The Impact of Chemical DDT on Human Health

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The results of the analysis of many studies all support the working hypothesis. This means the usage of DDT is far more risky and health hazardous to justify its use as an IRS fighting agent against malaria. The results of each of the articles and journals selected will be described in the order of Case-control studies, followed by cohorts, then cross-sectionals and lastly literature reviews.

The first study is by Rignell-Hydbom; et al. looked at the exposure to DDT as a risk factor for type 2 Diabetes. The study was performed within a well-defined cohort of women (n=6917) with ages between 50-59 from the southern part of Sweden. The study used 107 cases out of a total 371 cases. They stored serum samples for at least three years before type 2 diabetes was diagnosed 17. In order to evaluate the risk of developing type 2 diabetes with DDT exposure, the study used a conditional logistic regression and also took an odds ratio as a risk measure with 95% confidence intervals 17. In the 107/371 cases DDT was not associated with an increased risk to develop type 2 diabetes. The study did find a set of cases (n=39) that were diagnosed more than six years after their base line examination compared with their controlled studies. The women in the highest quartile showed an increased risk to develop type 2 diabetes 17. Overall there was a 46% higher mean concentration of DDT compared with the controls 17. The study resulted in 5.5 [95% CI 1.2, 25] for DDT was obtained 17.

Another study by author Bräuner EV et al. looked at organochlorines in adipose tissue and risk of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL). 160,725 persons ranging from the ages of 50-64 were invited to participate in the prospective Diet, Cancer and Health study 2. A total of 57,05...

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...ent among children 3.5-5 years of age. Environ Health Perspect. 2013 Feb;121(2):263-8. doi: 10.1289/ehp.1205034. Epub 2012 Nov 13. Retrieved From http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23151722

22. Valvi D, Mendez MA, Martinez D, Grimalt JO, Torrent M, Sunyer J, Vrijheid M. Prenatal concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls, DDE, and DDT and overweight in children: a prospective birth cohort study. Environ Health Perspect. 2012 Mar;120(3):451-7. doi: 10.1289/ehp.1103862. Epub 2011 Oct 25. Retrieved From http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22027556

23. WHO. The use of DDT in malaria vector control. 2011. Geneva: World Health Organization. Retrieved From http://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2011/WHO_HTM_GMP_2011_eng.pdf

24. WHO. World malaria report 2013. 2014. S.l.: World Health Organization. Retrieved From http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/97008/1/9789241564694_eng.pdf

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