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Rewiring the Brain: Poverty Linked With Neurological Changes That Affect Behavior, Illness, and Development

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Thursday, April 25, 2024

A new review highlights how poverty and low socioeconomic status significantly influence cognitive development, mental health, and educational outcomes, suggesting that these factors contribute to a cycle of generational poverty. It calls for comprehensive interventions to address these far-reaching impacts.Research connects low socioeconomic status to brain alterations impacting educational achievement, mental health, and language development.What influences mental health, academic achievement, and cognitive growth? A recent review published in De Gruyter’s Reviews in the Neurosciences indicates that poverty and low socioeconomic status (SES) are significant contributing factors. While previous research has explored the individual impacts of poverty on the brain and behavior, this review introduces the first integrated framework. It synthesizes evidence from various studies to directly connect brain alterations caused by low SES with behavioral, pathological, and developmental outcomes.SES refers to the social standing of an individual or family, and involves factors such as wealth, occupation, educational attainment, and living conditions. As well as affecting day-to-day life, perhaps surprisingly SES can also have far-reaching consequences for our brains that begin in childhood and persist into adulthood.So, how can poverty and low SES change the brain? The review examines the negative effects of poor nutrition, chronic stress, and environmental hazards (such as pollution and inadequate housing conditions), which are more likely to affect low-SES families. These factors can impair the brain development of children, which in turn can influence their language skills, educational attainment, and risk of psychiatric illness. Stress and Its Impact on LearningFor instance, families with low SES are more likely to experience increased stress levels, and these can affect their children from an early age. Sustained stress can reduce levels of neurogenesis — the growth of new neurons — in the hippocampus, which may impair learning abilities and negatively affect educational attainment and career opportunities in later life.A framework of poverty-related factors and future consequences, such as delay language development, poor educational attainment, and neural abnormalities. Credit: Eid Abo Hamza et al./De GruyterThe unified framework proposed by the researchers also helps to explain generational poverty, which can leave the children of SES families unable to escape their situation when they grow up and become parents themselves. This vicious cycle can be hard to break.Interestingly, the researchers provide an extensive list of proposed studies that could test the validity of their framework and find new ways to break the generational poverty cycle. These include focusing on the effects of low SES in specific brain regions, and identifying techniques to enhance the performance of affected children in school.The review is timely, as inequalities in society widen. Identifying specific mechanisms behind generational poverty could help researchers and policymakers to develop new early interventions. The new framework takes account of the multifactorial nature of generational poverty, and could pave the way for more holistic and sophisticated societal interventions that acknowledge this complexity.“This research sheds light on the profound ways in which poverty and SES affect not just the present living conditions of individuals, but also their cognitive development, mental health, and future opportunities,” said Dr. Eid Abo Hamza of Al Ain University in the United Arab Emirates, who is first author of the review. “By understanding these relationships, society can better address inequalities and support those in disadvantaged situations, potentially leading to interventions that can help break the cycle of poverty.”Reference: “The impact of poverty and socioeconomic status on brain, behaviour, and development: a unified framework” by Eid Abo Hamza, Richard Tindle, Simon Pawlak, Dalia Bedewy and Ahmed A. Moustafa, 15 April 2024, Reviews in the Neurosciences.DOI: 10.1515/revneuro-2023-0163

Research connects low socioeconomic status to brain alterations impacting educational achievement, mental health, and language development. What influences mental health, academic achievement, and cognitive growth?...

Digital Human Brain Network Concept

A new review highlights how poverty and low socioeconomic status significantly influence cognitive development, mental health, and educational outcomes, suggesting that these factors contribute to a cycle of generational poverty. It calls for comprehensive interventions to address these far-reaching impacts.

Research connects low socioeconomic status to brain alterations impacting educational achievement, mental health, and language development.

What influences mental health, academic achievement, and cognitive growth? A recent review published in De Gruyter’s Reviews in the Neurosciences indicates that poverty and low socioeconomic status (SES) are significant contributing factors. While previous research has explored the individual impacts of poverty on the brain and behavior, this review introduces the first integrated framework. It synthesizes evidence from various studies to directly connect brain alterations caused by low SES with behavioral, pathological, and developmental outcomes.

SES refers to the social standing of an individual or family, and involves factors such as wealth, occupation, educational attainment, and living conditions. As well as affecting day-to-day life, perhaps surprisingly SES can also have far-reaching consequences for our brains that begin in childhood and persist into adulthood.

