Customer Reviews

Diet for a Poisoned Planet

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Do buy this book (even if you have the old edition), but also buy the 1995 book The Safe Shopper's Bible (co-authored by Steinman), and when the two disagree on an individual food item (as they do in a number of cases), believe the one with the most toxic rating, rather than believing the new edition. Here's why.

I own the 1990 edition, and the Safe Shopper's Bible, and have just received a copy of this new edition, and while I have only spent an hour or so comparing the three, unfortunately there are definite indications that this update was done in a rather uncareful manner.

Yes, there are differences between the 1990 and present editions; some foods have been moved from one safety category (e.g., Green Light) to another (e.g., Yellow Light). And when this has been done, the reason is usually noted in the book, which is also helpful.

While relatively few entries are affected by such enhancements, they are no doubt valuable enough to justify buying the new edition, even if you already have the old one. And, of course, if you don't have the old one, you absolutely need this book.

However, I do not believe that this new book is the result of a comprehensive re-review of the available government testing results and/or other current information. I say this for the following reason (based on an analysis of the section covering seafood):

1. Most of the entries in the new edition are copied verbatim from the 1990 edition.

2. Updated, and conflicting, information to some of these copied entries appeared in the seafood section of the 1995 book Safe Shopper's Bible (co-authored by Steinman), which indicates to me that new information became available at that time.

3. Despite the changed information in the 1995 book, in many cases the (apparently outdated) information from the 1990 entry is copied, verbatim, into this "twenty-first century" edition of the work, without any note indicating that there was a return back from its status of 1995.

Here are some examples:

1. The Green Light section of this new book lists Halibut as follows:

"Halibut from Alaska, California, and Iceland is virtually pollution free, although your best bet is Alaskan or Icelandic halibut. Halibut is a moderate mercury accumulator. Some Los Angeles-area halibut may be tainted with PCBs."

This entry is identical to the one in the 1990 edition of the book.

However, the 1995 Safe Shopper's Bible lists Halibut from California as a Red Light fish (the worst possible rating). The listed contaminants supporting that rating are DDT, DDE, DDD and PCBs.

This important update is nowhere reflected in the new edition, which has the older (and conflicting) information. Why go back to the original information? Is it possible that California Halibut suddenly got better? Perhaps, but it seems more likely that the text of the old edition was simply thoughtlessly propagated into the new one, despite the availability of new (and conflicting) information.


2. This new edition lists Salmon in its Green Light section as follows:

"Salmon from Ireland and the United Kingdom is virtually pollution free."

"Pacific salmon (chum, king, silver, sockeye) from Alaska, California, Oregon, and Washington is virtually pollution free."

This is, once again, a verbatim copy from the 1990 edition.

However, in the 1995 Safe Shopper's Bible, Salmon (Pacific Coast) and Salmon (Imported) are both listed as Yellow Light fish. The listed contaminants warranting that designation are Benzene Hexachloride, DDT, DDE, DDD, Dioxin, Lindane and PCBs.

I noticed similar discrepancies for Milkfish, Mullet, Striped bass, and Trout, among others. Mullet was particularly disturbing, since the (copied) entry in the new book not only lists imported Mullet as a Green Light fish, but in the Red Light section, where it lists domestic Mullet, it makes a special note that "however, imported mullet is quite clean." By contrast, in the 1995 Safe Shopper's Bible, "Mullet (imported)" is listed as a Red Light fish, due to the presence of "DDT, DDE, DDD."

Perhaps there was some massive improvement in mullet between 1995 and 2006, but more likely, the verbatim repetition of those entries in the new edition was just the result of propagating them with insufficient attention to more recent information, including even information previously published by the author.

Another disappointment is that a large number of fish listed in the Safe Shopper's Bible are nowhere to be found in the new edition of Diet for a Poisoned Planet. Why would the author not have merged the information available from both of his older works? Some examples of missing entries: Anchovies and sardines, both Green Light in the Safe Shopper's Bible.

Hopefully, now you see why you need the Safe Shopper's Bible in addition to this latest edition of Diet for a Poisoned Planet. You can't afford to get into a snit about somehow punishing the author for delivering what may be a sub-par update. This work is too important, and there is nothing else that I have found that could ever replace it. Just give the guy credit for all of the wonderful work he has done in the past, and admit that you slip up from time to time yourself, and then buy both of these books and use them in good health.

