tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67140353343757965482024-03-13T23:17:47.752-07:00Nate SeltenrichEnvironmental health, ecology, cannabis science, climate change, and more.Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.comBlogger344125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-74395488555727112202024-03-01T15:23:00.000-08:002024-03-01T15:23:47.825-08:00Hot off the presses: two items in Mar/Apr 2024 issue of Sonoma magazine<p>I have two short pieces in the new issue of <i>Sonoma </i>magazine. On page 23, find my <a href="https://sonomamagazine-ca.newsmemory.com?selDate=20240301&goTo=023&artid=0&editionStart=Sonoma%20Magazine">Q&A</a> w/ farmer+veggie gardener+consultant Rachel Kohn Obut. And on page 24, "<a href="https://sonomamagazine-ca.newsmemory.com?selDate=20240301&goTo=024&artid=4&editionStart=Sonoma%20Magazine" target="_blank">A Swell of Kelp</a>" covers the springtime phenomenon of ocean upwelling, which brings cold, nutrient-rich waters to the kelp beds off Sonoma's coast. <br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-18394292772587513432024-02-29T11:45:00.000-08:002024-02-29T11:45:45.610-08:00All you ever needed or wanted to know about the health effects of gas stoves<p>My <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP14180" target="_blank">latest feature</a> for <i>Environmental Health Perspectives </i>dives into the somewhat controversial and often confusing world of gas stoves in 2024. You've read about them in the news, you've seen the political back-and-forth, you've heard about the bans (or bans of bans) -- but what's really going on? My story sorts out the health concerns from the climate concerns, the politics and the hype from the scientific facts. It's a complex issue, and my story lays the whole thing out. <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP14180" target="_blank">Read it here</a>!<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-57208231090408701352024-02-15T20:58:00.000-08:002024-02-15T20:58:42.602-08:00More Laguna de Santa Rosa, this time in KneeDeep Times<p>I used to cover Bay Area shoreline and wetland restoration projects for <a href="http://nate-reports.blogspot.com/search/label/estuary%20news" target="_blank"><i>Estuary News</i></a>, but with that magazine sadly shut down, I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to write a restoration story for its offspring <i>KneeDeep Times</i> (same editor, different editorial focus). <a href="https://www.kneedeeptimes.org/landscape-made-to-flood-sonoma/" target="_blank">This</a> is my second piece this season on the Laguna de Santa Rosa, which I also covered in the January/February issue of <i>Sonoma </i>magazine. My <i><a href="https://www.kneedeeptimes.org/landscape-made-to-flood-sonoma/" target="_blank">KneeDeep Times</a></i> piece is longer and goes into detail about a newly published, first-of-its-kind comprehensive restoration plan for the Laguna's 100-year floodplan.<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-43202762753858595192024-01-25T10:40:00.000-08:002024-01-25T10:40:05.688-08:00What Are Extracellular Vesicles and Why Are Environmental Health Researchers Excited About Them?<p>One thing I enjoy about covering environmental health research is that the field encompasses many different disciplines in which I have no formal training or academic background -- areas including cellular biology, neuroscience, atmospheric chemistry, and more. Every time I cover a study based in one of these disciplines I get an opportunity to learn a little more science and to add to my knowledge base. Being a science journalist, particularly in a broad and widely applicable field like environmental health, means being a lifelong learner. This is what keeps me intrigued and engaged after more than a decade covering environmental determinants of human health. And my latest Science Selection for <i>Environmental Health Perspectives</i> is no exception, addressing applications of extracellular vesicle science and research within environmental health. Find my story <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP14224" target="_blank">here</a>, and take a peek at the original paper I covered <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP12980" target="_blank">here</a>, and I'm sure you'll learn interesting something, too.