So, how can poverty and low SES change the brain? The review examines the negative effects of poor nutrition, chronic stress, and environmental hazards (such as pollution and inadequate housing conditions), which are more likely to affect low-SES families. These factors can impair the brain development of children, which in turn can influence their language skills, educational attainment, and risk of psychiatric illness.

Stress and Its Impact on Learning

For instance, families with low SES are more likely to experience increased stress levels, and these can affect their children from an early age. Sustained stress can reduce levels of neurogenesis — the growth of new neurons — in the hippocampus, which may impair learning abilities and negatively affect educational attainment and career opportunities in later life.

Integrative Framework of the Links Between Brain and Behavioral Abnormalities Due to Poverty

A framework of poverty-related factors and future consequences, such as delay language development, poor educational attainment, and neural abnormalities. Credit: Eid Abo Hamza et al./De Gruyter

The unified framework proposed by the researchers also helps to explain generational poverty, which can leave the children of SES families unable to escape their situation when they grow up and become parents themselves. This vicious cycle can be hard to break.

Interestingly, the researchers provide an extensive list of proposed studies that could test the validity of their framework and find new ways to break the generational poverty cycle. These include focusing on the effects of low SES in specific brain regions, and identifying techniques to enhance the performance of affected children in school.

The review is timely, as inequalities in society widen. Identifying specific mechanisms behind generational poverty could help researchers and policymakers to develop new early interventions. The new framework takes account of the multifactorial nature of generational poverty, and could pave the way for more holistic and sophisticated societal interventions that acknowledge this complexity.

“This research sheds light on the profound ways in which poverty and SES affect not just the present living conditions of individuals, but also their cognitive development, mental health, and future opportunities,” said Dr. Eid Abo Hamza of Al Ain University in the United Arab Emirates, who is first author of the review. “By understanding these relationships, society can better address inequalities and support those in disadvantaged situations, potentially leading to interventions that can help break the cycle of poverty.”

Reference: “The impact of poverty and socioeconomic status on brain, behaviour, and development: a unified framework” by Eid Abo Hamza, Richard Tindle, Simon Pawlak, Dalia Bedewy and Ahmed A. Moustafa, 15 April 2024, Reviews in the Neurosciences.
DOI: 10.1515/revneuro-2023-0163

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A Historic but Dilapidated Illinois Prison Will Close While Replacement Is Built, Despite Objections

The Illinois Department of Corrections has spent September moving hundreds of inmates from Stateville Correctional Center in suburban Chicago in preparation for replacing the century-old lockup