This is a superb reference for anyone interested in understanding what goes into the food that they eat, and how to make informed choices about their diet. Some of the specific suggestions for foods, and the glossary of pesticiddes and chemicals in the back may be a bit dated by now (I would strongly recommend that the authors update it - I would buy it in a second), the most important aspect of this book is information about _why_ certain foods carry a heavy toxic load, which gives you a framework for making general decisions about eating. I bought this book in 1994, and it was a constant companion until I lent it to someone (if it was you - please give it back!), and lost it. But I had already memorized most of the basic rules that I use to chose the way that I eat. And I am going to buy another copy.

This book, even though it was written over 10 years ago, is profound its findings. It has changed the way I look at food and ingredient labels. The most valuable information is what he discoverd about added preservatives and pesticides in the foods we eat. It will make you NEVER want to eat packaged food again! His Red Light, Yellow Light, Green Light suggestions for foods unsafe, moderately safe, and relatively safe is MOST helpful. If you are trying to improve your knowledge of what is healthy to eat and what is toxic, this book is an IMPORTANT book to have and keep in your library. I find myself referring back to it on a regular basis as I continue to try and memorize and avoid the bad additives in food. BUY THIS BOOK!!

Pages six through ten in John C. Stauber's terrific book, "Toxic Sludge is Good for You", is entirely about the history of the heavy PR movement against this Steinman Poison Planet book. Stauber also explains the very conservative Everett Koop's close relations to prominent anti-environmentalist Elizabeth M Whelan (Whelan, to her credit, is however strongly opposed to tobacco). They joined with others in the chemical and P.R. industry to try to kill the effect of the Steinman book's initial release. As with Gary Webb in "Dark Alliance", and John Perkins with "Confessions of an Economic Hit Man", unrepentantly bad organizations know that you have to attack (in the case of Webb) or sometimes ignore (in the case of Perkins) the hardcore truth tellers; Today's public relations industry has to pay for "experts" to "prove" again and again that pollution and other bad things are either being overstated or cover up a much larger "benefit". Steinman's book has been classically smeared. On one side are the usual corporate groupies, heartless investors, and unfortunate dupes of a very uncool Public Relations campaign and on the other side is the rest of the world who wants to keep toxic stuff out of their children's bodies. If you are interested in this book, also check out the very interesting and very referenced "Toxic Sludge" recounting as well.

Steinman should be thanked, not pilloried, for fighting to keep food safety, health and the environment in the marketplace of ideas.

This book is a guide to what's in our food but not talked about much--pesticide residues and other toxins. Steinman, a journalist, wrote the book after reading a news article warning people to avoid heavy consumption of fish from San Francisco Bay because of PCB contamination. Steinman, an avid angler at the time, had his blood tested for PCBs and the analyses showed the levels of PCBs in his blood were dangerously high. Alarmed, Steinman immediately began a detox program, trying to flush out the toxins from his body and avoid any further exposure. In order to avoid food-borne toxins, however, he needed to research what chemicals might be in our food supply. He was shocked by what he found in his research, and wrote this book to educate consumers of the dangers of the typical American diet and help them make safe choices about the foods they eat.

Steinman has organized his chapters by types of foods, with separate chapters for vegetables and fruits, grains, meat and poultry, seafood, eggs, beverages, etc. Each of these chapters starts with a short article about potential hazards of this group. Then he divides the commonly eaten foods into 3 groups: green lights, which are generally safe, yellow lights, which should be consumed with caution, and red lights, which should be avoided because the chances are high that they contain numerous toxins. In the second part of the book Steinman provides additional information about irradiation, drinking water, toxic substances in the home, pregnancy, baby foods, and detoxification programs. At the end of the book are appendices including a safe foods shopping list, a personal action guide, a glossary of pesticides and toxic chemicals, and a list of sources. There is also an index.

The text is quite eye-opening. If you don't already eat organic foods, you will after reading this book. Steinman notes there are few government regulations concerning toxic pesticide residues on foods. He also points out that US laws which forbid the use of certain dangerous chemicals on food plants don't apply overseas, so foreign-grown foods often carry traces of these extremely toxic chemicals that would not be permitted here. But there is no inspection or other regulation that would keep such foods out of our grocery stores. Some people would rather get the cheapest food on the shelf than pay more for organic, but Steinman argues that the cheapest doesn't necessarily give you the best deal, when you consider the extra health care costs and shortened life expectancy that come with continuous exposure to toxic chemicals found in cheap industrially produced food stuffs. The scariest point that Steinman makes is that although rising adult cancer rates can be explained by longer life expectancies (people are now living long enough to get cancer), cancer rates among children have increased 32% over 35 years. So what is causing the cancer epidemic in children? Steinman argues that the likely cause is toxins in the food and water we serve them.

