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There's a weird urban legend going around that DDT would solve mosquito problems -- usually with the implication that environmentalists are evil for banning thi

by cjensen 11y ago

There's a weird urban legend going around that DDT would solve mosquito problems -- usually with the implication that environmentalists are evil for banning this terrific substance. You appear to have succumbed to this urban legend. The story is just not true. DDT was banned not because of blind chemical-phobia, but because the molecule is way too stable. It stays in the food chain and environment for decades. Eventually, it builds up in certain predators and wipes them out. There are plenty of insecticides which are perfectly usable, but without DDT's problematic stability. Stability does not help with mosquito control, so the lack of stability does not hurt effectiveness. Consider the Silicon Valley. 150 years ago the land that Facebook is on was considered uninhabitable due to mosquitos. If DDT was that crucial to killing mosquitos, then mosquitos should have recovered in the 40 years since the ban. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DDT https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DDT

refurb 11y ago
Stability is not a help with mosquito control? Of course it is. You can dust your dwelling and not have to treat again for a month due to the stability. It certainly is a benefit. Yes, DDT builds up in organisms and can cause reproductive issues in some birds. The point the OP is trying to make is that we as a society decided that bird health is more important than human health. And I'm not sure I understand your Silicon Valley example. The land that Facebook was on was drained and backfilled. No standing water, no mosquitos. What does DDT have to do with it?
- pvaldes 11y ago
  Not. We banned DDT also because we care about human health. There is evidence of adverse human health effects resulting from long-term exposure to DDT, including reproductive health effects at birth (preterm birth and low birth weight); growth reduction in boys, earlier puberty in girls and neurodevelopmental impairment in infants. There is also evidence of neurotoxic effects in adults. Adverse pregnancies and breast cancer in women; and reduction in semen quality and development of pancreatic cancers in men. Source: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780444522726004554 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780444522...
  - refurb 11y ago
    DDT was banned in 1972 in the US. The paper you cite is from 2011. The fact remains that no pesticide is completely non-toxic. Compared to other pesticides, DDT is actually quite safe. If you look at the wikipedia summary of the current position on long-term toxicity, you can see that it's not a settled issue.[1] "Overall, in spite of some positive associations for some cancers within certain subgroups of people, there is no clear evidence that exposure to DDT/DDE causes cancer in humans." [1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DDT#Chronic_toxicity https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DDT#Chronic_toxicity
    - pvaldes 11y ago
      DDT intake in US peaked in 1965, but in Mexico was not banned until 2000 for example, therefore is relevant to have a recent review here. We have learned a lot and clearly linked the substance with lots of unwanted and undesired effects since 1972. Women develop breast cancer typically around 50 years age ( the median age at diagnostics is 61) with around 230.000 new cases in US in 2015, and at a relatively stable rate (~12% of women). Thus we are far away to see the real results of DDT banning in US. Maybe we will not have a clear answer until 2022, when the women born in 1972 will reach 50 years.

by cjensen 11y ago

refurb 11y ago

Stability is not a help with mosquito control? Of course it is. You can dust your dwelling and not have to treat again for a month due to the stability. It certainly is a benefit. Yes, DDT builds up in organisms and can cause reproductive issues in some birds. The point the OP is trying to make is that we as a society decided that bird health is more important than human health. And I'm not sure I understand your Silicon Valley example. The land that Facebook was on was drained and backfilled. No standing water, no mosquitos. What does DDT have to do with it?

pvaldes 11y ago
Not. We banned DDT also because we care about human health. There is evidence of adverse human health effects resulting from long-term exposure to DDT, including reproductive health effects at birth (preterm birth and low birth weight); growth reduction in boys, earlier puberty in girls and neurodevelopmental impairment in infants. There is also evidence of neurotoxic effects in adults. Adverse pregnancies and breast cancer in women; and reduction in semen quality and development of pancreatic cancers in men. Source: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780444522726004554 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780444522...
- refurb 11y ago
  DDT was banned in 1972 in the US. The paper you cite is from 2011. The fact remains that no pesticide is completely non-toxic. Compared to other pesticides, DDT is actually quite safe. If you look at the wikipedia summary of the current position on long-term toxicity, you can see that it's not a settled issue.[1] "Overall, in spite of some positive associations for some cancers within certain subgroups of people, there is no clear evidence that exposure to DDT/DDE causes cancer in humans." [1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DDT#Chronic_toxicity https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DDT#Chronic_toxicity
  - pvaldes 11y ago
    DDT intake in US peaked in 1965, but in Mexico was not banned until 2000 for example, therefore is relevant to have a recent review here. We have learned a lot and clearly linked the substance with lots of unwanted and undesired effects since 1972. Women develop breast cancer typically around 50 years age ( the median age at diagnostics is 61) with around 230.000 new cases in US in 2015, and at a relatively stable rate (~12% of women). Thus we are far away to see the real results of DDT banning in US. Maybe we will not have a clear answer until 2022, when the women born in 1972 will reach 50 years.