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Date Posted: 14:33:08 01/01/02 Tue
Author: Brooke
Subject: Agent Orange hotspots located,

I found your new forum and decided to post my news here instead of your guestbook. I hope this is ok to do.



Agent Orange hotspots located, by BBC Science's Helen Sewell

(EXCERPT) Scientists investigating the effects of Agent Orange in
Vietnam have found that people living in a so-called hotspot have the
highest blood levels of its poisonous chemical dioxin ever recorded in
the country.

Agent Orange, which has the dioxin (TCDD - short for
2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin) as one of its constituents, was
last used in 1973.

But today, some residents of Binh-Hoa, near Ho Chi Minh City, have 200
times the normal amount of dioxin in their bloodstreams.

Agent Orange was widely used by the US military during the Vietnam War
as a defoliant so that Vietnam's dense jungle could not provide cover
for Viet Cong forces.

'Startling' results

It was when US veterans started to become ill with a variety of health
problems that investigations suggested that Agent Orange could be
involved.

The most dangerous ingredient was the dioxin, a pollutant that stays
in the environment for decades.

There are still about 12 dioxin hotspots in Vietnam, in areas where
very heavy spraying took place.

Scientists from the United States have been working with the
Vietnamese Red Cross in these areas, testing residents to see whether
they are suffering any ill effects.

The lead scientist, Professor Arnold Schecter of the University of
Texas, says they are "very startled" by the results.

Export worry

In a paper to be published in the journal Occupational and
Environmental Medicine, he says that in Binh-Hoa, 95% of people
sampled had elevated levels of dioxin in their bloodstream, and some
had 200 times the average amount.

Dioxins, which include TCDD and other related compounds, can cause
cancers and problems with reproductive development, the nervous and
immune systems.

It is thought the high levels of dioxin found in Binh-Hoa residents
result from the chemical leaching into watercourses where it is
absorbed by fish and ducks, which form part of the Vietnamese diet.

The issue is very sensitive for Vietnam, which exports these foods all
over the world.

See also:

03 Jul 01 |
Asia-Pacific Deal reached on Agent Orange 15 Nov 00 |
Asia-Pacific Agent Orange's toxic legacy 29 Mar 00 |
Health Agent Orange link to diabetes Internet links:

US Air Force health study

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