Page 87 - 1970S

Fcbruary, 1970
there are exceptions to the Jaw, anyway,
such as Jead arsenate ( an insecticide)
which is allowed to remain on many
common fruits such as apples, pears,
plums, peaches, cherries and grapes. Ar–
senicals can and do cause cancer. And
stilbestrol (a female sex hormone),
added to 85% of the commercial cattle
and ducken fecd produced in the United
States, is a highly potent drug. In a
National Cancer Jnstitute experiment,
practically all the mice that had rcceived
a subcutaneous implantation of one
millígram of stilbestrol turned up with
tumors in thc testicles in sevcn mooths.
The exposure secmed to be cumulative.
Cattlemen use sti1bestrol to cause
abortions in accidentally bred heifers
being fattened for slaughter. (S11ccessj11i
Farmi11g, Nov. 1969, p. 9).
Another danger is the co-carcino–
gens which lack caocer·causing ability
themselves but heighten the potcncy of
knowo carcinogens. Also, wcak carcino–
gens are a dangcr since their effects may
be additive and synergistic.
The hazards are real. The unknowns
are many. The chances we are taking
with our health are enormous!
It is not brief exposure to a few po–
tent carcinogens that is the big worry. It
is exposure of mi llions of people to
small quantitics of hundreds and thou–
sands of "harmless" compounds on a
daily basis over long periods of time
that causes most concern and anxiety.
As one scicnti tic experimentcr, Paul
Kotin, wrotc: "It is assurcdly the less
potent carcinogens that sccm to be more
important in human cancer, and it is
thcse that provide the real problcm for
evaluation" (!bid, p. 143).
A Cancer Expert Speaks
Dr. W. C. Hueper, retircd chief of
the Environmcntal Cancer section of the
National Canccr Institute, doubts if
there is any such thing as a ''safe dose"
of a carcinogcnic chemic.tl added to
food.
Dedared Dr. Hueper: " ... there is
no scienti fically vaJjd and practica!
method available for determining a 'safe
dose' of carcinogens for humans. In
fact, science has failed so far to estab–
lish a 'safe dosc' for any of the many
recognized cnvironmental carcinogens,
although knowledge of such a dose
Tbe PLAIN TRUTH
would be of thc most practica! impor–
tance to industry and public health
agencies."
A "safe dose" depends oo how good
the body's defensive mechanisms are
working. This no doubt would vary
widely and would be d irect1y connected
to diet.
Dr. Hueper stated years ago, "We
have to consider the fact that materials
which may be carcinogenic are ingested
for our entire lifetime." He concluded:
"l suppose that it would be a wise pre–
cautionary measure not to add aoy
chemicals to our food supply which pro–
duced cancer in either man or in ex–
perimenta l animals."
This advicc has not been absolutely
followed. Is there any connection be–
tween this fact and the soaring numbers
of cancer cases in modern technologica1
societies?
Dr. Hueper declared, in Congres–
sional hearings in 1957, "It is thus a
well established fact that an appreciable
and growing number of chemicals, of
which a few are known to enter the
human food supply, are capable of caus–
ing aod do cause cancer in man under
proper conditions of exposure.
"This disconccrting situation is ag–
gravated by the observation that many
additional chemicals, sorne of which are
incorporated into consumer goods, in–
cluding foodstuffs, elicit canccrs in ex–
perimental animals when introduced in
proper amounts nnd under suitable con–
ditions. Although at present no evi–
dence is avaiJable that they havc done so
in man, they must be suspected....
"These observations and consid–
erations indicatc that an uncontrolled
introduction and an indiscriminate use
of chernical food additives crcate or may
create cancer hazards to the human pop–
ulation."
Among thc long list of potentially
carcinogenic matcrials rnentioncd by Dr.
Hueper are: estrogcnic chemicals used
for promoting Ltttening of poultry aod
livestock; chlorinated hydrocarbon pesti–
cides such as DDT; polycyclic aromatic
hydroca rbons adhercnt to smokcd goods;
wrapping and coating materials such as
ccllophane, polyethylene and polyvinyl
chloride."
In ach1al fact, as Booth Mooney, the
author of The 1-lidden A.rsassi11J 5tated,
33
"The American people are eating more
chemicals per capita than ever before -
and without any firm knowledge what–
ever of their combined and cumulative
effects.
"A former FDA commissioner said
sorne yea rs ago that no man can tell
what new disease may grow out of the
use of synthetic foods. And he added,
'When man starts competing with na–
ture in the blending of food elements
he should be sure that his formu la does
not bcar the skull and crossbones' " (p.
69).
O ther Diseases
Cancer is not the only potential threat
from ubiquitous chemicals in our food,
air and water. Birth defects oc mutations
which can be passed on from one gener–
ation to another are another effect.
The National Institutes of Health
severa! years ago dedared that chemicals
may be as important as radiation in
causing genetic damage.
Dr. Joshua Lederberg, Stanford
geneticist and Nobel Prize winner, stated
it is possible that the wide variety of new
chemicals to which we are all exposed
may be adding significantly to the m–
cidcnce of birth defects.
What's Coming Next ?
There are a host of questionable, sus–
pect chemicals - innocent1y called
"additives," but they are chemicals none–
theless- still being used by manufac–
turers.
One product, carboxymethyl cellu–
lose, used in soft drinks, ice cream, jel–
lies, chocolate drinks, icings, candies
and baby food, causes cancer in animals.
Red No. 4 is a food dye used to color
maraschino cherries. It causes cancer io
animals, but is stilt in use today.
Monosodium glutamate and nitrates
have a1ready been mentioned.
What it atl adds up to, however, is
this: The public- the people, you and
I, all too often - are the guinea pigs for
these suspect products. Our lives are
being "experimented" with, and if the
increasing incidence of cancer is any cri–
teria, the experiment is going badly.
Stated former Food and Drug Com–
missioner James Goddard: "We do not
havc the kind of chemical research
(Contiu11etl on page 40)