What's Toxic, What's Not

Mold, lead, radon, asbestos, food additives, power lines, and more: what the risks are, and how to safeguard against them. Arsenic. Mercury. Pesticides. Dioxin. Toxic gases. Your typical hazardous waste dump, right? Wrong. These materials can be found in the home. Every day, people work, live, and play amid potentially harmful toxins-things they might not even know are there. They are exposed to these toxic substances in their homes, neighborhoods, schools, workplaces, foods, and consumer products. Now, two toxics experts with decades of experience in public health have created a book that separates the risks from the myths of everyday toxins. Comprehensive and easy-to-use, this guide provides scenarios and real-life examples-including important warning signs-that show how to identify problems and what to do about them. With Q&A segments, charts to help assess risk, and a special homebuyer's guide, What's Toxic, What's Notis a book no home should be without.

Dr. Gary Ginsberg has twenty years of experience in toxicology and risk assessment, working initially in industry and for the last 10 years in public health. He is the senior toxicologist at the Connecticut Dept. of Public Health where he helps set pollutant standards for air, water, and soil and develops health advisories for fish and consumer products. He has an adjunct faculty appointment at the Yale University School of Medicine and is an Assistant Clinical Professor at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. He is a member on a number of expert review panels including the committee that reports to the USEPA administrator on how well the agency is protecting children's health. He is also a member of a National Academy of Science panel on human biomonitoring. His research publications are in the areas of chemical carcinogens and the risks to children and other sensitive subpopulations. He received his Ph.D. in toxicology from the University of Connecticut in 1986.

Brian Toal is the supervisor of the Environmental and Occupational Health Assessment Program in the Connecticut Department of Public Health. He has evaluated environmental risks for over 20 years of public health service, developing specific expertise in indoor air pollution, asbestos, fish contamination and hazardous waste site evaluations. He is project manager on grants from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control on surveillance of environmental disease and assessment of community risks from contaminated sites. He has a Master of Science in Public Health from the University of Washington where he majored in environmental toxicology.