David Loughran

David Loughran

David Loughran is Praedicat's Senior Vice President of Product & Chief Economist. Prior to joining Praedicat as a founding member, David was Senior Economist at the RAND Corporation where he served as principal investigator for a diverse portfolio of empirically-driven, policy-relevant research in the areas of insurance, labor markets, demography, and energy.

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Cigarettes are no more addictive than Twinkies
Cigarettes are no more addictive than Twinkies 700 350 David Loughran

Testifying before Congress in 1994, James Johnston, then CEO of R.J. Reynolds, defended his company’s tobacco products by claiming they were no more addictive than Twinkies.  At the time, that claim…

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California legislators looking to ban the “Toxic Twenty” from cosmetics
California legislators looking to ban the “Toxic Twenty” from cosmetics 700 350 David Loughran

The “Toxic Trio” of hazardous cosmetic ingredients is now the “Toxic Twenty.” Responding to environmental and consumer protection organizations like the Environmental Working Group, the California state assembly in 2019…

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Makers and users of flame retardants sitting uncomfortably
Makers and users of flame retardants sitting uncomfortably 500 433 David Loughran

Imagine the sight and sound of a sofa engulfed in flames juxtaposed with the question “Are you sitting comfortably?”  This last-minute media campaign by the industry-funded lobby Citizens for Fire…

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5G: Will this time be different?
5G: Will this time be different? 500 433 David Loughran

Fifth generation (5G) wireless networking technology promises to greatly improve wireless communication, significantly increasing data transmission speeds and reducing latency. The anticipated quantum leap in wireless networking performance is made…

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Night shift work and cancer: Could it be blue light?
Night shift work and cancer: Could it be blue light? 5184 3456 David Loughran

In 2007 the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified shift work with circadian disruption as probably carcinogenic to humans on the basis of sufficient evidence in animals and…

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CBD-infused food and beverage products in regulatory limbo
CBD-infused food and beverage products in regulatory limbo 1024 683 David Loughran

Cannabidiol, or CBD, is all the rage. The non-psychoactive cannabinoid derived from marijuana plants can be found in myriad food, beverage, dietary supplement, and cosmetic products on the shelves of…

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Endocrine disruptors: The signature public health threat of our time
Endocrine disruptors: The signature public health threat of our time 2000 1200 David Loughran

The increase in the incidence of various cancers in the 20th century led scientists to investigate potential environmental causes such as asbestos, silica, particulate matter, benzene, and formaldehyde.  The signature health…

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Correlational evidence accumulating on the human health impacts of fracking
Correlational evidence accumulating on the human health impacts of fracking 1600 1072 David Loughran

Hydraulic fracturing — the process of injecting millions of gallons of water and chemicals into shale formations to release oil and gas — has transformed energy production in the United…

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Propylene glycol earns dubious honor as 2018 “Allergen of the Year”
Propylene glycol earns dubious honor as 2018 “Allergen of the Year” 379 379 David Loughran

Each year, the American Contact Dermatitis Society designates an “Allergen of the Year.”  In 2018, that dubious honor was given to propylene glycol.  Propylene glycol, widely used to absorb water…

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Who will pay for the opioid epidemic?
Who will pay for the opioid epidemic? 379 379 David Loughran

Who will pay for the opioid epidemic?  The millions of individuals addicted to opioids and the hundreds of thousands of individuals who have died from opioid overdose, along with their…

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PFOA & PFOS replacements under fire
PFOA & PFOS replacements under fire 379 379 David Loughran

DuPont and 3M introduced the commercial world to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the 1950s.  Decades later, the first generation of these water-, grease-, and stain-resistant chemicals – perfluorooctanoic…

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Locating 39,000 companies on the casualty catastrophe map
Locating 39,000 companies on the casualty catastrophe map 700 445 David Loughran

One of the many reasons casualty catastrophe is a challenge to model is that the insured’s exposure is driven by its past and present business activities: the industrial processes it…

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