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — When film star James Stewart went on location in 1948 at Stateville prison's notorious roundhouse while portraying a Chicago newspaper reporter whose work freed a wrongly convicted killer in “Call Northside 777,” the lockup had already been standing nearly a quarter of a century.Now, 76 years and hundreds of millions of dollars of neglected repairs later, the Illinois prison home of infamous killers Leopold and Loeb and Richard Speck, and the site of John Wayne Gacy's execution, is shutting down. The Illinois Department of Corrections already has begun transferring inmates from the facility in the Chicago suburb of Crest Hill, a contentious decision bolstered by a federal court order last month. Last spring, Gov. JB Pritzker's administration announced a $900 million plan to replace Stateville, which opened in 1925, with a state-of-the-art facility on adjacent, state-owned land. The campus also could see a new women's prison. Supplanting the deteriorated Logan Correctional Center in central Illinois is part of the proposal; it might move to the Stateville campus. Completion could be three to five years away. But that's about all the administration has said. There has been no disclosure of a design plan; no timeline for demolition, groundbreaking or even deciding what will happen to prison staff. Nonetheless, Corrections officials' decision to shutter the facility this month was made long before the court decision made it inevitable. Ruling in a decade-old lawsuit challenging the health and safety of Stateville's environment, U.S. District Judge Andrea Wood on Aug. 9 ordered most of the prison's 430 inmates to be evacuated by Sept. 30. “The primary reason for the facility’s closure during the rebuild is to address serious safety and security concerns posed to those who work and live in Stateville,” acting Corrections Director Latoya Hughes told a legislative review panel in June. “This is not just a matter of preference but a necessary step to ensure safety, efficiency and the fulfillment of our rehabilitative mission.”Employees and service providers, such as institutions that supply a variety of educational courses and social programs to inmates, want Stateville to stay open while its replacement is constructed to avoid disruption to services or destruction of a tightly knit and highly experienced staff. The prison is behind on maintenance by $286 million, according to a long-range capital needs study released in May 2023. It identified $12 million in immediate upgrades, but Hughes said that “grossly underestimates the full spectrum of urgent needs.” Wood's court order focused on falling chunks of concrete, bird feathers and feces and foul-smelling tap water. The ramshackle F-House, a circular unit with cells around the perimeter and a guard tower in the middle, was closed in 2016 — the last of the nation's roundhouse prison housing units — although it was briefly reopened during the COVID-19 pandemic to put more space between inmates. F-House and other buildings no longer in use are part of the backlog of repairs, but they still require maintenance, Hughes said. It doesn't make sense to pay for rehabilitation while also preparing for a huge outlay on a new facility. What's more, much of the work would require moving inmates anyway, Hughes said.But it doesn't make sense to state Sen. Rachel Ventura that the department has not followed through on resolving concerns she and other lawmakers raised during public hearings in June — she said in one case, an inmate promised a continued education course no longer has access post-transfer. The Joliet Democrat said she has asked repeatedly for updates but is told there's no new information. “If they’re going to shut it down (Sept. 30), well, what are you doing with it? Are you transferring furniture out of there? Are you getting out a demo plan? Are you getting an environmental study done?” Ventura said. “These would be the next logical steps, but to have nothing, no response from DOC on this — again, highly concerning.”An email was sent to Corrections’ spokesperson, followed up by a telephone message, seeking comment on activity at Stateville: timelines for closure, demolition and groundbreaking, and what measures are necessary after inmate evacuation. The hearings in June before the bipartisan, bicameral legislative Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability, were understandably packed with American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees members jittery about not just losing their jobs but breaking up collegial, cooperative staff environments at Stateville and Logan. Stateville has 939 staff members, including 676 who provide security. Hughes noted that Corrections Department understaffing works in their favor. In June, she said the agency had 1,000 vacancies within 63 miles (101 kilometers) of Stateville, including at facilities that will remain open on the Stateville campus. There are 500 vacancies to the south at the larger — and older — Pontiac Correctional Center and 168 at Sheridan prison to the west. When Stateville reopens, its former employees will have first dibs on returning. But many employees have a long commute to Stateville. Charles Mathis drives 45 minutes from his south Chicago home. A transfer to Sheridan or Pontiac would mean a one-way trip of up to two hours, to say nothing of double shifts employees work once they get there because of staff shortages.“That kind of commute round trip would take an enormous toll on my mind and body," Mathis said. “It would take away from the precious time that I have with my family and friends. I speak for all my co-workers when I say that that may be nearly impossible to justify.”Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Photos You Should See - Sept. 2024

Dan Evans, Republican Former Governor of Washington and US Senator, Dies at 98

Former Washington state Gov. and U.S. Sen. Dan Evans has died

SEATTLE (AP) — Dan Evans, a popular three-term Republican governor of Washington state who went on to serve in the U.S. Senate before leaving in frustration because he felt the chamber was too rancorous and tedious, has died. He was 98.Evans died Friday, according to the University of Washington, where he had served as a regent and where the Daniel J. Evans School of Public Policy and Governance bears his name.“Dad lived an exceptionally full life,” his sons — Dan Jr., Mark and Bruce Evans — said in a written statement quoted by The Seattle Times. “Whether serving in public office, working to improve higher education, mentoring aspiring public servants … he just kept signing up for stuff right until the end. He touched a lot of lives. And he did this without sacrificing family.”Evans was a dominant force in Washington politics for decades and, until current Gov. Jay Inslee, he was the only person to be elected governor three times.Born in 1925 in Seattle, Evans was a civil engineer before entering politics. He was elected to the state Legislature in 1956 and won the governorship in 1964, beating incumbent two-term Democrat Albert D. Rosellini and prevailing in a bad year for his fellow Republicans, one which saw President Lyndon Johnson soundly defeat the GOP’s Barry Goldwater.Known as a moderate to liberal Republican, the avid outdoorsman helped add new recreation and park areas in the state and supported clean air and water legislation. He created the nation's first state Department of Ecology, which President Richard Nixon used as a model for the Environmental Protection Agency. Evans also unsuccessfully pushed to create a state income tax. He opted not to run for a fourth term.After leaving the governor’s mansion in 1977, Evans stayed in Olympia, serving as president of The Evergreen State College. Evans had helped create the state school when he signed an act authorizing the liberal arts college, and as governor he also backed founding the state’s community college system.He built a national profile during his time leading the state and was the keynote speaker at the 1968 National Republican Convention. He was mentioned as a possible running mate for President Gerald Ford in 1976. Never a fan of Ronald Reagan, Evans supported Ford in 1976 and initially backed George H.W. Bush in 1980.As a popular Republican in a predominantly Democratic state, it seemed that Evans would be a shoe-in had he decided to run for the U.S. Senate. He frequently spurned such talk, saying in 1972 that “I don’t like Washington, D.C., very well ... and I could not stand to be in the Senate.”However, in 1983 Democratic Sen. Henry “Scoop” Jackson died in office, and Evans accepted an appointment to serve out his term. Evans opted not to stand for election in 1988, citing the “tediousness of getting decisions made.” At the time he said he was looking forward to returning home to enjoy the outdoors.In later years Evans served as a regent at the University of Washington, his alma mater. He also served on many nonprofit and corporate boards.Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Photos You Should See - Sept. 2024

