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Our Children's Toxic Legacy: How Science and Law Fail to Protect Us from Pesticides (Paperback)

~ Mr. John Wargo (Author)

2.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)

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Formats		Amazon Price	New from	Used from
Hardcover $7.00 In Stock. Published September 24, 1996	Hardcover	$7.00	$7.00	$0.19
Paperback $27.00 Usually ships within 13 to 14 days. Published April 19, 1998	Paperback	$27.00	$5.00	$0.21
Unknown Binding Published March 31, 1998	Unknown Binding	--	--	--

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Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Wargo (political science, Yale), a former member of two National Academy of Science committees researching pesticide regulations, showcases his many years of research experience in this comprehensive work. In it he contends that current regulations ignore the heightened sensitivity of children to pesticides. Wargo begins his analysis by outlining the historical development of pesticide use and regulation, including a fascinating look at the development of DDT. In so doing, he demonstrates that pesticide regulations are firmly grounded in midcentury science and technology. Regulations simply have not been brought up to date with recent advances in sampling methods, cancer research, and computer applications, with potentially disastrous consequences. Unfortunately, Wargo's writing is stiff, overly technical, and repetitive in many areas, and statistics are left largely unexplained to the lay reader. Consequently, most will leave this title on the shelf and choose less authoritative but more readable works such as Herbert L. Needleman and Philip J. Landrigan's Raising Children Toxic Free (LJ 10/1/94). Recommended for academic libraries and strong environmental collections.?Steven Anderson, Baltimore Cty. Circuit Court Law Lib., Towson, Md.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Description

A leading expert in pesticide policy traces the history of pesticide law and science and arrives at the alarming conclusion that we have failed to protect ourselves, and especially our children, from pesticide contamination of food, soil, water, and air. Our faith in government`s ability to ensure only safe levels of exposure to pesticides is unfounded, says John Wargo, and he suggests fundamental legal and scientific reforms to contain the special health risks faced by children.

Product Details

Paperback: 402 pages
Publisher: Yale University Press; 2 edition (April 20, 1998)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0300074468
ISBN-13: 978-0300074468
Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 0.9 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #684,674 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

#26 in	Books > Science > Agricultural Sciences > Insecticides & Pesticides
#39 in	Books > Professional & Technical > Law > Family & Health Law > Health Law
#55 in	Books > Nonfiction > Law > Family & Health Law > Health Law

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover

Citations (learn more)

18 books cite this book:

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Life's Delicate Balance: Causes and Prevention of Breast Cancer by MD Janette D. Sherman on page 109, page 197, and page 248
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2.0 out of 5 stars more law and politics than science, May 9, 2006

By	F. R Anscombe (Indiana, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Toxic Legacy is ably written, a great virtue. Clear writing helps navigate an arcane topic in which the author is well-versed. The book provides an interesting assortment of photographs of DDT uses during World War II and in the home. DDT's inventor received a Nobel prize for its enormous public-health contributions.

Wargo focuses on legal issues in the U.S. regarding pesticides. This sidesteps some broader scientific matters. As Wargo notes (p. 127), Bruce Ames and Lois Gold have made a case that the chemical ingredients that naturally make up our foods provide risks that dwarf those from residues of synthetic pesticides. The Ames/Gold argument meets common sense expectations, because foods are consumed in high doses for sustenance. Wargo dodges, because an implication is the triviality of risks posed by pesticide residues (the topic of his book): "it hardly seems prudent to avoid regulating synthetic toxins simply because we are commonly exposed to natural ones." Why overlook 99 percent of the risk (presented by natural ingredients in foods) and only pay attention to pesticide residues? Maybe because it is more popularly appealing to stigmatize synthetic chemicals that protect foods supplies. Perhaps like many, the author favors "natural" molecules, yet fears those of human synthesis. This is a dividing line without merit within pharmacology and biochemistry.

All living things constitute systems of interacting chemicals. Our choices in foods, drink, and pharmaceuticals very much influence health and development. Plants (fruits and vegetables) naturally contain chemical ingredients to ward off predators. These toxicants collectively present much higher risk than residues of synthetic chemicals used to protect crops against predators and disease agents like fungi, viruses, and bacteria. What are the health tradeoffs between disease agents versus synthetic pesticide residues? Or among various ways of protecting foods against disease agents? These are presumably complicated topics.

Synthetic pesticides give many thoughtful people pause and can surely cause harm, if in excess dose (just as with all molecules with the biochemistry of Nature). They deserve to be carefully managed by applicators. For decades, the U.S. has had ways of regulating pesticides to minimize unwanted impacts. Because children are more vulnerable to any chemicals, Wargo may contribute constructive suggestions, within the arcane field of pesticide regulation. Yet the provocative subtitle, How Science and Law Fail to Protect Us from Pesticides, seems hyperbole.

It is common for environmental scientists to analyze only a few pesticides present within the environment. When found, these few may be stigmatized and their use curtailed. This can produce an illusion of risk reduction, based on narrow analytic chemistry. In reality, society uses a great number of pesticides, and the residues of all can be detected, when sought. There is no holistic consideration of whether aggregate pesticide levels in the environment today pose greater or lesser risk than before cancelling DDT and other pesticides. Wargo may be unmindful of this larger surrounding context, trusting in the scientific understanding within the environmental industrial complex he is endeavoring to improve. The author seems highly conscientious in intention and this is praiseworthy.

For the reader interested in chemicals and health:
-- J. Rodricks. 1991. Calculated Risks: understanding the toxicity and human health risks of chemicals in our environment. Cambridge U. Press
--Geoffrey Kabat. 2008. Hyping Health Risks: environmental hazards in daily life and the science of epidemiology. Columbia Univ. Press.
-- Cass R. Sunstein. 2005. Laws of Fear: beyond the precautionary principle. Cambridge Univ. Press.
-- John Emsley. The Consumer's Good Chemical Guide. W.H. Freeman
-- W. Baarschers. eco-facts & eco-fiction. Routledge Press.
-- Aaron Wildalsky. 1995. But is it True?: a citizen's guide to environmental health and safety issues. Harvard Univ. Press.
-- John F. Ross. Living Dangerously: navigating the risks of everyday life. (Perseus)
-- National Research Council. Carcinogens and Anticarcinogens in the human diet. National Academy Press.

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