Silent Spring – The Human Price Author Rachel Carson (1962) “Her work attracted outrage from the pesticide industry and others. Her credibility as a scientist was attacked, and she was derided as ‘hysterical,’ despite her fact-based assertions and calm and scholarly demeanor. Following the hearings, President Kennedy convened a committee to review the evidence Carson presented. The committee's review completely vindicating her findings.”
Transcript
Silent Spring – The Human PriceAuthor Rachel Carson (1962)
“Her work attracted outrage from the pesticide industry and others. Her credibility as a scientist was attacked, and she was derided as ‘hysterical,’ despite her fact-based assertions and calm and scholarly demeanor. Following the hearings, President Kennedy convened a committee to review the evidence Carson presented. The committee's review completely vindicating her findings.”
The pictures are heartbreaking: Millions of honeybees lie dead after being sprayed with an insecticide targeting Zika-carrying mosquitoes.
"On Saturday, it was total energy, millions of bees foraging, pollinating, making honey for winter," beekeeper Juanita Stanley said. "Today, it stinks of death. Maggots and other insects are feeding on the honey and the baby bees who are still in the hives. It's heartbreaking."
Stanley, co-owner of Flowertown Bee Farm and Supply in Summerville, South Carolina, said she lost 46 beehives -- more than 3 million bees -- in mere minutes after the spraying began Sunday morning.
Those that didn't die immediately were poisoned trying to drag out the dead," Stanley said. "Now, I'm going to have to destroy my hives, the honey, all my equipment. It's all contaminated."
US WORST DISEASE OUTBREAKS1793: Yellow fever from the Caribbean1832-1866: Cholera in three waves1858: Scarlet fever also came in waves1906-1907: “Typhoid Mary”1918: “Spanish flu”1921-1925: Diphtheria epidemic1916-1955: The peak of polio1981-1991: Second measles outbreak2010, 2014: Whooping cough
The bubonic plague, better known as the “The Black Death,” has existed for thousands of years. The first recorded case of the plague was in China in 224 B.C.E. But the most significant outbreak was in Europe in the mid-fourteenth century. Over a five-year period from 1347 to 1352, 25 million people died.
In 2015, the officially reported number of deaths to WHO was 1304. It is estimated that in reality between 42,000 and 142,000 people die of cholera each year. In spite of all the efforts, many more deaths could be averted, provided that cases are recognized early and treatment is initiated timely.
An estimated 300 million people died from smallpox in the 20th century alone. This virulent disease, which kills a third of those it infects, is known to have co-existed with human beings for thousands of years.
“Pesticide contamination has the power to make our streams fishless, and our gardens and woodlands silent and birdless.”
Dr. Rene’ Dubos
“Men are naturally more impressed by diseases which have obvious manifestations, yet some of their worst enemies creep on them unobtrusively.”
- Along with the wide use of pesticides in the world, the concerns over their health impacts are rapidly growing. - There is a huge body of evidence on the relation
between exposure to pesticides and elevated rate of chronic diseases such as different types of:
- Cancers, diabetes, neurodegenerative disorders like Parkinson, Alzheimer, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), birth defects, and reproductive disorders
- Other chronic diseases like respiratory problems, particularly asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cardiovascular disease such as atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease, chronic nephropathies, autoimmune diseases like systemic lupus erythematous and rheumatoid arthritis, chronic fatigue syndrome, and aging.
Issues of pesticide poisoning
Poison caddis flies – salmon diesPoison gnats – birds around the lake dieSpray elms – robins die (elm leaf-earthworm-robin)
Minute causes produce might effects – one molecule affected can wreak havoc in organs and tissues. Biological Effects
One who handles materials is unquestionably storing toxic materials
Chlorinated hydrocarbons
Toxic materials are stored in body fat. When these reserves of fat are drawn upon, the poison may strike quickly.
Obesity issues
- Aldrin and dieldrin are the common names of two structurally similar compounds that were once used as insecticides (chemicals that are made in the laboratory and do not occur naturally in the environment).