Absolutely Massive Penguin Chick Named Pesto Wins Fans And Admirers Worldwide

He's huge.

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — A huge king penguin chick named Pesto, who weighs as much as both his parents combined, has become a social media celebrity and a star attraction at an Australian aquarium.Weighing 22 kilograms (49 pounds) at 9 months old, Pesto is the heaviest penguin chick the Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium has ever had, its education supervisor Jacinta Early said on Friday.By contrast, his doting parents, Hudson and Tango weigh 11 kilograms (24 pounds) each.Pesto, right, a huge king penguin chick who weighs as much as both his parents combined, mingles in his enclosure at Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, and has become a social media celebrity and a star attraction at the aquarium.Pesto’s global fame has grown with his size. More than 1.9 billion people around the world had viewed him through social media, an aquarium statement said.He ate more than his own substantial body weight in fish in the past week: 24 kilograms (53 pounds), Early said.The veterinary advice is that that quantity of food is healthy for a chick approaching adulthood.His growth will plateau as he enters his fledging period. He has started to lose his brown feathers and will replace them with the black and white plumage of a young adult.His keepers expect him to trim down to around 15 kilograms (33 pounds) in the process.“He’s going to start losing that really adorable baby fluff. It might take him one to two months to really get rid of it. Then he’ll be nice and sleek and streamlined,” Early said.But she expects Pesto will remain recognizable as the sought-after TikTok celebrity he has become for another two weeks.For now, he’s a star attraction.“Such a small head for such a big body,” one admirer remarked on Friday as a crowd gathered against the glass of the penguin enclosure at feeding time.Support Free JournalismConsider supporting HuffPost starting at $2 to help us provide free, quality journalism that puts people first.Can't afford to contribute? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. We hope you'll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.Hatching on Jan. 31, Pesto was the only king penguin chick to hatch at the aquarium this year and the first since 2022, a year when there were six. The reason why there was none last year isn’t clear.Adult king penguins weigh between 9.5 kilograms (21 pounds) and 18 kilograms (40 pounds), according to the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition, a global environmental group.They are the world’s second largest penguin species, after the emperor penguin.Support Free JournalismConsider supporting HuffPost starting at $2 to help us provide free, quality journalism that puts people first.Can't afford to contribute? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. We hope you'll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.

Huge Australian King Penguin Chick Pesto Grows Into Social Media Star

A huge king penguin chick named Pesto, who weighs as much as both his parents combined, has become a social media celebrity and a star attraction at an Australian aquarium

