Dutch air quality shows little improvement in 2017 In 2017, concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter in most parts of the Netherlands were below European limit values.
Animal-free innovations in safety assessment of chemicals How can the process of validation, acceptance and use of animal-free innovative approaches to assess the safety of chemicals be facilitated?
Climate change, ozone depletion and air quality need to be addressed coherently Ozone layer depletion, air pollution and climate change need to be addressed in connection with each other.
New standard for exposure assessment of cleaning products RIVM has updated the standard for exposure assessment of cleaning products in the ConsExpo Cleaning Products Fact Sheet.
Every year, 300,000 tick bites in urban areas One in 5 tick bites occurs in an urban area. Although most tick bites occur in the countryside, many people are bitten in urban areas as well.
Less salt in certain foods, sugar contents remain unchanged The salt content in bread was on average 19 percent lower compared to 2011. In addition, certain types of sauces, soups, canned vegetables and pulses, and crisps had a lower salt content.
Blood spot test extended as of 1 January 2017 to include two more disorders As of 1 January 2017, the disorders alpha and beta thalassaemia will be added to the neonatal blood spot (‘heel prick’) screening programme.
RIVM launches new web-based version of ConsExpo An improved version of the computer program ConsExpo is now available via the RIVM website.
First patient infected by tick-borne encephalitis virus For the first time, a person in the Netherlands has fallen ill after a bite from a tick carrying the tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBE virus).
Less air pollution from traffic and industry but increased contribution from agriculture International air policy has shown good results in Europe: in the past 35 years the air has become cleaner. Nevertheless air pollution is still an important cause of premature death.