BY KELSY GELETEJ AGENT ORANGE AND THE DISEASES IT CAUSES

THESIS Agent Orange was an effective weapon, but because of the effects it had on the Vietnamese and the Americans in Vietnam that were exposed to it, its use isn’t justified. The means do not justify the ends and vice versa.

WHAT IS AGENT ORANGE? Agent Orange is named after stripe on the barrel it comes in. It was engineered to destroy the triple canopy jungles of Vietnam. (Wilcox)

WHAT IS AGENT ORANGE CONT. Agent Orange contains dioxin, which is an environmental pollutant (World health organization) Dioxin is a herbicide, meaning it is made to kill plants, and it gathers in the food chain, mainly in the fatty tissue of animals.

DIOXIN: A DANGEROUS CHEMICAL Dioxin is highly toxic, and can cause reproductive and developmental problems, damage to the immune system, interference with hormones, and certain cancer (World health organization)

AGENT ORANGE: DIOXINS IN THE ENVIRONMENT The chemical in agent orange, dioxin, isn’t water soluble, but it is soluble in oil. This means that it concentrates in the fatty tissues of animals or people who consume it.

A CHEMICAL COVER-UP The Dow Chemical company, creators of Agent Orange, knew about the effects dioxin had had on rabbits in their lab tests, and they had withheld this information for 20 years. had caused the rabbits to have “severe” liver damage, and was also said to be linked to birth defects and skin disorders in other lab animals. (Chicago Tribune)

A CHEMICAL COVER-UP CONT. “There is absolutely no evidence of dioxin doing any damage to humans excepted for something called chloracne.” – Paul Oreffice, president of Dow. Chloracne is a rash (Chicago Tribune)

HOW AGENT ORANGE AFFECTS DIFFERENT PEOPLE In women, there are two ways the dioxin can exit their bodies: The first is when the chemical crosses the placenta into a growing infant in the womb The second is by indirectly contaminating the already born child through the fatty breast milk. When the chemical effects men, they have no way to get it out of their system other than to let it break down in their bodies.

DISEASES CAUSED BY AGENT ORANGE (IN VETERANS) Birth defects in Vets children Cancers Hodgkin’s disease Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma Leukimia Heart disease (Public Health)

DISEASES CAUSED BY AGENT ORANGE(IN VETERANS) CONT. Parkinson’s disease Peripheral neuropathy Type 2 diabetes Liver failure Acneform diseases

DISEASES CAUSED BY AGENT ORANGE (IN VETERANS CHILDREN) Neural tube defects is one of most common birth defects. It is an opening in the spinal cord or brain that occurs very early in human development. Williams syndrome is a rare genetic disorder that can lead to problems with development. Female Vets kids: Cleft palate/cleft lip Congenital heart disease Hip dysplasia Fused digits Neural tube defects Williams syndrome (Kozel 5-8)

DISEASES CAUSED BY AGENT ORANGE (IN WOMEN VETERANS CHILDREN) CONT. Congenital talipes equinovarus (clubfoot) Poland syndrome is a rare birth defect characterized by underdevelopment or absence of the chest muscle on one side of the body and sometimes webbing of the fingers of the hand on the same side. It is mostly common on the right side of body and is found more in males than females. Hallerman-Streiff syndrome is a congenital disorder that affects growth, cranial development, hair growth, and dental development.

DISEASES CAUSED BY AGENT ORANGE (IN VETERANS CHILDREN Male Vets kids: Spina Bifida (Iwamoto) Spina bifida is a birth defect in which the backbone and spinal canal do not close before birth

DISEASES IN VIETNAMESE Some very common diseases that occurred in vietnam were that their children born without eyes, some were born with ery rare deformations, and they and they had a higher chance of having mental retardation. (Iwamoto)

DISEASES IN VIETNAMESE CONT. In an international conference on dioxin held in Ho Chi Minh City in 1983, it was found that in the south, there is a higher frequency of five congential malformations rare in other countries, as well as nervous system malformations, deformed limbs, deformed eyes, ears, noses, cleft lips, cleft palates, and conjoined twins. (iwamoto)

DISEASES IN VIETNAMESE CONT. According to Dr. Nguyen Viet Nhan, who studies the health of children living in areas sprayed by Agent Orange: “children in sprayed areas are three times as likely to have extra fingers and toes, have cleft palates, or be mentally retarded and eight times as likely to suffer hernias.” Hernia- a sac formed by the lining of the abdominal cavity (peritoneum). The sac comes through a hole or weak area in the fascia, the strong layer of the abdominal wall that surrounds the muscle (Iwamoto)

CONCLUSION In conclusion: Due to all of the different diseases and effects the main chemical of Agent Orange had on many of the people that were exposed to it, the use of Agent Orange was not justified. Despite the fact that it was a helpful tool in the war, and no one using it at the time was aware that these things would happen, the people behind the creation of this chemical, the Dow Chemical Company, who were aware of the effects their chemical had had on rabbits, shouldn’t have released it to the United States Government.

WORK CITED Wilcox, Fred A. "Agent Orange." In Burch, Susan, ed. Encyclopedia of American Disability History. New York: Facts On File, Inc., American History Online. Facts On File, Inc. (accessed June 5, 2012). "Memos Show Dow Knew Dioxin Peril for 20 Years." Chicago Tribune 19 Apr 1983, A1. Web. 5 Jun Fujiwara, Tetsuya. "Vietnam War, disability and." In Burch, Susan, ed. Encyclopedia of American Disability History. New York: Facts On File, Inc., American History Online. Facts On File, Inc. (accessed June 5, 2012). Hastedt, Glenn. "weapons of mass destruction (WMDs)." Encyclopedia of American Foreign Policy. New York: Facts On File, Inc., American History Online. Facts On File, Inc. (accessed June 5, 2012). "Dioxins and their effects on human health." World Health Organization. World Health Organization, May Web. 6 Jun Kozel, Bob. "AGENT ORANGE PRIMER 2011." (2011): 5-8. Web. 6 Jun "Veterans' Diseases Associated with Agent Orange." Public Health. United States Department of Veterans Affairs, n.d. Web. 6 Jun Iwamoto, Kalen, IPB Intern, July 7, 2005 “ The Devastation of Agent Orange: Vietnamese Victims of the War’s Enduring Legacy”