DDT Toxicity and Malaria: Countermeasures

Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, better known as DDT is a notorious organochlorine pesticide that is created by the reaction of chloral with chlorobenzene in combination with sulfuric acid(Britannica p.1). It was first used as an insecticide in 1939 by Hermann Muller in Switzerland. DDT works as an insecticideby acting on the nervous system to generate the same neural impulse over and over causing body tremors and eventually death. DDT is an extremely stable chemical compound containing C14H9Cl5 which leads to some significant resistance issues when used as a pesticide. The most problematic property of DDT is its high fat solubility and extremely low water solubility meaning that it has a tendency to stick around in the environment for longer than we want since it is readily taken up in the bodies of nearby mammals.

Also depicted in this paper is the type of cancers caused by each chemical and other related health problems associated with each chemical. Finally, the role of government agencies such as FDA, EPA and OSHA in preventing excessive amount or zero amounts of toxic chemicals from entering the environment will be discussed. The last paragraphs will enumerate the inferred conclusion from my research on Agent Orange, DDT and Benzene.

Also depicted in this paper is the type of cancers caused by each chemical and other related health problems associated with each chemical. Finally, the role of government agencies such as FDA, EPA and OSHA in preventing excessive amount or zero amounts of toxic chemicals from entering the environment will be discussed. The last paragraphs will enumerate the inferred conclusion from my research on Agent Orange, DDT and Benzene.

Following the 2001 Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic pollutants, by 2008, 160 nations signed the agreement to eliminate DDT, considered one of the twelve pollutants of “greatest concern to the health of the global community” (Eskenazi et al., 2009). Despite unease about the lasting effects of DDT, the insecticide should not be banned completely.

One reason why DDT should not be used is because of its harmful effects on humans. First, research had shown that the consumption of DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) had caused many people to contract many dangerous diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, obesity, kidney and ovarian diseases. Studies had also linked the use of DDT to be a carcinogenic, causing breast cancer in women. A study of 9,300

Brian, G, Y., Greenwood, D, A., Fidock, Dennis, E, K., Stefan, H, I. Kappe, P., Alonso, L., Frank, H and Collins, P (2008) “Malaria progress and prospects for eradication.” Journal Clinical Investiment. 118: 1266-1276.

Aim - To explore the impacts Malaria has on citizens of developing countries which are effect by the disease.

McGinn argues DDT is no longer as effective, it harms the environment, and therefore we should focus on the alternative solutions. She explains the ecological damage caused by DDT because the pesticide bioaccumulates. This means the DDT is absorbed by predators when they digest an exposed prey, and the concentration increases as it gets higher in the food chain. These long-term exposes are then likely to lead to physiological abnormalities, which somehow negatively affect both ecological and human health (McGinn, 285). In addition to the toxicity, the pesticide has lead to a resistance. Malaria developed resistant strands and is not likely to disappear even if the use of DDT is halted for years. She explains if this toxin is reapplied

threatening to humans in Africa. We should use DDT in Africa because of the harmful effects of

While DDT is good for killing bugs, it is also really good at breaking down our foods. One study by the President's Cancer Panel showed that girls exposed to DDT before puberty are five times more likely to develop breast cancer in middle age. Really the only good thing that comes from DDT is that it’s a possible solution for malaria control, but even then it’s rare that DDT is the most effective option. The dangers and harmful effects of DDT are too dangerous and society as a whole needs to stop using

DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloro-ethane) was one of the most commonly used pesticides during the mid-1900's. This chemical was found to be effective in killing mosquitoes, thus stopping malaria epidemics, and was also useful against farm pests. However, mosquitoes often became resistant to this unnatural chemical after a generation or so of selective breeding. In fact, this pesticide did much more than simply getting rid of the insects pestering man. The most deadly feature of DDT was its ability to move through the food chain at a deadly pace.

If there is a way to prevent large numbers of humans from dying from disease infested insects it seems to be a benefit to human life. Also, if DDT can be used to help our food supply from becoming attacked by pest, which will benefit communities in foods supply it too will benefit the human population. It should be used to save lives and food for human consumption. If this chemical was not used millions of lives would have been lost. The fact that the alternative chemicals are more harmful than DDT shows that DDT is the best defense against disease infested insects that can call disease in

Birds that were exposed to DDE a metabolite of DDT, were shown to cause egg shell thinning in Peregrine Falcons and Eurasian Sparrow hawks in Great Britain (Jorge Fernandez-Cornejo, Sharon Jans and Mark Smith Review of Agricultural Economics), this instantly sparked experimental studies. The results were that DDE was responsible for egg shell thinning and lowered reproductive success in birds. The wildlife exposure outside of the zone using pesticides also had seen health effects. It is clear that the pesticides have serious effects on smaller animals. Judging by the exposure of the birds in comparison to humans when will we see health effects? More importantly will we do anything to stop the use of pesticides and create alternatives to replace the use of

DDT or dichloro diphenyl trichloroethane was a insecticide used a lot during world war 2 for killing insects that carry disease. This chemical was dispersed into environments and it would stick onto the feet of certain insects and kill them as a result. It was developed in the 1940s to mainly prevent lice infections for soldiers because they had to wear the same pair of clothes when in battle. This lice problem pertained to children as well and these people were treated with DDT. However, as time passed DDT was used in more large amounts, and later they developed airplanes to dump tons of DDT among forests. This caused birds and other consumers to either die or become ill, and birds exposed to DDT often produced soft shelled eggs. Humans

With all this focus on the development of new drugs to combat malaria, an old effective method has been forgotten. The chemical DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) has proven effective in reducing malaria cases. Popularly used as a pesticide in the middle of the twentieth century, killed the mosquito population that was responsible for malaria related deaths. The number of people in India that contracted malaria in the 1940’s was approximately 75 million a year with 800,000 dying as a result. With the introduction of DDT, the number of cases dropped to 50,000 by 1961. Similar cases have been documented in Sri Lanka, where the number of cases dropped in 18 years from 3 million to 29 after the introduction of DDT (“DDT Delirium,” 2002). The difference in numbers is staggering.