<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-35367079219151512722024-01-10T10:15:00.000-08:002024-01-10T10:21:28.921-08:00Laguna de Santa Rosa in Sonoma Magazine<p>I really enjoyed learning about (and visiting!) the Laguna de Santa Rosa for this <a href="https://sonomamagazine-ca.newsmemory.com?selDate=20240101&goTo=120&artid=2&editionStart=Sonoma%20Magazine" target="_blank">short piece</a> for the Jan/Feb 2024 issue of Sonoma magazine. In fact, I was so entranced by the Laguna (and ongoing efforts to restore it) that I pitched more detailed stories to a couple other local publications. One of these is already underway and the other is still pending. Stay tuned.<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-76557215861248596522023-12-01T12:34:00.000-08:002023-12-01T12:34:39.797-08:00How urban parks support both biodiversity and human health<p>My <a href="https://www.kneedeeptimes.org/optimizing-the-health-benefits-of-urban-greens/" target="_blank">latest for KneeDeep Times</a> covers a new report from SFEI that highlights the link between plant and animal life and human health in urban parks and green spaces. I see this as a cutting-edge, holistic perspective on environmental health and urban design that avoids the trap of reducing public parks to being just for humans (with an emphasis or recreation or "ecosystem services") or "just" for animals (zoos, "wilderness," etc.) by using a rigorous literature review to demonstrate that when it comes to green spaces in urban environments, what's good for humans is good for wildlife, and vice versa. In my view, this deserves to be a central tenet of urban design and landscape architecture everywhere they're practiced. For instance, in my one-acre yard in semi-rural Sonoma County, I use drought-tolerant native plants and principles from permaculture to provide habitat and food for native insects and animals, improve soil health, slow and absorb rainwater, purify the air, provide shade, and create natural beauty that's simply nice to look at. Read the full story <a href="https://www.kneedeeptimes.org/optimizing-the-health-benefits-of-urban-greens/" target="_blank">here</a>.<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-26658550428605155602023-11-16T10:09:00.000-08:002023-11-16T10:09:31.999-08:00In the November issue of Sonoma magazine: Migrating raptors<p>I wrote a couple short pieces for the Nov/Dec '23 issue of <i>Sonoma </i>magazine. One had to do with holiday theater/music performances, but since that doesn't have anything to do with my main gig writing about science and the environment I won't bother linking it here. But the second piece, which ran on page 33, is about <a href="https://sonomamagazine-ca.newsmemory.com?selDate=20231101&goTo=033&artid=5&editionStart=Sonoma%20Magazine" target="_blank">migratory raptors</a> in Sonoma county during the winter. I pitched it to my editor and am proud to have my name on it as a clear, concise, and timely nature article (my specialty at <i>Sonoma</i>). Thanks to local raptor expert Larry Broderick, who has dedicated his life to these incredible creatures, for all the information. Follow the link above to see the layout in the mag, or read the full text below: </p><p><span style="font-weight: bold;">FORGET CANARIES IN THE COAL MINE.</span><span class="Fid_5">
For Larry Broderick, the real indicator species are raptors soaring
high overhead, hunting along Sonoma’s rich marshlands, or nesting in our
native trees. “They’re a biological bellwether,” says the Santa
Rosa-based leader of the Jenner Headlands Raptor Migration Project and
West County HawkWatch. “When things are going wrong with them, it often
means that things can go wrong with us.”</span></p><p class="abody"><span class="Fid_5">
Citizen scientists like Broderick consider fall and winter the best
time of year to observe these adaptable hunters. That’s when migratory
harriers, hawks, kites, kestrels, merlins, eagles, and osprey from
farther north join year-round residents countywide in search of “little
furry things” to eat.</span></p><p class="abody"><span class="Fid_5">
Visiting birds move freely among Sonoma’s wildlands in search of a good
meal. “There are like all these restaurants throughout the area, and
[the birds] are gonna go to which ones are serving the food based upon
prey availability,” says Broderick. Even so, individual birds have been
observed to return year after year to the same overwintering location,
like a vacation home. Others are only passing through.</span></p><p class="abody"><span class="Fid_5">
After three decades of observing raptors, Broderick has noted
population declines in several species. The timing of local migrations
has also changed, moving back about two weeks since the early 1990s, an
outcome Broderick thinks is at least partially due to climate change.
