Customer Reviews

Living Downstream: A Scientist's Personal Investigation of Cancer and the Environment

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This book will be remembered not only for its eloquence and poetry, for its accuracy and precision, but also for the silence with which it was received in 1997. Along with Joni Seager's "Earth Follies" and Terry Tempest Williams' "Refuge", "Living Downstream" paints a picture of our behavior toward our planet as nothing less than genocidal. For those who believe Rachel Carson was right, this book is a must-read update and a reminder that faith is not enough. We must live as if we believe the consequences of toxic pollution to be predictable and avoidable.

It is rare to find a book on a scientific subject that is both accurate and precise in its science and beautifully written. It is no surprise to find that Sandra Steingraber, author of such a book, is both a Ph.D. biologist and a published poet.

"Living Downstream" is a superb blend of rigorous analysis and poignant memoir. Steingraber documents the increasing evidence of a strong link between rising cancer rates and environmental contamination. At the same time she tells her own story--that of a woman who suffered and survived cancer while only in her 20's. This book has justly been compared to Rachel Carson's "Silent Spring" and may, if read widely enough, have the same worldwide impact that Carson's book had forty years ago.

This book is chock-full of important scientific information about the connections between cancer and the environment, yet it is very easy to read. I couldn't put it down. You will be shocked by the evidence she puts forth. All her information is well-documented.

With her heart and science Ms. Steingraber gives us the history of how products (including agricultural ones) made of natural chemicals increasingly have been remade with synthetic chemicals since the last two world wars. Restrictions on newly created dangerous chemicals were not considered for fear of causing another post war depression after 1945. Some of the synthetic chemicals find their ways into our cells by being similar enough to natural hormones, yet alien enough, that our bodies' defense mechanisms are fooled, sometimes becoming cannibalized to turn malignatly against us.

She gracefully does not point the finger at individuals, and usually not at specific companies, but gives us a scientifically based (with nearly 300 references) ecological picture of what's going on to needlessly make some people sick and die. There are approxamately 7,500 synthetic chemicals in use. Only a small fraction of them have been tested for health risks. Usually these risks are calculated only after exceedingly high percentages of us die.

Some chemicals like Benzene (an additive to gasoline) despite being known carcinogens, are still allowed to be used. Instead of using us as guinea pigs, Steingraber explains, the "precautionary principle" should be adopted. This means new chemicals should be tested for what harm they may cause. They should not be used when they are indicated to be harmful. Absolute proof, usually a body count is not necessary. "Reverse onus," is a similar principle, meaning chemicals should be demonstrated to be safe. For dangerous chemicals that seem indispensable, "least toxic alternatives" should be developed. For example, there are already alternatives to using chlorine for eliminating pathogens in our drinking water. Chlorine does not have to be used.

Ms. Steingraber grew up fast after innocently HAVING BEEN GIVEN CANCER at a young age. Perhaps that's why she cherishes children, who are more susceptible to carcinogens than adults. Our Govt. only sets standards for carcinogens based on adults' more sluggish metabolisms -- that is, when "economics" doesn't overide human health. Also, fetuses and young children should not be blamed for their unhealthy lifestyles when they succumb to nasty chemically induced afflictions.

Walking along the toxic yet beautiful Illinois River with her sister's children, Ms Steingraber points out the absurdity of the EPA writing reports about keeping children away from that river. Rivers are like The Wind in the Willows to children, even when the wind is poisened, and willows, most ducks or talking toads don't live there anymore. Instead of letting us continue to ignore these problems she offers this advice, "Maybe we adults need only demonstrate an attitude of passionate attention about where we live."

As a scientist, I must say that this book is extraordinary. You'll realize from this well researched and analyzed text that given the trends in environmental contamination, we are all highly vulnerable to toxicity related cancer. What is more terrifying is that there is not a responsible/objective/non-political entity that has enough power to change this trend near-term (10-15 yrs). After having read the book, I feel obligated to do something (its my nature). In hindsight, I wish that I had never read the book - ignorance may be bliss.

