Articles (Ecologist)

Given the known side effects and limited effectiveness of Herceptin, how has it become the latest Breast Cancer miracle cure? Pat Thomas investigates. “The history of medicine is littered with wonderful early results which over a period of time turn out to be not so wonderful – or in fact even adverse. If you look […]

Our Read the Label campaign is putting manufacturers under pressure to justify their use of toxic cosmetic ingredients. Pat Thomas reviews some of their excuses   Our Read the Label campaign asks readers to write to the manufacturers of their favourite bodycare products and ask why they continue to use potentially toxic ingredients when safer […]

Soft towels, fluffy fleeces and synthetic fabrics don’t cling. What’s not to like? Well, try skin irritation, increased flammability and environmental pollution, for starters. It seems the average bottle of fabric softener has a dark side. By Pat Thomas   By all accounts we love our fabric softeners. In the US, consumers spend around $700 […]

The Japanese Whaling Association insists that whale meat is healthier than beef. But the truth is that it’s a cocktail of oceanic contaminants, the toxicity of which far outweighs any nutritional benefits. Pat Thomas reports Whales, being at the top of the oceanic food chain, collect and store a wide range of environmental pollutants, including […]

Stop worrying about major accidents such as Chernobyl, nuclear reactors legally emit radioactive particles that are causing cancer clusters to erupt around the country. By Pat Thomas Radioactive pollution doesn’t just leak from nuclear installations in emergencies and accidents. It is emitted from them, legally, every single day. These licenced emissions and controlled releases are […]

Rather than slather liberal amounts of chemicals on our bodies and faces with sun creams and other cosmetics, Pat Thomas suggests a little sun exposure might do us good. Sunscreens protect the skin from the sun’s harmful UV rays. They are beneficial. They are desirable. They are necessary. Or so we are told. So why […]

Far from being the healthy drink implied by its sports sponsorships, Diet Coke is a worrying cocktail of neurotoxic and potentially carcinogenic chemicals. By Pat Thomas Diet Coke was first introduced in the US in July 1982 and today it is the fourth most commonly consumed carbonated beverage in the world. Apart from being the […]

Most of us try to avoid foods containing artificial colours, so why do we continue to buy bodycare products and cosmetics made with unnatural and potentially harmful colours and dyes? Pat Thomas reports. It starts when you get up in the morning. You grab a bar of soap or a bottle of shower foam and […]

Mix flour, water and yeast and you’ve got a tasty loaf of bread. But make your bread the industrial way and you’ll end up eating more than you bargained for. By Pat Thomas It’s the ultimate fast food, convenient and healthy and with genuine traditional appeal. Bread is one of the great staple foods and, […]

Despite the best efforts of the industry to rebrand and clean up incineration, the fact remains that today’s incinerators still permit pollution. Roughly 2 1/2 million tonnes of municipal waste are incinerated in the UK each year.  More efficient filters make emissions look clearer, but just because you don’t see the pollution, doesn’t mean it […]