptible to diseases that are ravaging amphibians worldwide

The widespread use of biosolids could contaminate groundwater near farms with a variety of chemicals, including anti-depressants such as Prozac and hormone-disrupting compounds in antibacterial soaps

China’s smoke-belching coal plants and heavy traffic may be signs of a bustling economy but health experts fear the country’s dirty air is hurting its infants

Thriving in warmer winters, a beetle threatens a key source of Major League's cherished wood bats: The white ash forests of Pennsylvania and New York

Dark clouds of soot and gases spewed by tractors, bulldozers and backhoes are becoming a thing of the past under new federal standards that have forced cleaner diesel engines this year

The next wave of wrist wear might act as a fashionable archive of your exposure to everything from caffeine to pesticides

Considered inconceivable just a decade ago, achieving the federal target for fine particulates is perhaps one of the nation’s greatest environmental success stories. But the victory will be short-lived

New, unpublished research has found that polychlorinated biphenyls – banned in the United States 35 years ago – are leaching out of clothing and printed materials from around the world

Scientists at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have found that bisphenol A does not affect the health of rats fed low doses. Other scientists say the study is flawed

Exposure to low levels of bisphenol A during development may make men more susceptible to prostate cancer later in life, according to a new study

With billions of pounds of salt spread on U.S. roads every year, researchers say that rivers, streams and lakes in the nation’s wintry cities are getting saltier

Traces of 18 unregulated contaminants were found in the water from one-third of utilities in sampling across the U.S. by federal scientists.

Only about half of the prescription drugs and other newly emerging contaminants in sewage are removed by treatment plants says a new report

Mothers and children of a tribe in Canada’s highly industrialized region have elevated levels of estrogen-blocking chemicals