“It’s a good way to gauge how healthy the environment is,” he says, “by
checking out your top-of-the-food-chain predators.”</span></p><p class="abody"><span style="font-style: italic;"> -Nate</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> Seltenrich</span></p><p><br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-80448729343240336792023-10-13T09:20:00.004-07:002023-10-13T09:20:40.510-07:00New in KneeDeep Times: Good Neighbors Make Good Disaster Plans<p><a href="https://www.kneedeeptimes.org/good-neighbors-make-good-disaster-plans/" target="_blank">This article</a> crystallizes a bunch of topics and themes I'm interested in personally and/or have been covering for a while: climate resilience, climate mitigation, communal action, green building, renewable energy, urban agriculture, disaster preparedness, etc. It also is shaped by my experience as a lifelong Bay Arean. I was somewhat unsure how it would turn out when I pitched it, and shaping it into its current, final form took a few tries, but I'm quite happy with how it ended up. I think it carries an important message and wish it had a somewhat larger audience. Could be a reported op-ed in a major newspaper, for example. <br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-12734397139938127022023-09-26T11:56:00.002-07:002023-09-26T11:56:18.796-07:00More on cannabis contaminants in EHP and Leafly: New study shows elevated levels of lead and cadmium in users' blood and urine<p>I wrote two articles for two different audiences about a newly published paper in EHP that shows elevated levels of lead and cadmium in users' blood and urine.</p><p>The first was for a new outlet for me, the cannabis website <a href="https://www.leafly.com/news/health/marijuana-metals-study-2023-analysis" target="_blank">Leafly</a>, which covers cannabis news and science. The second, appearing a few days later, was in <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP13519" target="_blank">EHP</a>. </p><p>What's more, the authors of the study told me that they were partially inspired to pursue the research in the first place after reading my first two features for EHP on the subject of cannabis contaminants. And that's the second time I've heard that; another researcher whose paper in EHP I covered last year also told me that he began researching cannabis contaminants after reading some of my work. <br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-35050381468045596052023-09-25T09:52:00.003-07:002023-09-25T09:52:25.113-07:00New in EHP: Extreme Heat at Night Contributes to Heat Wave Mortality<p>It is well understood that heat can be deadly, and that climate change
is bringing hotter days and higher average temperatures around the
globe. What is less widely known is that overnight low temperatures are rising even more rapidly than daytime highs—and
some of heat’s toll on human health can be attributed to those hotter
nights, according to the authors of a study recently published in <i>Environmental Health Perspectives</i>.</p><p> Read my full story for <i>Environmental Health Perspectives</i> <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP13206" target="_blank">here</a>. <br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-7273697925123621522023-07-17T15:10:00.003-07:002023-07-17T15:10:26.021-07:00Cannabis for inflammatory bowel disease: a slam dunk<p>Decades worth of scientific and anecdotal evidence, including three newly published studies, suggest that cannabis can help people with inflammatory bowel disease. Read all about it in my latest Bridging the Gap <a href="https://projectcbd.org/health/gut-feeling/" target="_blank">column</a> for Project CBD.<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-76117086161367913722023-06-23T10:19:00.002-07:002023-06-23T10:19:36.369-07:00Two-part series on terpenes in PCBD: CB1 agonism (pt 1) and Beta-caryophyllene (pt 2)<p>I wrote another two-part series on a single topic through my Bridging the Gap column for Project CBD. This time: terpenes. The <a href="https://projectcbd.org/science/which-terpenes-enhance-the-cannabis-high/" target="_blank">first story</a>, published May 24, dealt with recent research into CB1 activation and THC synergism by cannabis terpenes. The <a href="https://projectcbd.org/health/beta-caryophyllene-terpene-powerhouse/" target="_blank">second</a>, published June 7, focused on a single special terpene, Beta-caryophyllene, the first known "dietary cannabinoid," which also activates CB2 and other receptors.<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-74979290233988901692023-06-22T16:49:00.002-07:002023-06-22T16:49:15.600-07:00A Terminal Case? Shrinking Inland Seas Expose Salty Particulates and More<p>Lookie here, it's my <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP12835" target="_blank">latest feature</a> for EHP. Clocking in at around 3,500 words, it's an in-depth look at the causes and effects of shrinking saline or terminal lakes around the world, with particular focus on Southern California's Salton Sea and Utah's Great Salt Lake as illuminating case studies. </p><p>Here are the first two grafs: <br /></p><p><span style="color: #073763;">The headlines are alarming. Phrases like “environmental disaster,”
