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Do you now think that DDT should have been banned or should still be used?

First of all, what is DDT, also know as Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, is a chemical compound,


recognized for being a toxic insecticide, famous for its negative environmental impacts. DTT was
firstly synthesized in 1874, and later on in 1979 it was discovered DDTs poisoning effect in insects,
because of this discovery, this chemical was used in WW2 to stop the spread of malaria and typhus
among the soldiers, nevertheless this insecticide caused more harm than good, for instance it
causes Eggshell thinning.

Continuing with the harms of DDT, it is important to mention that DDT, has had a big impact in
humans life, for instance studies had shown that DDT increases chances of generating cancer,
varying from pancreatic cancer, liver cancer, and breast cancer, also this chemical compound has
been proven to affect the pregnancy periods (spontaneous abortion), as well as the odds of giving
birth to a kid with autism, and finally it has affected semen quality. In addition to this, it is
pertinent to mention DDts negative impact on the environment; this chemical is a POP, and
because of its properties it is bioaccumulating in organisms, like: birds and marine animals causing
a variety of harmful effects in the creature tissues, as well as in the case of the birds a negative
effect in the egg shell of their babies (makes them thin and fragile, therefore making reproduction
difficult).

In conclusion, DDT is affecting animals and humans equally, generating a lot of adverse effects in
human’s life and in animals’ life, for that reason this insecticide should be banned, as well as for
the reasons that had already been presented, and because DDT is a pollutant that persist from 22
days to 30 years in soil and 150 years in aquatic environments, meaning that it has a chronic effect
in the environment’s wild life.
Bibliography
DTT technical sheet. Retrieved January 2222

World Health Organization, United Nations Environment Programme, & World Health

Organization. (1979). DDT and Its Derivatives. World Health Organization.

Jurewicz, J., Hanke, W., Radwan, M., & Bonde, J. (2009). Environmental factors and

semen quality. International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental

Health, 22(4). https://doi.org/10.2478/v10001-009-0036-1

Reardon, S. (2018). Autism and DDT: What one million pregnancies can — and can’t —

reveal. Nature. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-018-05994-1

Agarwal, A., Aponte-Mellado, A., Premkumar, B. J., Shaman, A., & Gupta, S. (2012). The

effects of oxidative stress on female reproduction: a review. Reproductive Biology

and Endocrinology, 10(1), 49. https://doi.org/10.1186/1477-7827-10-49

Rogan, W. J., & Chen, A. (2005). Health risks and benefits of bis(4-chlorophenyl)-1,1,1-

trichloroethane (DDT). The Lancet, 366(9487), 763–773.

https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(05)67182-6

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