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — A huge king penguin chick named Pesto, who weighs as much as both his parents combined, has become a social media celebrity and a star attraction at an Australian aquarium.Weighing 22 kilograms (49 pounds) at 9 months old, Pesto is the heaviest penguin chick the Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium has ever had, its education supervisor Jacinta Early said on Friday.By contrast, his doting parents, Hudson and Tango weigh 11 kilograms (24 pounds) each.Pesto’s global fame has grown with his size. More than 1.9 billion people around the world had viewed him through social media, an aquarium statement said.He ate more than his own substantial body weight in fish in the past week: 24 kilograms (53 pounds), Early said.The veterinary advice is that that quantity of food is healthy for a chick approaching adulthood.His growth will plateau as he enters his fledging period. He has started to lose his brown feathers and will replace them with the black and white plumage of a young adult.His keepers expect him to trim down to around 15 kilograms (33 pounds) in the process.“He’s going to start losing that really adorable baby fluff. It might take him one to two months to really get rid of it. Then he’ll be nice and sleek and streamlined,” Early said.But she expects Pesto will remain recognizable as the sought-after TikTok celebrity he has become for another two weeks.For now, he's a star attraction.“Such a small head for such a big body,” one admirer remarked on Friday as a crowd gathered against the glass of the penguin enclosure at feeding time.Hatching on Jan. 31, Pesto was the only king penguin chick to hatch at the aquarium this year and the first since 2022, a year when there were six. The reason why there was none last year isn’t clear.Adult king penguins weigh between 9.5 kilograms (21 pounds) and 18 kilograms (40 pounds), according to the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition, a global environmental group.They are the world’s econd largest penguin species, after the emperor penguin.Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Photos You Should See - July 2024

Residents say Pennsylvania has failed communities after state studies linked fracking to child cancer

PITTSBURGH — More than a year after the Pennsylvania Department of Health published three studies linking fracking to cancer and other health effects, advocates say the agency failed to keep promises to help residents living near fracking wells. The studies, conducted by University of Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania Department of Health researchers, found that residents living near fracking wells were more likely to experience childhood cancer, severe asthma attacks and low birth weights. They added to dozens of other studies linking living near fracking wells with various health problems, including cancer, poor birth outcomes and cardiovascular and respiratory issues Former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf ordered the studies, commonly referred to as “the Pitt studies,” after residents of fracking communities with high rates of rare childhood cancers demanded more research. The researchers who conducted the study shared the results in August 2023 at a public meeting. They looked at health records and fracking data from 2010-2020 in the eight county Southwestern Pennsylvania region and found, among other things, that children who lived within one mile of one or more fracking wells were five to seven times more likely to develop lymphoma compared to children who don’t live near fracking wells. It also found people with asthma living within 10 miles of fracking wells were four to five times more likely to experience a severe asthma attack during the production phase and an increased risk of having babies that are small for gestational age among Pennsylvanians living within 10 miles of fracking wells. The Pennsylvania Department of Health pledged action in response to the findings, but residents and environmental advocates say the agency hasn’t done enough. “Millions of dollars have been spent on this study only for it to be buried,” said Stacy Magda, a community organizer with the Mountain Watershed Association during a virtual press conference organized by five environmental and health advocacy groups on Tuesday. The groups that held the press conference, which included the Center for Coalfield Justice, the Pennsylvania chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility, the Mountain Watershed Association, the Environmental Health Project and FracTracker Alliance, also launched a petition asking Governor Josh Shapiro and the Pennsylvania Department of Health to take further action aimed at protecting residents who live near fracking wells. Janice Blanock, a resident of Cecil Township, Pennsylvania, about 20 miles from Pittsburgh, held back tears as she spoke at the press conference over Zoom from a neighbor’s backyard, where a new fracking well was visible in the background. In 2016, her 19-year-old son Luke died from a rare bone cancer. “I’ll never know exactly what caused my son's cancer,” Blanock said. “I'll never know why there are such high rates of rare cancers in my community. But I do know that harm is being done. And that