Here is a great book I think we all should read. Steingraber's thesis is relatively simple: environmental factors play a much larger role in the increase of cancer than hitherto assumed by individuals, public health officials, and regulators, and we should act accordingly. Her argument is well-researched and takes into account many of the pollutants we find in our air, water, earth, and bodies, and is presented intermittently as narrative and analysis.

I like the structure of the book, the organization into chapters titled "time," "space," "war," and the like. I also like her alternating personal narrative (she is a bladder-cancer survivor, a native of Illinois, a graduate student, a researcher--we find out lots of things) with the cold hard facts and sometimes the fuzzy facts of cancer research and regulation of chemicals. The only thing that holds me back, which is why I gave it four stars, is that the book is a bit too long for my taste at almost 400 pages--I, a layperson, could have done with a bit less detail (though I understand she's covering her bases) and a bit more politics (though I understand she's being careful, not naming too many names).

The best chapter is the final one: if you come across this book and have other things to do, at least read the last chapter--most convincing is her deconstruction of the public policy of 'personal responsibility': sure, some cancers may be associated with personal lifestyle, but more important are the things we have little individual control over, such as the air we breathe, the land our kids play on, the streams we swim in. Blame, Steingraber implies/states (she's not always so outspoken), lies less with us citizens, taxpayers, cancer patients, than with the companies that manufacture products and byproducts that may be carcinegous and are simply allowed to do so until proven otherwise, and the regulators (our government, at all levels) who let them do so. Bravo--it needed to be said, and I'm glad Steingraber did it.

Then you need this book.

For me the most shocking thing about Living Downstream is how little known it is, given the life or death issues it addresses. I had never heard of it until I attended a lecture in support of the author's new book, Having Faith: An Ecologist's Journey to Motherhood.

What Living Downstream does is explore the connections between the toxic chemicals found everywhere in our environment, and various cancers and other diseases.

Examined are various mediums of transmission: earth, air, water, fire; chemicals from vinyl chloride, to pesticides and insecticides, to PCBs--even dry cleaning fluid (PCE); and scientific evidence of their connections to cancers, immune deficiencies and reproductive problems.

Pulling all this research together is in itself a tremendous service. Science so often involves narrow fields of research with little communication between fields.

Still, though it's hardly a "light read," it is nothing like those dry science textbooks you remember.

The author is also a poet, and she uses metaphor and imagery to explain in easy terms anything unfamiliar to the non-scientist. This makes the book intelligent-user friendly and even, at times, beautiful. The personal narrative keeps it human.

However, I won't lie and say it is a "fun read." The truth is, I found it educational and even life-changing, but also deeply unsettling and even frightening.

No longer can I dismiss cancer as genetic, or easily warded off through diet and lifestyle, or see environmental cancers as the problem of those poor souls unfortunate enough to live near some toxic waste dump.

The book gave me knowledge, and yes, it's true: knowledge IS power. It gave me the motivation to buy organic, to use filtered (NOT bottled) water, to take a very serious look at any chemical I use around my home.

It also helped me understand why this is not the whole answer, that the real answer lies in taking serious steps to address the poisoning of our environment. The first and most important step, however, is awareness, which is why you should read this book.

The author is an articulate ecological biologist who is herself a cancer survivor. My eyes were tempted to gloss over the pages and pages of statistics (they were hard to face up to), but I resisted the urge and instead forced myself to digest the haunting truth standing behind each of the seemingly endless reports and case-studies representing scores of individuals who traversed the cancer ordeal before I did. I thought of the author, poring over her keyboard, obsessed with what seemed to be a morose subject matter, but I became relentlessly engrossed in the gravity of her cause. In her book, she highlights environmental and industrial travesties, and she argues that, as a species, we are vastly contributing to our own high rates of cancer incidence.

