What’s in This?

Closing the (Ingredient) Loop

What’s going on: The days of food companies adding whatever they want to their products are coming to an end. Kind of. Yesterday, Health Services Secretary RFK Jr. announced plans to close a decades-old loophole that allows companies to add ingredients to products without any tests or alerting the FDA. The “Generally Recognized as Safe” (GRAS) system was meant to give companies the flexibility to add things like extra spices or baking soda without fanfare. But then food brands started mixing in chemical additives like thickeners and crunch-enhancers (yum?) under the GRAS guidelines –– without any proof that they're safe for consumption. Under this new rule, companies would have to give the government a heads-up when they add something new to the mix, triggering an FDA review and inspection. But those ingredients will still be on shelves in the meantime.

Wait, they’ve just been adding whatever they want to food?: Basically, yes. And while the "little bit of this and a little bit of that" attitude might work on the Food Network, it’s not for the masses. According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), 111 chemicals labeled GRAS have been added to popular brands. This shift delivers on a MAHA campaign promise to enhance food safety, but some key details are missing from the proposal. Like... what’s the process to review products already on the market? What happens when an ingredient is deemed “unsafe”? After sweeping FDA cuts, does the agency even have the staff to enforce such a rule? Is this ultimately a sprinkle of oversight with a dash of the status quo?

Related: President Trump’s New Executive Order Calls for Fewer Childhood Vaccines (NPR)

Science Rules

A New Shot at Cancer Prevention

What's going on: Scientists are working to develop new vaccines that could stop certain types of genetically driven cancers before they even start. First up, researchers are targeting Lynch syndrome. It’s a genetic condition that comes with a high risk of developing certain cancers, particularly colorectal and endometrial. While not well-known, it affects around one in 300 people worldwide and around one million in the US. Following promising trial results published earlier this year, there are now at least three vaccines in development intended to teach the immune system to recognize precancerous cells before they get the chance to mutate. The science is science-ing. 

Written in the genes?: Around 95% of people with Lynch syndrome don’t know they have it. Many only find out after they or a family member gets diagnosed with cancer. The main management strategy is surveillance, like annual colonoscopies. Some even decide to get precautionary hysterectomies. A preventative vaccine could reduce the need for such frequent testing and surgeries. While trials are far from over, scientists and people with Lynch syndrome are hopeful. A 53-year-old woman who received a trial vaccine described it as potentially “life-changing.”    

Related: Hunter Biden Opened Up About His Dad's “Debilitating” Cancer Battle (ABC News)

Keep Out 

Blast From the Past

What’s going on: In Europe, World War II ships dot the Danube River. And we're not talking about 1944. We mean right now. Near the end of the war, German forces intentionally sank about 200 vessels to slow the advancing Soviet navy. Now in the Serbian part of the river, at least a dozen have popped up to say “hallo” to trade vessels trying to pass through. This summer, heat domes, forest fires, and now drought are simultaneously bearing down on the continent. Most of Europe’s major rivers are receding to record-low water levels. It’s hit tourism hard (one cruise ship recently ran aground in the Danube), but these long-buried shipwrecks are just one example of a new concern in the climate crisis: decades-old unexploded artillery. 

(Keeping) bombs away: In the adjacent Rhine River, an unexploded 500-pound WWII bomb surfaced, and raging forest fires in France have been setting off old, buried explosives. The regional economy is feeling the pressure: Global shipping captains are struggling to navigate Europe’s waterways at a time when the Iran war is already straining commerce. Economists estimate that the heat’s effect on labor, agriculture, energy use, and infrastructure could cost the European Union $208 billion, or 1% of its GDP. But Europe’s not the only one with danger lurking beneath the surface. In Laos, heavy rains and fires have loosened and detonated bombs, contributing to the 20,000 deaths caused by leftover explosives from the Vietnam War since 1973. Extreme weather has also wreaked havoc in the Solomon Islands, where unexploded WWII bombs leach chemicals into the water supply. 

Related: If Shipwrecks Are Your Roman Empire, This One’s for You (BBC)

Quick Hits

🫍 When the orcas take over, this mega-yacht is first on their list.

🥤 Skip the neon electrolyte drinks: This surprising beverage is more hydrating than water. But maybe add a few ice cubes first.

🤔 Gen Z has a new word for "performative." What in the ren faire is this?

👩‍❤️‍👨 Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, and Olivia Rodrigo all have something in common right now. He’s more than a catch; he’s an asset.

🍹 Celebrities and influencers are dressing like this cocktail. Inspiration really is all around us.

🐾 Move over, golden retrievers. Researchers say a new animal might be evolving into our next best friend. Jimothy, is that you?

🎨 A veteran house painter calls this trend in house decorating “ignorant,” throwing shade at one shade in particular. Some colorful language there. 

Skimm'd by: Marisa Iallonardo, Molly Longman, Aryanna Prasad Bhullar, Stephanie Gallman, Erika W. Smith, Katherine Shen, Kate Preziosi, Jessica Prois, Samantha Darby, and Marina Carver. Fact-checked by Sara Tardiff.