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The Myths of Safe Pesticides addresses the five most-repeated myths about the regulation of toxic chemicals and debunks these myths based on hundreds of published, peer-reviewed science studies that critically question the safety issues around that regulation.
Leu, President of the International Federation of Organic Agricultural Movements—the world umbrella body for the organic sector—offers a compelling body of evidence against the use of pesticides. The staggering information all boils to one result: the "adverse human health due to persistent and short-term environmental toxicants." Although there is a plethora of chemical formulations used in the world's production of food, Leu chose to focus on the most common agricultural chemicals to demonstrate their widespread use in world's food supply and in the environment.
Broken down into five chapters that specifically zeroes in on each myth, Leu deftly translates the scientific studies into layman's terms that explains issues, such as why regulatory institutions need to perform combination not individual tests of active and inert chemicals, and when chemicals degrade they breakdown into deadly toxins that cause significant damage to animals' nervous systems, instead of simply disappearing. While each myth deals with different aspects of pesticides, of key importance is the disconcerting manifestation these chemicals have on human beings, especially at low dosages. Leu does an excellent job of explicating how chemicals can disrupt hormonal systems, which creates a whole host of diseases throughout the body. Those who are most affected by this disruption are the unborn and growing children.
Leu not only includes documentation at the end of each chapter, but also a good number of pages of selected bibliography for readers who desire further research. Leu's book is undoubtedly thoroughly researched and well documented. Quite an eye-opener, The Myths of Safe Pesticides is specifically written for the edification of all.
RECOMMENDED by the US Review