pollution can make us sick … I am here to demand that Governor Shapiro address the results of the [studies].” During the 2023 public meeting when the studies were presented, the Pennsylvania Department of Health announced the launch of a continuing medical education program on environmental exposures, said it would start a program to educate schools in fracking communities about air quality, said it had developed a new form for submitting environmental health complaints, and promised to continue reviewing cancer data in the region. “Disseminating public health guidance and research are critical functions of the Department of Health,” said Talor Musil, a field manager at the Environmental Health Project during the press conference. “Neither has yet taken place in relation to these three studies, or any shale gas development topics. And this ultimately indicates a lack of leadership by Governor Shapiro to defend the health and safety of Pennsylvanians.” Barry Ciccocioppo, the communications director for the Pennsylvania Department of Health, defended the department’s actions. In an email, he told EHN “the [Pitt studies] help advance our understanding of the potential health impacts from hydraulic fracturing operations, and we are continuing to take action to improve the health and safety of Pennsylvania residents.” He pointed to several initiatives related to educating medical professionals about fracking and health, including a recent presentation on the topic by Department of Health staff to a group of medical care providers and seeking approval for continuing education credits for nursing with a recorded version of that presentation (which will be publicly posted online “in the near future”). He also pointed to both past and planned presentations on the topic through a Penn State University program called ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes). “Disseminating public health guidance and research are critical functions of the Department of Health. Neither has yet taken place in relation to these three studies, or any shale gas development topics." - Talor Musil, Environmental Health ProjectHe said the Department of Health is still working with the Department of Education to provide educational materials for schools and families, and the first of those documents is available online. He did not specify a timeline for this work. The Department of Health also said it would begin work on an updated review of the literature on health and fracking. Ciccocioppo pointed to the agency’s 2019 literature review and said DOH is reviewing new scientific papers on health and fracking as they’re published and will post summaries on those papers on its website eventually, but he did not say that a formal literature review is underway. Governor Shapiro’s fracking stanceSeveral speakers at the press conference expressed frustration with Governor Shapiro’s shifting stance on fracking. As attorney general, Shapiro oversaw a grand jury investigation that concluded there was “systematic failure by government agencies in overseeing the fracking industry,” filed criminal charges against several fracking companies for environmental violations and recommended bolstered industry regulations. But as governor, Shapiro has entered into a controversial partnership with CNX Resources, a fracking company that pleaded no contest to criminal charges for misreporting air monitoring data in violation of the state’s Air Pollution Control Act in 2021 — charges that were brought by Shapiro while he was the state’s Attorney General. The company has also received more than 2,000 violations from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection since 2004. CNX’s “Radical Transparency” project launched in 2023, and a recent press release from the company claims that preliminary data from several months of self-reported air monitoring at selected fracking wells “expose the flawed nature of the oft-cited University of Pittsburgh Health Study and its highly suspect results,” and indicate “that natural gas development done the CNX way is safe and inherently good for the communities where we operate.” “CNX has claimed that fracking poses no public health risks with a photo of Governor Shapiro at the top of the report to apply an endorsement from his Administration of these findings,” Environmental Health Project’s Musil said. She added that it’s not meaningful to compare results from a months-long self-monitoring air emissions report by a fracking company to a years-long study of health data by academic and regulatory agency researchers. Jodi Borello, a community organizer with the Center for Coalfield Justice, added, “CNX Resources cannot be trusted to accurately report air data — that’s what their criminal charges were originally for. Governor, Shapiro's relationship with the criminal company CNX Resources is not a public health response.”Westmoreland County resident Diana Steck, who says her family’s health has been impacted by a landfill that processes fracking waste, said the state agencies’ innaction “is not only unacceptable, it is immoral,” in a statement that was read during the press conference. “Governor Shapiro, it’s time for you to stop cozying up to polluters like CNX … and take action to protect our public health, especially that of our children.”

