Unsafe Levels of Dioxin Found in Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream, Study Says

Junk Science ^ | Nov 8, 2002 | Unk

[Diddley]

Washington, November 8
Unsafe levels of dioxin were measured in a sample of Ben & Jerry's brand ice cream, according to a new study published on Junkscience.com.

Ben & Jerry's promotional literature, available at its "scoop shops" and on its web site, states, "Dioxin is known to cause cancer, genetic and reproductive defects and learning disabilities... The only safe level of dioxin exposure is no exposure at all." Dioxin is a by-product of industrial processes and may also be created naturally through combustion of plant materials. The study authors report that, according to Ben & Jerry's and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standards, the level of dioxin measured could cause about 200 "extra" cancers among lifetime consumers of Ben & Jerry's ice cream.

"The level of dioxin in a single serving of the Ben & Jerry's World's Best Vanilla Ice Cream tested was almost 200 times greater than the "virtually safe [daily] dose" determined by the EPA, said Michael Gough, lead study author. Gough is a former government scientist who chaired the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services advisory panel on the effects of dioxin-contaminated Agent Orange on U.S. Air Force personnel in Vietnam. "An independent laboratory measured 0.79 ± 0.38 parts per trillion of dioxin in the sample of ice cream, " said Gough .

"Our result has measurement error associated with it and the sample may or may not be representative of all Ben & Jerry's ice cream, but our result is consistent with current scientific literature."

Gough and Milloy noted they believe existing scientific evidence does not credibly link low levels of dioxin exposure with human health effects. "But not everyone agrees," said co-author Steven Milloy, editor of Junkscience.com. "Ben & Jerry's and Greenpeace, the company's source for information on dioxin, have concluded that dioxin is not safe at any level."

"If dioxin is so dangerous, perhaps Ben & Jerry's should remove its ice cream from the market until it is 'safe,' consistent with the company's promotional literature," suggested Milloy.

"Many children enjoy Ben & Jerry's ice cream," said Milloy, "but by the company's own standards, its ice cream is not safe. Are they are choosing corporate profits over children's health?" he asked. "Maybe an appropriate new flavor would be 'Tasty Toxics' or 'World's Best Hypocrisy'."

A copy of the report is at Junkscience.com (http://www.junkscience.com): HTML|PDF.

[Diddley]

Strawberries and Dioxin, anyone?

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[woofie]

New Flavor..."Jerry Gacia's Liver"

[Diddley]

:-)

[Lancey Howard]

Tub 'O Tumor

[Lancey Howard]

Cool Cancer

[Lancey Howard]

Mango Malignancy

I would like to see this thread bumped for awhile.
Ben and Jerry - socialist scumbag hypocrites.

[ChemistCat]

Interesting article, but it's from November '99, so let's not get too fired up over old hypocrisy. :-D

[woofie]

Marshmallow Metastasis

[ChemistCat]

Please change the date in the header of this thread to reflect the date on the article. I'm no fan of this ice cream co but fair's fair. November 1999 is NOT November 2002.

[joesnuffy]

Agent Orange Swirl

[Humidston]

LOL - I had to double check the source. At first I thought this was from the Onion!

And this news is fantastic. ...Those little commies.

[Anomaly in Illinois]

Gee, I'm so glad I craved it like crazy when I was pregnant with DD.

/sarc off

[HoustonCurmudgeon]

It seems Ben & Jerry's has killed more people than my assault weapon! ;-)

[Lancey Howard]

Mellon-oma

[Iowa Granny]

I did a lot of research on Dioxin for a speech I gave a couple of years ago. I don't recall all the details, but here's a little bit of what I remember.

Dioxin occurs when substances containing clorine are incinerated at high temperatures. The soot and ash that float away from the incineration site eventually settle on the ground. Livestock which graze on grasses would certainly be consuming the stuff.

To a lesser degree, humans consuming leafy green vegetables would also be exposed, altho a thorough washing should remove a large part of it, since it is residual.

Here's the klincher: Dioxin can only be expelled from the body by lactating females.

Although my research had to do with humans, it stands to reason the same holds true of cows. Carrying this assumption one step further, we could conclude that milk would be the formost source of dioxin in the human food chain.

I'm not a scientist, and I didn't stay at a Holiday Inn last night,,, but I'm a realist, and until someone can disprove the theory I just laid out, I'll subscribe to it.

[Diddley]

I would like to see this thread bumped for awhile. Ben and Jerry - socialist scumbag hypocrites

I agree with that.

[longtermmemmory]

is this all ice cream or just ben and jerry?

[Diddley]

Yeah. I probably should have put a "Don't get worried" label on it.

[Diddley]

November 1999 is NOT November 2002.

My mistake.

[Diddley]

It seems Ben & Jerry's has killed more people than my assault weapon!

But you are not a hypocrite.

[ChemistCat]

I didn't think you did it on purpose. And I don't see how anyone can double-boycott them anyway. I HOPE there aren't too many FReepers buying their ice cream. Their politics are craven.

[Lancey Howard]

Kumquat Karcinogen

[scott7278]

This problem has already been taken care of -- the problem was in the bleached paper that was inside the cartons of ice cream. They now use unbleached paper.

[Diddley]

. . . until someone can disprove the theory I just laid out, I'll subscribe to it.

I can't disprove it.
You may not be a scientist, but you are a clear thinker.

[MangoCrazy]

Just getting caught up on you reading?