When it comes to reporting science, however, Steinman is a bit over his head. For example, he notes that vegans can have a difficult time getting enough Vitamin B12 since "the richest sources" are animal foods. He suggests vegans can get B12 from nonflesh sources like soybeans, wheat germ, and skim (cow) milk. Whoops! There's no B12 in legumes or grains, and I've never known a vegan to drink animal milk. He's not always sure what all the foods are in his lists, either. Thus, he notes that watermelon seeds have "no detectable pesticide residues, which is good news since children often devour them." Hello! Steinman doesn't seem to be aware that we're not talking about the incidental seeds one might ingest while eating fresh watermelon, but the salted, roasted seeds consumed like nuts, or sunflower seeds, popular snacks in certain parts of the world. Later, he notes that precut vegetables and fruits suffer oxidation losses in their vegetables content. He then suggests "Buy your watermelons whole...if you value optimum nutrient content." Oxidation losses are quite significant when food is diced, as with precut salad ingredients. But the large chunks that watermelons are cut in for resale are not going to result in much nutrient loss, provided the watermelon is in halves or quarters, not fruit salad chunks, that is. Once again, Steinman seems to miss the point. Steinman notes that some toxins, such as lead, are so toxic that any exposure at all is found to cause cancer. What he doesn't seem to understand, or explain, is that the reason why "safe" levels are set at certain levels which are high enough to carry a know cancer risk is that the "safe" levels also reflect what is possible to measure in the analytical chemistry lab. For the most dangerous chemicals, the "safe" level is the defined as the lowest possible amount that a routine lab could reliably measure. Of course, it would be healthier to specify that the "safe" level be lower, but if the substance can't be measured to the lower, safer level, then we have to accept current standards, realizing that there is a risk involved, but the risk is unavoidable given our current analytical methods.

One of the most basic problems with the book is that when determining how to categorize a food (as green light, yellow light, or red light), Steinman focuses on the number of residues detected, rather than on the amounts of residues, and he doesn't consider the relative toxicity of the residues; it would be more important to avoid a food that commonly has a large amount of a single very toxic residue than one with a laundry list of minor residues in small amounts. Thus, I'm not sure how useful his printed guides would be as written. As a result, the main value of the book is not Steinman's specific recommendations, but the big picture: if you want a safe diet, stick to organic foods, and avoid industrially produced foods, whatever the costs.

this book is scary but informative. even being a bit older the infomration it contains is still very relavant and not dated.
well set up and easy to refernce too.
excellent book.

This book is so bad I don't know where to begin. Example: You shouldn't drink milk because dairy cows drink about 50 gal. of water per day, they compact the ground by walking on it and they contribute to destroying the rain forest. Maybe we shoudn't eat vegetables because farm machinery compacts the ground year after year. Not to worry the frost breaks up the ground just like it breaks up compacted cement highways every year. I don't know of too many cows in the rain forest.

Some of the green light foods are scavangers. They are designed to clean up toxins. (Snales, Pigs) I can't believe that canned spaghetti is a green light food.

I have been raising and butchering our own poultry for 5 years. I grind my own flour and grow and can much of our food. I purchased this book because I thought I might be able to purchase more food off the shelf. I have had this book for about an hour and I don't even want it in the house.

This book is based on pulp fiction author L. Ron Hubbard's imaginary delusions of physiology. Former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop said it better than I could, when asked about this book.

Question. What about the author's detoxification advice? He credits L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology with some of the theories he recommends.

Answer. "My recommendation about detoxification is to keep away from it. You don't need it. I'm not sure it does what this book describes. It's dangerous. I don't think L. Ron Hubbard has credibility in the scientific world. The author's suggestions about detoxification can be detrimental to your health. " - C. Everett Koop, M.D.

Be aware that this book was labeled as 'trash' by former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, and that the Food and Drug Administration issued a paper claiming the author destorts his facts. The book supports and suggests a chain of clinics called 'HealthMed', which are run by Scientologists. Make up your own mind.