“toxic nightmare,” “ecological collapse,” and “lost cause” have appeared
in publications from the Palm Springs <i>Desert Sun</i><sup><a class="tab-link" data-tab="pane-pcw-references" href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP12835#c1" id="d3200581e70_c1R">1</a></sup> to the United Kingdom’s <i>Guardian</i><sup><a class="tab-link" data-tab="pane-pcw-references" href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP12835#c2" id="d3200581e76_c2R">2</a></sup>
to describe the ongoing decline of the Salton Sea, California’s largest
lake. Elsewhere in the American West, Utah’s shrinking Great Salt Lake
has been likened to an “environmental nuclear bomb” by <i>The New York Times</i>,<sup><a class="tab-link" data-tab="pane-pcw-references" href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP12835#c3" id="d3200581e83_c3R">3</a></sup> while other national publications have heralded its impending demise or warned of “toxic arsenic-laced dust.”<sup><a class="tab-link" data-tab="pane-pcw-references" href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP12835#c4" id="d3200581e88_c4R">4</a>,<a class="tab-link" data-tab="pane-pcw-references" href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP12835#c5" id="d3200581e91_c5R">5</a></sup></span></p><p><span style="color: #073763;">The
Salton Sea and Great Salt Lake face distinct challenges and have
different potential fixes. But together, they highlight a much broader
trend that may pose public health threats in locations around the globe:
dust blowing from the beds of drying terminal lakes.</span></p><p>Read the full article <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP12835" target="_blank">here</a>. <br /></p><p></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-56428032043437311792023-05-11T09:41:00.001-07:002023-05-11T09:41:01.969-07:00Two more Bridging the Gap columns for Project CBD: PPARs and cannabidiol; psychedelic research roundup<p>The hits keep on coming. Here are my last two Bridging the Gap columns for Project CBD: 1) "<a href="https://projectcbd.org/science/cbd-enhances-glucose-metabolism-via-nuclear-receptors/" target="_blank">CBD Enhances Glucose Metabolism via Nuclear Receptors</a>" (published 4/26) and "<a href="https://projectcbd.org/psychedelic/psychedelic-research-potpourri/" target="_blank">Psychedelic Research Potpourri</a>" (published 5/10). Next up: a two-part series on terpenes. <br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-11022301936090421162023-05-05T10:37:00.003-07:002023-05-05T10:37:53.947-07:00Two items in the May issue of Sonoma mag: a day in the life of a farmer; SoCo food trucks by the numbers<p>A new issue of Sonoma magazine is out now, and that means two more nifty little pieces by yours truly. First is a <a href="https://sonomamagazine-ca.newsmemory.com?selDate=20230501&goTo=019&artid=7" target="_blank">timeline</a> detailing a typical day for second-generation organic grape/veggie farmer Zureal Bernier. It appears in the front of the book, on page 19. The second one is a "<a href="https://sonomamagazine-ca.newsmemory.com?selDate=20230501&goTo=031&artid=0" target="_blank">By the Numbers</a>" spread on Sonoma County food trucks. You can find it on page 31 in the magazine. Both are fun, quick reads. Pick up a copy of the magazine if you can, or read the full issue online <a href="https://sonomamagazine-ca.newsmemory.com/?date=20230501" target="_blank">here</a>.