Mad cows and mother's milk [[electronic resource] ] : the perils of poor risk communication / / William Leiss and Douglas Powell

• Record Nr.: UNINA9910782712503321
• Autore: Leiss William <1939->
• Pubbl/distr/stampa: Montreal ; ; Ithaca, : McGill-Queen's University Press, 1997
• ISBN: 1-282-85454-2; 9786612854545; 0-7735-6664-3
• Descrizione fisica: 1 online resource (321 p.)
• Altri autori (Persone): PowellDouglas Alan <1962->
• Disciplina: 363.1/072
• Soggetti: Health risk communication; Health risk assessment
• Lingua di pubblicazione: Inglese
• Formato: Materiale a stampa
• Livello bibliografico: Monografia
• Nota di bibliografia: Includes bibliographical references and index.
• Nota di contenuto: Front Matter -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Waiting for the Science -- Mad Cows or Crazy Communications? -- A Diagnostic for Risk Communication Failures -- Dioxins, or Chemical Stigmata -- Hamburger Hell: Better Risk Communication for Better Health -- Silicone Breasts: The Implant Risk Controversy -- Waiting for the Regulators -- Lost in Regulatory Space: rbst -- Gene Escape,or the Pall of Silence over Plant Biotechnology Risk -- Mother's Milk: Communicating the Risks of PCBS in Canada and the Far North -- Ten Lessons -- Appendix -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index
• Sommario/riassunto: The first case study deals with the mad cow fiasco of 1996, one of the most expensive and tragic examples of poor risk management in the last twenty-five years. For ten years the British government failed to acknowledge the possibility of a link between mad cow disease and Creuzfeldt-Jakob disease, the human equivalent, until increased scientific evidence and public pressure forced them to take action, resulting in the slaughter of more than one million cattle. The second study looks at what is commonly known as hamburger disease, caused by a virulent form of the E. coli bacterium, which has struck thousands and killed over thirty people in the last few years. Despite its widespread effects, it is unclear whether scientific knowledge on ; preventing the disease is reaching the public. Other case studies include the use of a genetically engineered hormone to increase milk production in cows, health risks associated with silicone breast implants, public controversies surrounding dioxins and PCBs, and the introduction of agricultural biotechnology. These case studies show that institutions routinely fail to communicate the scientific basis of various high-profile risks. These failures to inform the public make it difficult for governments, industry, and society to manage risk controversies sensibly and often result in massive costs. With its detailed analyses of specific risk management controversies, Mad Cows and Mother's Milk will help us avoid future mistakes.