Book Review: Doubt is Their Product
Book Review: Doubt is Their Product: How Industry’s Assault on Science Threatens Your Health
Reviewed by: Lynn Peterson
Rating: Must Read
“Doubt is Their Product” by David Michaels explores how industry sows seeds of doubt in the eyes of the public that their product might not be as dangerous as scientific studies imply. In the 1950’s, the Tobacco Industry, “…understood that the public is in no position to distinguish good science from bad. Create doubt, uncertainty, and confusion. Throw mud at the ‘antismoking’ research under the assumption that some of it is bound to stick. And buy time, lots of time, in the bargain.” Industry can create doubt so easily because simply put, there is no such thing as absolute certainty in science. Not even the Law of Gravity is absolutely certain. Industries, including Big Tobacco, understand this and whenever there is a study that shows a link between their product and a risk to public health, they exploit uncertainty to convince the public and policymakers that their product just might not be that dangerous.
Through a myriad of examples, Michaels shows that creating doubt goes way beyond cigarettes. Manufacturers of chemical dyes, asbestos, pharmaceutical drugs, and even microwave popcorn have followed the example of the Tobacco Industry. To these industries and companies, it is better to deny than it is to admit wrongdoing and change their practices. The examples and the fact that we still rely on the “body in the morgue” method, where industrial workers must first die from working with these chemicals, to even question the safety of a chemical are unconscionable. Sometimes the effects of a chemical on health is so obvious, such as 100% of chemical dye workers developing bladder tumors, but doubt is a powerful foe to the truth that some substances are simply dangerous.
Fortunately, Michales does more than just paint a dire picture of how money and power trump common sense and health; he posits a series of solutions towards the end of the book. One such example is rather than waiting for workers to become ill or drop dead, chemical manufacturers ought to be required to determine whether a substance is safe or not. Of course, there can be no absolute certainty, but people must be protected, “on the basis of the best evidence currently available.”
“Doubt is their Product” is a real eye-opener and ought to be read by everybody who cares about health and safety.
