The Huma Emicals

Advancement in chemical research has given companies the ability to make increasingly more effective products. These companies are allowed to manufacture goods with newly discovered synthetic compounds, often without much rigorous testing to determine if they are safe. An apparent correlation between the recent use of industrial chemicals and occurrences of disease in the population has been found, suggesting that they may be harmful to people’s health. Studies have shown that many commonly used ingredients can interfere with hormones, causing reproductive and developmental harm and even cancer. With the wide range of negative effects possibly caused by these substances, attention needs to be brought to regulation of chemical use in order to protect the health of the public.
The documentary, “The

Newborn babies have already been found with several industrial chemicals already in their bloodstreams, and little is known about what effect this can have on children’s’ health. Although research shows the toxicity of many common chemicals, there are considerable barriers to fixing the problem. For example, the chemical industry spends an inordinate amount of money lobbying the government, preventing any legislation to ban toxic yet useful chemicals. Laws that exist already are fairly ineffective at protecting against harmful chemicals, such as the EPA’s Toxic Substances Act of 1976, which assumed several chemicals were safe because of the grandfather law. Companies can also use strategic marketing to divert the public’s attention from the harm of the chemicals they use. One strategy, known as the four dog defense, is commonly used by companies to convince people that it is safe to use their products regardless of increasing evidence of the harm. Their arguments develop in succession of the chemical not being harmful, possibly being harmful but not