Emperor emeritus leaves hospital after heart treatment
The 91-year-old former emperor, accompanied by Empress Emerita Michiko, 90, left the hospital in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward by car at around 11:30 a.m. and headed for their residence, the Sento Imperial Residence in Tokyo's Minato Ward.
In 2022, the emperor emeritus was diagnosed with right heart failure caused by tricuspid valve insufficiency.
He was admitted to the university hospital in May for a heart examination and diagnosed with asymptomatic myocardial ischemia. After being discharged from the hospital, he was treated with medication to improve blood circulation. As there was no improvement, however, the medical team determined that he needed the additional oral medication to ease the load on his heart. He had been hospitalized since Monday for the dosage adjustment.
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A 2022 opinion paper co-written by Cruz and Downs outlined the harm that sunscreen pollution can cause to marine and freshwater ecosystems, and the need for governments to inspire industry innovations for safer products. 'Sunscreen pollution can be a symptom of unsustainable tourism and coastal development, impacting marine and aquatic resources,' they wrote, adding that it can impact primary production and hurt the viability of offspring. Cruz says that the regulations are 'precautionary' and flexible enough, as they allow chemicals scientifically proven to be harmless to the environment or human health to be removed from the list. In addition to the initial ban of 10 specific ingredients, Palau now bans their derivatives, which are slightly different chemicals in the same classes as the outlawed ones. The government confiscates all sunscreens deemed to be toxic to reefs from tourists upon entry, and retailers selling them can be fined. Industry response The series of regulatory moves has rattled the cosmetics industry, which broadly views the current bans as not backed by sufficient scientific evidence. The U.S. Personal Care Products Council, a powerful trade group for the cosmetics industry, has released statements opposing the bans, advocating instead for 'sound scientific research in policymaking to ensure consumer access to safe, effective sunscreens.' 'Hawaii's legislation banning oxybenzone and octinoxate in sunscreens has raised concerns over the lack of scientific evidence linking sunscreen ingredients to coral reef decline, with other environmental factors like climate change and pollution identified as more significant contributors,' the group says on its website. Tokyo-based Kao, a major cosmetic company that develops and markets sunscreen products, says that the company has complied with regulations in each region and has launched a nonchemical product as well. 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'We would like to understand the reasoning behind these regulations accurately, explain to consumers the position of our products based on this understanding, and develop products that can be explained from such a position.' Shiseido and Kao are among the Japanese brands that have had to navigate changing regulations over sunscreen amid environmental concerns. | Reuters Shiseido, another major Japanese cosmetic brand, also says that the sunscreens it markets in Hawaii are in compliance with local rules and do not contain banned ingredients. It doesn't sell sunscreen in Palau. 'Shiseido not only complies with safety assurance guidelines and laws and regulations around the world, but has also established its own strict safety assurance standards to confirm the safety of all ingredients in its products and formulate them appropriately,' a spokesperson said. Others are raising concerns about the impact of anti-sunscreen messaging on human health. Kao's Fujii points to the vital role sunscreens have played in preventing severe sunburns and skin cancer, saying that bans on common ingredients that are hard to find alternatives for may restrict access to effective tools against a major public health threat. Compound effects Many Japanese cosmetics companies are conducting independent research to examine the toxicity of sunscreen ingredients on corals. Last year, Kao published findings of a joint study with the University of Tokyo in the journal Science of the Total Environment. In the study, the team exposed a coral species called Acropora tenuis collected from the reef off Sesoko Island in Okinawa to oxybenzone for 96 hours. All of the coral fragments were dead at the 24-hour mark when the chemical's concentration was 5.6 milligrams per liter, but none died at lower concentrations. Based on the results, the concentration that had harmful effects to 50% of the test corals — a benchmark used in toxicity tests — was calculated to be 2.0 mg per liter, more than 1,000 times the highest concentration reported in a 2013 study that sampled actual seawater in Okinawa. Also, through RNA sequencing, they found that corals showed different 'gene expression' patterns when responding to higher ocean temperatures and to higher concentrations of oxybenzone. 'Corals themselves know the difference between heat stress and chemical stress, which I found to be very interesting,' says Toshiyuki Takagi, a coral researcher at the University of Tokyo who was involved in the study. 'At present, we cannot tell from looking at corals what has caused their bleaching, but we may be able to develop a method to identify the cause from gene expression.' Toshiyuki Takagi, a coral researcher at the University of Tokyo's Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, looks over corals cultured at the institute in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, earlier this month. | Tomoko Otake Yutaka Tashiro, a professor at Meio University in Okinawa Prefecture, conducted a sampling survey of ocean water at an Okinawa beach in the early 2010s. His team's conclusion at the time was that, while concentrations of sunscreen chemicals varied by location, time of day and the number of people, they were not high enough to have a clear impact on coral or other marine life, he says. But the negative impact of sunscreen cannot be entirely ruled out, given the increasingly harsh conditions for coral reefs, which are bearing the brunt of climate change, he says. Coral reefs provide food, shelter and spawning grounds for many marine species. They are called the 'rainforests of the sea' due to their ability to support abundant life. Coral bleaching is a phenomenon in which corals drive out the symbiotic algae living inside their tissues. While bleached corals don't die immediately, they lose the nutrients provided by such algae, and eventually die if bleaching continues. 'Corals can be reborn or nurtured after bleaching,' Tashiro says. 'One big concern is that chemical pollution (including that brought on by sunscreens) may hinder this recovery process.' Tashiro adds that mineral sunscreens — some of which use nanoparticles to remove a noticeable white cast with them — haven't proven to be completely safe for the environment, either. "Now, researchers (worldwide) are studying how zinc oxide and titanium dioxide impact the environment and organisms," he says. "It's probably less gray than chemical sunscreens, but no definitive conclusion has been drawn." While research on the environmental impact of sunscreens has been limited in Japan, some institutes affiliated with municipal governments have recently started analyzing water quality in the ocean and rivers, says Yutaka Kameda, an environmental chemistry professor at the Chiba Institute of Technology. His team also started sampling surveys of waters off an Okinawa beach last year in partnership with researchers from the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology. He echoes Tashiro's view that the impact of chronic chemical stress on corals remains unclear at this point. Unlike industry representatives, however, Kameda considers moves by Hawaii to target oxybenzone and octinoxate 'reasonable,' citing a growing number of studies on their toxicity and endocrine-disrupting quality, mostly to humans. Meanwhile, some products with 'reef-friendly' labeling have recently come under heavy scrutiny. In March, the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office in California sued the maker of the Hawaiian Tropic and Banana Boat sunscreens, saying it engaged in false advertising by calling some of its products 'reef-friendly' without scientific support. In March, the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office in California sued the maker of the Hawaiian Tropic and Banana Boat sunscreens, saying it engaged in false advertising by calling some of its products 'reef-friendly' without scientific support. | Reuters The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission also sued the owner of the popular sunscreens for alleged greenwashing last month. The consumer watchdog alleges that, while the sunscreens do not contain oxybenzone or octinoxate, they contain other ingredients that either cause or risk causing harm to coral and marine life, such as octocrylene and homosalate. While there are no easy answers, Tashiro says the best approach to protecting yourself from the sun varies among people. Those engaged in outdoor work, whether in construction or marine tourism, should do everything they can to protect themselves from UV rays, including by using sunscreens, he says. For others, seeking shade and covering their bodies with breathable, long-sleeved shirts, as well as hats and sunglasses, would be a viable option. 'The idea that reducing exposure to the sun and wearing protective clothing is an environmentally friendly option should spread more widely,' he says.