Because of the immense importance of the subject matter- chemical contamination of our environment, this book was written for a general audience and Ms Steingraber's writing style flows with easy to understand, but alarming expose' of the hazards of chemicals in our environment.

It is a beautiful continuation of Rachel Carson's work of environmental responsibility and the examination of the dangers of chemical contamination of our shared world.
Ms Carson's famous book, "Silent Spring", published in 1962, opened up to the public the hideous side-effects of chemicals, i.e., cancer causing, biome pollution and disruption, and killing of non-targeted species. Remember the Brown Pelican and Bald Eagle almost being killed-off from DDT poisoning? Carson's work eventually led to the banning of that harmful chemical, but as Ms Steingraber so expertly points out, there is a plethora of other dangerous chemicals on the market that tests have shown should not be.

Sandra Steingraber wrote her book over 35 years after "Silent Spring" and having the benefit of a huge amount of accumulated evidence of chemical side-effects and personal experience with the serious health problems caused by chemical contamination of our environment, she has put together a powerful indictment of the irresponsibility of industry and government alike in their continuing agenda of down-playing the dangers of chemicals and this constitutes one of the most irresponsible and insidious snake-oil scams ever perpetrated against life.

Huge corporate profits from the sale of deadly, often-time untested or inadequately tested chemicals purchase lackadaisical government over-sight and slick advertising on the "benefits" of chemicals.

This book is well researched and concise, yet will give simple explanations of such topics as "biomagnification"- the accumulation of chemicals the higher up the food chain we go. Most importantly, is the topic of "risk as recklessness" in taking dangerous chemicals to market without proper safety testing, but especially allowing known carcinogens to remain on the market long after they have proven to be harmful, hence, government complicity.

And the governments stand on this? They publish guidelines for changing one's "lifestyle" to help reduce chemical exposure! In other words, they attempt to shift responsibility for health on to the public who has no control over or proper warnings of where these chemicals are and most ludicrous of this is the fact that the spread of chemicals cannot be controlled once released into the environment, so they're everywhere and unavoidable. A good summation of this irresponsible nonsense is quoted from the anthropologist, Martha Balshem: [In the end, Balshem came to believe the lesson she was transmitting-"accept authority and accept blame"-was the wrong one]. (p 262) Indeed!

The Epilog starting on page 285 is a good resource guide for finding out more about chemicals, government agencies "responsible" for monitoring their use, where chemicals are concentrated, educational materials, etc.

Sandra Steingraber has put together a beautiful, important and educational statement in this book and it is one of the most profound publications of it's type since "Silent Spring". I found it to be a great honor to Rachel Carson's legacy- thank you Ms Steingraber!

This is a powerful and moving account that dissects, piece by piece, the system which allows cancer-causing chemical agents to be released within the United States, primarily by corporations.

Cancer survivor Sandra Steingraber is a poet at heart, and a scientist by trade. For me, the weakest parts of the book were the ones in which the poet takes over, speaking in deeply personal dramatic tones that, quite frankly, made me a little uncomfortable.

Much more interesting is the scathing indictment of the processes by which chemicals are regulated in the United States. With impeccable logic, Steingraber frightens the bejeezus out of us by demonstrating that, when it comes to protecting the environment and public health, no one is driving the bus.

The vast majority of chemicals released into the environment have not been held up to proper scrutiny. For chemicals that are suspected of causing cancer or other problems, there is an almost impossibly high burden of proof put on those who seek to have the chemicals banned.

Steingraber builds the case, simultaneously removing all doubt that certain chemicals are responsible for cancer outbreaks in certain areas while showing us that the case cannot be proved to the satisfaction of the regulatory agencies (who are themselves heavily influenced by the offending companies).

A detective story, an expose, and a lyrical narrative all in one, Steingraber has given concrete form to the sometimes-vague notion that Corporate America is behind many of our country's biggest threats.