<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-65921495445923313522023-04-13T11:56:00.004-07:002023-04-13T11:56:47.358-07:00The CB2 receptor in cancer and mental health: A two-part series in Project CBD<p>My latest two <a href="https://www.projectcbd.org/authors/nate-seltenrich" target="_blank">columns</a> for Project CBD both deal with recent research into the CB2 receptor, one of two primary cannabinoid receptors in the body (the other being CB1, of course). While CB1 is primarily expressed in the central nervous system (brain) and is responsible for the psychoactive effects of cannabis -- as well as the "all-natural" runner's high, which is mediated by the endocannabinoid system; anandamide, an endogenous CB1 ligand in the body, is also called the "bliss molecule" for this reason -- CB2 is expressed in immune cells, the peripheral nervous system, and other tissues. (Any molecule that interacts with CB1 and/or CB2 is generally referred to as a "cannabinoid.") </p><p>Both CB1 and CB2 play a central role in moderating a wide variety of physiological processes in the body, but CB2 is the less-studied of the two, and it may have an even broader reach. In addition to its more widely known roles in immune function and inflammation, recent research has revealed that CB2 activity also has important implications for both cancer and a number of mental health conditions. My <a href="https://www.projectcbd.org/cancer-cb2-receptor" target="_blank">3/29 column</a> focuses on recent studies of CB2's role in cancer, while my <a href="https://www.projectcbd.org/mental-health-cb2-receptor" target="_blank">4/5 column</a> looks at CB2 and mental health. Enjoy!<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-66970817538048292252023-04-11T09:21:00.001-07:002023-04-11T09:23:38.709-07:00New in Project CBD: Cannabidiol for tinnitus?<p>Contrary to an ignorant comment I recently read appended to a cannabis-related article on the <i>New York Times </i>website, CBD is not a scam. It's actually a pretty miraculous compound. However, its action is often subtle, requiring higher-than-expected doses, repeated administration (once or twice won't do it), or both. It acts in a wide variety of ways inside the body and has been shown in <i>in vitro</i>, <i>in situ</i>, and<i> in vivo</i> models to have a wide variety of positive physiological and biological effects. That's true in part because it interacts with your body's endocannabinoid system, which (if it's functioning properly) works all day and night to keep you healthy. </p><p>But it is not a cure-all. See, for example, my recent article on the subject of <a href="https://www.projectcbd.org/cbd-tinnitus" target="_blank">tinnitus</a>. There's some evidence that cannabis may help with this confounding condition -- but there's also evidence that CB1 agonists like THC may in fact hurt. CBD, which is not a CB1 agonist, may well be a worthwhile therapy. But that hasn't been shown yet. At the very least, maybe it can help people with tinnitus sleep better, or maintain lower levels of stress. My latest column looks at the evidence to date and raises a couple of important questions for future research. Find it <a href="https://www.projectcbd.org/cbd-tinnitus" target="_blank">here</a>.<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-70056943735033935572023-04-10T11:10:00.001-07:002023-04-10T11:13:34.578-07:00The final issue of Estuary News and my last two articles<p>I started writing for <i>Estuary News </i>back in 2012, when I was still pretty new to the environment/science beat (I made the transition from covering music in 2010). Over the last decade-plus I've contributed to the magazine in a number of ways, including writing and reporting, editing and copyediting, meeting and brainstorming, taking the lead on an issue or two, and more. </p><p>In other words, while <a href="https://archive.estuarynews.org/restoration-reflections-a-hundred-ways-to-cherish-the-estuary/" target="_blank">Ariel Rubissow-Okamoto</a> was always at the helm, I did what I could to help keep the enterprise fresh, clean, readable, informative, and indispensable to its readership of scientists, researchers, experts, agency staff, and other folks interested in learning about science and restoration in the Bay-Delta region. </p><p>Well, all that's now over, with <i>Estuary News </i>having just published its <a href="https://archive.estuarynews.org/" target="_blank">final issue</a> after a 30-year run. I'm sad to see it come to end, but all good things must. To the final issue I contributed story ideas, copyediting/proofing, and two articles -- one looking at <a href="https://archive.estuarynews.org/boots-on-the-bayshore-bay-trail/" target="_blank">public access</a> to the Bay shore and another on the latest at <a href="https://archive.estuarynews.org/more-mud-please-for-novato-baylands/" target="_blank">Bel Marin Keys</a>, a massive tidal wetland restoration site not far from my home in Petaluma. Farewell, <i>Estuary News</i>!