Findings add to growing evidence that some degree of exposure to germs at an early age benefits children, and that microbial deprivation might backfire, preventing the immune system from developing a tolerance to trivial threats.

The best way to clean a pacifier, according to a Swedish study, is to pop it in your own mouth and then give it to your baby. The new research is part of an investigation of the hygiene hypothesis - the notion that increased rates of allergies and asthma are due to overly clean living environments.

Long hours spent in air-conditioned and carpeted rooms and genetic factors are now being increasingly seen as major causes of asthma, which was earlier attributed mainly to vehicular exhaust and other forms of air pollution.

Pittsburgh may be one of America's most livable cities, but air pollution still makes the area a riskier place to live, according to a presentation scheduled Tuesday.

Citing growing evidence of the health risks associated with sunlamps and tanning beds, the Food and Drug Administration on Monday said it would seek tighter regulations and more-detailed labeling of the devices, in part to discourage their use by people under 18.

San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera sued Monster Beverage Corp. in California state court Monday, accusing the company of marketing its caffeinated energy drinks to children despite alleged health risks.

Diesel trucks help move $1 billion worth of cargo annually in and out of Port Newark, a cornerstone of the nation’s third-largest port system and the source of tens of thousands of jobs. But the pollution exacts a heavy toll on residents, environmental advocates say.

After two decades of steady declines and modest increases, the birthrate in Egypt in 2012 reached about 32 for every 1,000 people — surpassing a level last seen in 1991. Officials have avoided public discussion about population and dropped the awareness campaigns of the past.

Bisphenol A was reported in eight children's products. Included are the dyes of soft toys sold by Triboro Quilt Manufacturing Corp. and Wal-Mart. Michaels Stores reported it in bracelets, sportswear, jewelry craft materials and fancy dress accessories. MGA Entertainment and Little Tikes found it in ride-on toys.

Parabens, widely used as preservatives in cosmetics, plastics and foods, showed up in dozens of children's products, including baby skin care lotions and wipes.

Eight different phthalates, the controversial, hormone-disrupting chemicals used to make vinyl and fragrances, showed up in more than 770 children's products.

Methyl ethyl ketone, an industrial solvent, was reported by companies in the plastics, surface coatings and textiles of 469 children's products, including boots, hats, trousers and arts and crafts, among dozens of others.

Two chemicals that may act like estrogen – nonylphenol and octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane, known as D4 – were reported in pigments, solvents or stabilizers in synthetic textiles and plastics used in children's products.

At Camp Lejeune military base in North Carolina, a recent report from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry has indicated that the contamination at Camp Lejeune may go back as far as 1953. Michigan Congressman John Dingle is calling for further hearings on the issue.

For the fifth straight year, Sumner County has received an "F" rating from the American Lung Association for the amount of ozone in the air.

For the third time in a month, Pima County's air crossed the line Friday into the unhealthy realm because of windblown dust.

It is a spring ritual for state agencies, farmers and gardeners to arm themselves with chemicals to wipe out insects and weeds, with little thought of the broader consequences. It is long overdue that this ritual give way to science.

The U.S. food and drug regulator on Friday called the addition of caffeine to children's foods like chewing gum and jelly beans "dangerous" and warned of a possible crackdown.

Lingering oil residue at the bottom of Gulf Coast marshes caused heart defects and hindered reproduction in a small fish seen as an environmental bellwether, researchers said Thursday.

Researchers at an international conference on autism on Friday presented three new studies lending strength to the notion that environmental influences before birth may play a role in the risk for the condition.