Chemical Overuse

Here is a discussion post that I created for my biology class.

Chemicals can be useful in that they can eradicate disease carrying and crop destroying pests. But there may be ways to do this that do not involve chemicals. In terms of crops, natural predators can be introduced to eat the pests, as long as these predators are native to the areas they are being introduced to and won't disrupt the ecosystem. Praying mantises have long been favored for eating pests such as potato bugs. Ladybugs eat aphids. And dragonflies consume mosquito larvae.
Another problem with chemicals is the fact that they don't discriminate between which bugs are helpful and which are pests. They kill everything. Populations of natural predator insects have been badly damaged by the widespread use of chemicals to control garden pests and weeds. The time may be right to start re-introducing these natural predators and to cut back on the use of chemicals to control pests.
The chemicals used are not healthy for animals either, and this includes humans. If enough of them are introduced into the system of a larger animal such as a human, over time they will begin mutating cells into cancer cells. The lymph system will be overwhelmed, unable to trap and destroy all of these cancer cells, and the affected organism will develop cancer. And, as in the case of DDT, the shells of birds in areas exposed to the pesticide over a long period of time became thin and fragile due to mutations.
According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
"Exposure to DDT, DDE, and DDD occurs mostly from eating foods containing small amounts of these compounds, particularly meat, fish and poultry. High levels of DDT can affect the nervous system causing excitability, tremors and seizures. In women, DDE can cause a reduction in the duration of lactation and an increased chance of having a premature baby. DDT, DDE, and DDD have been found in at least 441 of the 1,613 National Priorities List sites identified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)."
Cutting back on the use of toxic substances in agriculture will reduce contamination of ground water and may in the long run reduce the incidence of cancer.