- Aldrin and dieldrin are no longer produced or used. From the 1950s until 1970, aldrin and dieldrin were used extensively as insecticides on crops such as corn and cotton. The U.S. Department of Agriculture canceled all uses of aldrin and dieldrin in 1970. In 1972, however, EPA approved aldrin and dieldrin for killing termites. Use of aldrin and dieldrin to control termites continued until 1987. In 1987, the manufacturer voluntarily canceled the registration for use in controlling termites.
- For most people, exposure to aldrin and dieldrin occurs when they eat foods contaminated with either chemical. Contaminated foods might include fish or shellfish from contaminated lakes or streams, root crops, dairy products, and meats. Exposure to aldrin and dieldrin also occurs when you drink water, breathe air, or come into contact with contaminated soil at hazardous waste sites.
- Symptoms of aldrin and dieldrin poisoning have been seen in people who were exposed to very large amounts of these pesticides during their manufacture. Symptoms of poisoning have also been seen in people who intentionally or accidentally ate or drank large amounts of aldrin or dieldrin. Most of these people experienced convulsions or other nervous system effects, and some had kidney damage.
Adipose Tissue
- Fat-soluble insecticides become stored in individual cells.- Importance of a healthy liver: provides bile for the digestion of
fats; receives blood directly from the digestive tract; deeply involved in the metabolism of foodstuffs; maintains cholesterol at its proper level; builds body proteins; inactivates male and female hormones when they reach excessive levels; stores many vitamins.
- Abnormally functioning liver – defenseless against variety of poisons. Normal livers can alter poison molecules so that their capacity to harm is lessened.
- A liver damaged by insecticides cannot protect.
Damaged livers – growth in hepatitis
Both Hepatitis and Cirrhosis increasing.Prevalence of liver poisons no coincidence.Major types of insecticides (chlorinated hydrocarbons and organic phosphates) affect the nervous system.
DDT
- DDT was one of the first chemicals in widespread use as a pesticide. Following World War II, it was promoted as a wonder-chemical, the simple solution to pest problems large and small. Today, nearly 40 years after DDT was banned in the U.S., we continue to live with its long-lasting effects.- Recently, Carson's work has again been targeted by conservative groups. Capitalizing on the iconic status of DDT, these groups are promoting widespread use of the chemical for malaria control as part of a broader effort to manufacture doubt about the dangers of pesticides, and to promote their anti-regulatory, free market agenda while attempting to undermine and roll back the environmental movement's legacy.
Many DDT promoters are also in the business of denying climate change.
Some evidence that women are more susceptible than men.
Human Health HarmsThe science on DDT's human health impacts has continued to mount over the years, with recent studies showing harm at very low levels of exposure. Studies show a range of human health effects linked to DDT and its breakdown product, DDE:- breast & other cancers- male infertility- miscarriages & low birth weight- developmental delay- nervous system & liver damage
Organic phosphate exposure may interact with various drug, synthetic materials, and even food additives.
Methoxychlor
Methoxychlor is a contact and stomach insecticide effective against a wide range of pests encountered in agriculture, households, and ornamental plantings. It is registered for use on fruits, vegetables, forage crops and on shade trees. Methoxychlor is also registered for veterinary use as a poison to kill parasites on dairy and beef cattle. Methoxychlor is one of a few organochlorine pesticides that have seen an increase in use since the ban on DDT in 1972. This is due to its relatively low toxicity and relatively short persistence in biological systems. Methoxychlor is a general use pesticide. - Directly damaging to uteruses- Blocking effect on pituitary hormones- Potential ability to damage the kidneys- With a damaged liver, stored in the body at 100 times its normal
rate – then mimics DDT (effect on the nervous system)
Delayed reactions
With Dieldrin- Loss of memory, insomnia, nightmares, mania- Stored in significant amounts in the brains and functioning liver tissue- May produce profound long-lasting effects on the central nervous
systemBenzene Hexachloride – used in vaporizers
Jamaica Ginger- A mysterious epidemic of paralysis was sweeping through 1920s America that had the medical community baffled. The cause was first identified not by physicians, but by blues singers.During the prohibition, alcohol was banned but people got buzzed the best way they could. One way was through a highly alcoholic liquid called Jamaica Ginger or ‘Jake’ that got round the ban by being sold as a medicine.- Eventually the feds caught on and even such poorly disguised medicines were blacklisted but Jamaica Ginger stayed popular, and alcoholic, due to the producers including an organophosphate additive called tricresyl phosphate that helped fool the government’s tests.