PITTSBURGH — More than a year after the Pennsylvania Department of Health published three studies linking fracking to cancer and other health effects, advocates say the agency failed to keep promises to help residents living near fracking wells. The studies, conducted by University of Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania Department of Health researchers, found that residents living near fracking wells were more likely to experience childhood cancer, severe asthma attacks and low birth weights. They added to dozens of other studies linking living near fracking wells with various health problems, including cancer, poor birth outcomes and cardiovascular and respiratory issues Former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf ordered the studies, commonly referred to as “the Pitt studies,” after residents of fracking communities with high rates of rare childhood cancers demanded more research. The researchers who conducted the study shared the results in August 2023 at a public meeting. They looked at health records and fracking data from 2010-2020 in the eight county Southwestern Pennsylvania region and found, among other things, that children who lived within one mile of one or more fracking wells were five to seven times more likely to develop lymphoma compared to children who don’t live near fracking wells. It also found people with asthma living within 10 miles of fracking wells were four to five times more likely to experience a severe asthma attack during the production phase and an increased risk of having babies that are small for gestational age among Pennsylvanians living within 10 miles of fracking wells. The Pennsylvania Department of Health pledged action in response to the findings, but residents and environmental advocates say the agency hasn’t done enough. “Millions of dollars have been spent on this study only for it to be buried,” said Stacy Magda, a community organizer with the Mountain Watershed Association during a virtual press conference organized by five environmental and health advocacy groups on Tuesday. The groups that held the press conference, which included the Center for Coalfield Justice, the Pennsylvania chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility, the Mountain Watershed Association, the Environmental Health Project and FracTracker Alliance, also launched a petition asking Governor Josh Shapiro and the Pennsylvania Department of Health to take further action aimed at protecting residents who live near fracking wells. Janice Blanock, a resident of Cecil Township, Pennsylvania, about 20 miles from Pittsburgh, held back tears as she spoke at the press conference over Zoom from a neighbor’s backyard, where a new fracking well was visible in the background. In 2016, her 19-year-old son Luke died from a rare bone cancer. “I’ll never know exactly what caused my son's cancer,” Blanock said. “I'll never know why there are such high rates of rare cancers in my community. But I do know that harm is being done. And that pollution can make us sick … I am here to demand that Governor Shapiro address the results of the [studies].” During the 2023 public meeting when the studies were presented, the Pennsylvania Department of Health announced the launch of a continuing medical education program on environmental exposures, said it would start a program to educate schools in fracking communities about air quality, said it had developed a new form for submitting environmental health complaints, and promised to continue reviewing cancer data in the region. “Disseminating public health guidance and research are critical functions of the Department of Health,” said Talor Musil, a field manager at the Environmental Health Project during the press conference. “Neither has yet taken place in relation to these three studies, or any shale gas development topics. And this ultimately indicates a lack of leadership by Governor Shapiro to defend the health and safety of Pennsylvanians.” Barry Ciccocioppo, the communications director for the Pennsylvania Department of Health, defended the department’s actions. In an email, he told EHN “the [Pitt studies] help advance our understanding of the potential health impacts from hydraulic fracturing operations, and we are continuing to take action to improve the health and safety of Pennsylvania residents.” He pointed to several initiatives related to educating medical professionals about fracking and health, including a recent presentation on the topic by Department of Health staff to a group of medical care providers and seeking approval for continuing education credits for nursing with a recorded version of that presentation (which will be publicly posted online “in the near future”). He also pointed to both past and planned presentations on the topic through a Penn State University program called ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes). “Disseminating public health guidance and research are critical functions of the Department of Health. Neither has yet taken place in relation to these three studies, or any shale gas development topics." - Talor Musil, Environmental Health ProjectHe said the Department of Health is still working with the Department of Education to provide educational materials for schools and families, and the first of those documents is available online. He did not specify a timeline for this work. The Department of Health also said it would begin work on an updated review of the literature on health and fracking. Ciccocioppo pointed to the agency’s 2019 literature review and said DOH is reviewing new scientific papers on health and fracking as they’re published and will post summaries on those papers on its website eventually, but he did not say that a formal literature review is underway. Governor Shapiro’s fracking stanceSeveral speakers at the press conference expressed frustration with Governor Shapiro’s shifting stance on fracking. As attorney general, Shapiro oversaw a grand jury investigation that concluded there was “systematic failure by government agencies in overseeing the fracking industry,” filed criminal charges against several fracking companies for environmental violations and recommended bolstered industry regulations. But as governor, Shapiro has entered into a controversial partnership with CNX Resources, a fracking company that pleaded no contest to criminal charges for misreporting air monitoring data in violation of the state’s Air Pollution Control Act in 2021 — charges that were brought by Shapiro while he was the state’s Attorney General. The company has also received more than 2,000 violations from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection since 2004. CNX’s “Radical Transparency” project launched in 2023, and a recent press release from the company claims that preliminary data from several months of self-reported air monitoring at selected fracking wells “expose the flawed nature of the oft-cited University of Pittsburgh Health Study and its highly suspect results,” and indicate “that natural gas development done the CNX way is safe and inherently good for the communities where we operate.” “CNX has claimed that fracking poses no public health risks with a photo of Governor Shapiro at the top of the report to apply an endorsement from his Administration of these findings,” Environmental Health Project’s Musil said. She added that it’s not meaningful to compare results from a months-long self-monitoring air emissions report by a fracking company to a years-long study of health data by academic and regulatory agency researchers. Jodi Borello, a community organizer with the Center for Coalfield Justice, added, “CNX Resources cannot be trusted to accurately report air data — that’s what their criminal charges were originally for. Governor, Shapiro's relationship with the criminal company CNX Resources is not a public health response.”Westmoreland County resident Diana Steck, who says her family’s health has been impacted by a landfill that processes fracking waste, said the state agencies’ innaction “is not only unacceptable, it is immoral,” in a statement that was read during the press conference. “Governor Shapiro, it’s time for you to stop cozying up to polluters like CNX … and take action to protect our public health, especially that of our children.”

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