<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-67767707779854376492023-03-17T10:54:00.004-07:002023-03-17T10:54:39.892-07:00Indoor vs. outdoor cannabis; cannabis for fibromyalgia: my latest columns for Project CBD<p>Behold, my latest Bridging the Gap columns for Project CBD. </p><p><a href="https://www.projectcbd.org/outdoor-or-indoor-grown-cannabis-whats-difference" target="_blank">The first</a>, published on February 14, got a lot of attention. It covers recent research -- and one study in particular -- into how growing conditions affect cannabinoid and terpene production. Clearly this is a hot topic in the field, and for good reason: how cannabis is grown (whether outdoors or indoors, organically or conventionally, small- or large-scale, etc.) matters in different yet important ways to the environment, the grower/producer, the patient/recreational user, the economy, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220529125350/https://www.fairwarning.org/2019/06/states-legalizing-pot-grapple-with-power-demand/" target="_blank">the electrical grid</a>, and more. Again, here I focused on cannabinoids and terpenes, which is a big story in and of itself, but I've covered some of these other issues in the past. Bottom line, at the very least, if you buy/use cannabis, you should pay attention to where and how it's grown. </p><p>My second recent column, published February 28, covered recent research into the use of cannabis to treat <a href="https://www.projectcbd.org/thc-and-cbd-rich-cannabis-fibromyalgia" target="_blank">fibromyalgia</a>, a mysterious, debilitating condition that affects between 2 and 4 percent of adults worldwide.</p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-1141921319187293912023-03-02T08:52:00.001-08:002023-03-02T08:52:05.544-08:00Are electric stoves the solution to indoor air pollution (and eventually climate change) in lower-income nations? My latest for EHP<p>Today <i>Environmental Health Perspectives </i>published my latest long-form <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP12232" target="_blank">article</a> for the journal, on the subject of electric stoves and their benefits for both health and climate where solid fuels are currently used for cooking. In case you're unfamiliar with the issue, here's the first graf: </p><p><i>Cooking with solid fuels is risky, not just for the estimated 2.4–2.8 billion people<sup> </sup>who rely on these fuels at home, but also for the future of the planet.
Household air pollution—which includes the noxious fumes from
incomplete combustion of wood, charcoal, coal, crop residues, dung, and
others—is considered one of the leading environmental causes of disease.
The World Health Organization estimates household air pollution
is responsible for around 3.2 million premature deaths each year. In addition, collecting solid fuels contributes to land degradation and deforestation and imposes an inordinate burden on women and children. Finally, burning these fuels produces at least 2% of global carbon-equivalent emissions.</i></p><p>Read more about how electric stoves could solve both of these issues, and the challenges of implementing them, in the full story <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP12232" target="_blank">here</a>.<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-35702760115229888042023-03-01T08:40:00.002-08:002023-03-01T08:40:08.243-08:00March issue of Sonoma magazine: Sonoma ranching by the numbers<p>I'm currently reading Christopher Ketcham's book <i>This Land: How Cowboys, Capitalism, and Corruption are Ruining the American West</i>, which is certainly changing my perspective on ranching in the West, but Sonoma County is a bit of a special case. Not that the industry here is perfect or harmless, and not everyone does it right...but I'd argue ranching does contribute a net benefit to the county through small-scale, often organic local food production, and by preventing conversion to other, more intensive or less ecologically sound land uses including development.</p><p>Here's a <a href="https://sonomamagazine-ca.newsmemory.com?selDate=20230301&goTo=022&artid=1" target="_blank">short little one-pager</a> full of numbers and statistics I rounded up on ranching in Sonoma County. <br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-10754698398057659702023-02-28T11:42:00.000-08:002023-02-28T11:42:00.264-08:00In 1996, the EPA was ordered to test pesticides for impacts on people’s hormones. They still don’t. <p>My <a href="https://www.ehn.org/are-pesticides-endocrine-disruptors-2659413208.html" target="_blank">latest piece</a> for <i>Environmental Health News </i>was published yesterday, 2/27. It covers a lawsuit recently filed against the EPA for its failure to administer a program created through an act of Congress way back in 1996. After nearly three decades, the program still hasn't gotten off the ground, but a group of nonprofits and other NGOs led by the Center for Food Safety is hoping its suit, filed in December, will force the EPA to finally make good on its promise to test all pesticides for endocrine disruption. Read the full story <a href="https://www.ehn.org/are-pesticides-endocrine-disruptors-2659413208.