- The toxin starts by causing lower leg muscular pain and tingling, followed by muscle weakness in the arms and legs. The effect on the legs caused a distinctive form of muscle paralysis that required affected people to lift the leg high during walking to allow the foot to clear the ground.- This epidemic of paralysis first made the pages of the New England Journal
of Medicine in June 1930, but the cause remained a mystery.- 15,000 people developed a permanently crippling type of paralysis of the
leg muscles, a condition now called “ginger paralysis.”
- Malathion is an insecticide in the chemical family known as organophosphates. Products containing malathion are used outdoors to control a wide variety of insects in agricultural settings and around people's homes. Malathion has also been used in public health mosquito control and fruit fly eradication programs. Malathion may also be found in some special shampoos for treating lice. Malathion was first registered for use in the United States in 1956.- People who were exposed to enough malathion to become sick felt nauseated or vomited, had muscle tremors, cramps, weakness, shortness of breath, a slowed heart rate, headache, abdominal pain and diarrhea.- Pets could be exposed to malathion if they get into a product by accident, or touch or eat plants that have just been sprayed. Pets will be affected by malathion like other animals. The nervous system is very similar in people and other animals, so animals poisoned by malathion may show signs similar to those observed in people.
On his farm in Iowa, Matt Peters worked from dawn to dusk planting his 1,500 acres of fields with pesticide-treated seeds. “Every spring I worried about him,” said his wife, Ginnie. “Every spring I was glad when we were done.”- In the spring of 2011, Ginnie Peters' “calm, rational, loving” husband suddenly became depressed and agitated. “He told me ‘I feel paralyzed’,” she said. “He couldn’t sleep or think. Out of nowhere he was depressed.”- A clinical psychologist spoke to him on the phone and urged him to get medical help. “He said he had work to do, and I told him if it’s too wet in the morning to plant beans come see me,” Mike Rossman said. “And the next day I got the call.”- Peters took his own life. He was 55 years old.- No one knows what triggered Peters’ sudden shift in mood and behavior. But since her husband’s death, Ginnie Peters has been on a mission to not only raise suicide awareness in farm families but also draw attention to the growing evidence that pesticides may alter farmers’ mental health.- “These chemicals that farmers use, look what they do to an insect. It ruins their nervous system,” Peters said. “What is it doing to the farmer?”
How do YOU protect yourself?
1. Be aware of the food you eat, taking care to buy organic. Awareness in your body can guide you. Pesticided food can have a bitter taste and sometimes causes numbness to the lips. 2. Ask everywhere you go — restaurants, hotels, schools, homes — do you use pesticides? Do you serve organic food? Let your opinion be known that you do not want to consume pesticide or be in environments that pesticide. Vote with your dollar by patronizing businesses not using pesticides. 3. Grow as much of your own organic food as possible — this is the safest way to protect yourself.4. Buy from non-pesticided local farms, local co-ops, and farmers’ markets to support an increase in our local supply of safe food. 5. In your personal environment, clean regularly to avoid attracting insects, do not leave food out, clean cobwebs and nests to discourage insect residents. 6. Use the least invasive, natural forms of insect control (see Richard Fagerlund’s article in the May 2012 Green Fire Times).Ask for public policy to ban pesticiding of public buildings.
Protecting yourself from pesticides
The following list will offer some of our favorite, all-natural, inexpensive, organic methods for making bug-busting pesticides for your home garden.NeemSalt Spray Mineral oilCitrus Oil and/or Cayenne Pepper MixSoap, Orange Citrus Oil & WaterEucalyptus oilOnion and Garlic Spray Chrysanthemum Flower Tea.