This is 5 months old?

What have you been doing?

[Diddley]

is this all ice cream or just ben and jerry?

That's a good question.
Maybe Junkscience mentioned only B & J's because of their hypocritical stand?

[Libertarianize the GOP]

ping

[Diddley]

I HOPE there aren't too many FReepers buying their ice cream.

Now, I hope THAT is the case.

[Diddley]

They now use unbleached paper

What a person can't learn on this site!

[Windcatcher]

(whew)

Boy, I'm really glad I've been boycotting them for a lot longer than that...like eight to ten years, now.

[Diddley]

What have you been doing?

I've been eating B & Js?
I'm a slow reader?
It's actually 29 months old.
I should have stated that it was an old article.
:-)

[Diddley]

Good for you.

[HoustonCurmudgeon]

But you are not a hypocrite.

Well it's very hard to be a hypocrite and a curmudgeon at the same time, and curmudgeon is more fun!

[T'wit]

A variety of health effects have been attributed to 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p -dioxin (TCDD), but little information is available on the course of a verified high-level TCDD intoxication. In this paper we describe two cases of heavy intoxication with TCDD and present a 2-year follow-up including clinical, biochemical, hematologic, endocrine, and immunologic parameters monitored in two women, 30 and 27 years of age, who suffered from chloracne due to TCDD intoxication of unknown origin [[could have been Ben & Jerry's ice cream, eh?]]. Patient 1, who had the highest TCDD level ever recorded in an individual (144,000 pg/g blood fat), developed severe generalized chloracne, whereas in the second patient, despite heavy intoxication (26,000 pg/g blood fat), only mild facial acne lesions occurred. Both patients initially experienced nonspecific gastrointestinal symptoms. In Patient 1 we observed a moderate elevation of blood lipids, leukocytosis, anemia, and secondary amenorrhoea. The laboratory parameters in Patient 2 were all normal. Despite the high TCDD levels, apart from chloracne, only few clinical and biochemical health effects were observed within the first 2 years after TCDD intoxication. Key words: amenorrhoea, anemia, chloracne, dioxin intoxication, endocrine effects, health effects, TCDD. Environ Health Perspect 109:865-869 (2001). [Online 14 August 2001]

[Ditter]

This is series, I am a HUGH milk drinker! (I'm sorry I just couldn't help myself) tee hee

[Diddley]

Thanks for that synopsis.

[Rockitz]

Oh! The Huge Manatee!

Me too.

[desertcry]

Aren't liberals the DIOXINs of a democrat society? The founders of Ben&Jerry's ice cream are liberals are they not?

[Diddley]

Works for me.

[T'wit]

But I haven't thought of any good punny B&J flavors yet, and it bugs me :-) You can't get anyone to eat healthy levels of Dioxin without some good puns like "Honey, I'm Home," "Ethan Almond" or "Oh Pear" -- all past B&J specimens. What kind of pun can you make out of "chloracne," for pete's sake? "The Starlet's Pimple"? "Zits Blitz"? "Pockey Huck"?

[green team 1999]

poison alert bump!

[NotJustAnotherPrettyFace]

The ultimate irony............

[NotJustAnotherPrettyFace]

Oh you're bad - you're really bad ;-).

[Diddley]

[41] LOL

[Anamensis]

See? We TOLD you communism was toxic.

[gcruse]

I have a limited, modified boycott. That means I only eat New York Super Fudge Chunk and Chocolate Fudge Brownie. But only those two, I swear.

[longtermmemmory]

geeze, I am still trying to figure out all the pseudo names of monsodium glutamate (msg) that producers use in their food labeling.

[exDemMom]

Ahem... dioxin expert here, at your disposal!

Mostly, what you have learned about dioxin is true, but lacking in details. First, a clarification: There are many dioxins. The most toxic and potent among these is 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin; it occurs in low abundance but receives a disproportionate amount of attention due to its toxicity. (In case you're wondering, yes, I can say the full name of dioxin 3 times fast.) Many other chemicals cause the same effects as dioxin, albeit at higher doses.

To a lesser degree, humans consuming leafy green vegetables would also be exposed, altho a thorough washing should remove a large part of it, since it is residual.

Since dioxins have limited solubility in water, I doubt washing vegetables will remove a significant amount, unless one uses a strong detergent. Those of us who routinely work with dioxin use disposable labware and discard everything the dioxin has touched as hazardous waste. I wouldn't even think of trying to wash something once dioxin has touched it.

Here's the klincher: Dioxin can only be expelled from the body by lactating females.

Although my research had to do with humans, it stands to reason the same holds true of cows. Carrying this assumption one step further, we could conclude that milk would be the formost source of dioxin in the human food chain.

Dioxins are stored in the fat. Thus, it is secreted along with the milk. It is also in the fat in meat. The good news is that the amount of environmental dioxin peaked in the 1970s and has dropped ever since, and is now, according to one report I saw, comparable to levels occurring in the 1920s.

Under ordinary circumstances, the amount of dioxin contained in the fat of any animal will be quite low, and the amount the human receives from drinking milk or consuming the animal is negligible. Accidents do happen, however, and a cow or other animal that shows symptoms of dioxin (or dioxin equivalent) poisoning is put down and not used for food.

Okay, I have to stop here. The introduction to my dissertation was 35 pages--as you might guess, I can say a lot about dioxin. Feel free to ask me any more questions.