Workplace violence in San Francisco, an e-cigarette shocker and a nutritional label change gets delayed. These were among the top stories featured on ISHN.com this week.

A Confined Space blog post

Father and son suffocate in confined space. Why?

All preventable workplace fatalities make me mad, but none make me madder than trench collapses and confined space fatalities. There is no reason for any of them to happen. The hazards of trenches and confined spaces are well known and there are good OSHA standards that would prevent these deaths if followed.

Confused about sat fat? AHA says: “Lose it”

The American Heart Association (AHA) wants to set the record straight: scientific research overwhelmingly supports limiting saturated fat in the diet to prevent diseases of the heart and blood vessels.

Worker dies after being pulled into machine

OSHA has issued a dozen citations and proposed $226,431 in fines following its investigation into the Nov. 29, 2016, death of a 26-year-old machine operator at a Pensacola-area electrical cable manufacturer.

Safety 2017 expected to have record attendance

By Benita Mehta

The American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) says this year’s turnout will rank No. 1 in the event’s 56-year history. ASSE’s Safety 2017 Professional Development Conference & Exposition has topped its records for registered attendance and exhibitors.

A NIOSH Science Blog post

Exoskeletons in Construction: Will they reduce or create hazards?

Wearable exoskeleton devices can reduce some of the mechanical stress of manual labor (1). These wearable machines can be powered by electricity or by human motion, and they can be as large as a space suit or as small as a glove.

American Industrial Hygiene Foundation ushers in new Board at AIHce EXP 2017

The American Industrial Hygiene Foundation (AIHF) passed the baton to its new Board of Trustees at the American Industrial Hygiene Conference and Exposition (AIHce EXP) in Seattle, WA. The robust foundation recently awarded a total of $131,800 in scholarships to 51 industrial hygiene students.

Workplace violence strikes S.F. UPS

Employees at a San Francisco UPS facility fled in terror yesterday morning screaming, “Shooter! Shooter!” as a gunman opened fire, killing three people and wounding two others before turning the weapon on himself as police closed in.

OSH training in schools bill passes in Texas

A bill calling for educators to include workplace safety training in their curricula has been signed into law in Texas – and the American Industrial Hygiene Association® (AIHA) helped.

E-cigarettes ‘potentially as harmful as tobacco cigarettes’

“I was shocked the first time I saw the result”

By Colin Poitras

A study by chemists at the University of Connecticut offers new evidence that electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, are potentially as harmful as tobacco cigarettes. Using a new low-cost, 3-D printed testing device, UConn researchers found that e-cigarettes loaded with a nicotine-based liquid are potentially as harmful as unfiltered cigarettes when it comes to causing DNA damage.

Trump delays nutritional label rule

The Trump administration announced yesterday that it will delay a rule requiring changes to nutritional labels on processed foods. The reason for pushing back the July 26, 2018 compliance date: the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says manufacturers need more time to enact the changes.

Is it hot enough for you?

Take heat stroke symptoms seriously

With a large part of the U.S. sweltering under high temperatures, it’s important to recognize the warning signs of heatstroke and take measures to avoid it. Outdoor workers face a double whammy: prolonged exposure to heat while engaging in physical exertion.

It pays to create a culture of workplace safety

By Mike Schmidt

Creating and maintaining a safe work environment should be a priority of great significance for all manufacturers, but ensuring the well-being of employees on the job is an incredibly tall task.

A Confined Space blog post

Dead in a bathtub at 21

By Jordan Barab

On April 28, while thousands of Americans were commemorating Workers Memorial Day, 21 year old Kevin Hartley was hard at work stripping a bathtub. Co-workers found Kevin unconscious and rushed him to the hospital where he died later that afternoon of cardiac arrest.

American Public Health Association wants healthy communities

New “playbook” covers environmental health

"Everyone — regardless of age, gender, pre-existing conditions, income or other factors — should have the opportunity to achieve the highest possible level of health, which encompasses physical, mental and social well-being,” says Surili Sutaria Patel, MS.

A FairWarning story

Fix sought for heat deaths of children left in cars

By Paul Feldman

Each year, roughly three dozen children die of heatstroke in unattended vehicles. Today three congressmen and a coalition of safety groups announced plans to do something about it, through legislation to require alerts in cars as a reminder that there may still be a child in the back.

A poor diet during pregnancy could increase child obesity risk

Children born to women with gestational diabetes whose diet included high proportions of refined grains may have a higher risk of obesity by age 7, compared to children born to women with gestational diabetes who ate low proportions of refined grains, according to results from a National Institutes of Health study (NIH).

A bad three days in New York

A fall, suffocation and being crushed claimed the lives of two construction workers and left another with serious injuries in separate incidents in New York last week.

1 million square feet of worker safety in Atlanta

Approximately 4,000 construction workers are about to be a little bit safer, due to a partnership formed recently between the Georgia Institute of Technology Onsite Safety and Health Consultation Program, Holder Construction Co., Associated General Contractors of Georgia Inc. and OSHA.