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-20761445543712976292023-02-02T09:21:00.001-08:002023-02-02T09:21:01.751-08:00Latest columns for Project CBD: Cannabis + cancer immunotherapy; cannabis for skin conditions<p>Still plugging away at my biweekly column for Project CBD, Bridging the Gap, which covers the latest and greatest in cannabinoid science/research. My last two articles covered a significant finding re: interactions between cannabis and <a href="https://www.projectcbd.org/cannabis-and-immunotherapy-cancer-are-they-compatible" target="_blank">immunotherapy</a> in cancer patients (published 1/18) and the fascinating science of the skin endocannaboid system and the surprising -- for me, at least -- potential of both topical and internal cannabis treatments to heal a huge variety of <a href="https://www.projectcbd.org/cbd-thc-cbg-skin-conditions" target="_blank">skin conditions</a> (published 2/1).<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-90510668691480180982023-01-25T11:18:00.002-08:002023-01-25T11:18:16.494-08:00A new tool to estimate your body burden of PFAS based upon drinking water exposures: New in EHP<p>My latest article for <i>Environmental Health Perspectives </i>covers a newly published paper in the journal with the enchanting title of "<a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP10103"><span>Bayesian
Estimation of Human Population Toxicokinetics of PFOA, PFOS, PFHxS, and
PFNA from Studies of Contaminated Drinking Water</span></a><span>."</span></p><p>The headline of <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP12514" target="_blank">my article</a>, meanwhile, is "From Drinking Water to Individual Body Burden: Modeling Toxicokinetics of Four PFAS." B</p><p>But it needn't sound so complicated. To put it more simply, my story describes the creation of a new model and a new user-friendly web tool powered by it that allows members of the public to generate an estimate of PFAS levels in their blood based upon exposures through tap water. The <a href="https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/pfas/bloodlevelestimator/index.html" target="_blank">tool</a>, released in November 2022, is a product of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and <a class="td-none" href="https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov">Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry</a> (ATSDR). Read more <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP12514" target="_blank">here</a>.<br /></p><p><span> </span></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6714035334375796548.post-74955845103160424422023-01-04T13:29:00.005-08:002023-01-04T13:29:43.939-08:00New columns for Project CBD: Cannabis contaminants, cannabis for PTSD<p>So if there's a single subject about which I know as much as or more than any other journalist out there, it's the regulation of cannabis contaminants. Over the years I've written numerous detailed articles on this topic for a variety of publications with a variety of angles. Late last year I wrote my third <a href="http://nate-reports.blogspot.com/2022/10/whats-in-your-gummy-cannabis.html" target="_blank">story</a> on the subject for <i>Environmental Health Perspectives</i>, about a <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP11206" target="_blank">study</a> whose senior author and lead investigator told me he was inspired to pursue the subject as an academic after reading one of my previous stories. Pretty cool! And in December I wrote my <a href="https://www.projectcbd.org/poison-alert-quality-control-often-lacking-cannabis-products" target="_blank">second story</a> for Project CBD on contaminants, which covered that same EHP study in brief as well as a few others. </p><p>In addition, my most recent <a href="https://www.projectcbd.org/new-studies-cannabis-ptsd" target="_blank">PCBD column</a>, published 12/31, covered recent research into the use of cannabis for treating PTSD. Enjoy!<br /></p>Nate Seltenrichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03649741816077793681noreply@blogger.com0