We as a people assume that the food we order or buy is safe to eat. This faith in our food comes in part from the Food and Drug Administration and the laws and regulations that govern our food. Currently the Food and Drug Administration oversees the country’s food supply. Also, it is responsible for assuring the safety of human and veterinary drugs, medical devices, cosmetics and tobacco. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) came into being with the passage of the 1906 Pure Food and Drugs Act. This law prohibited interstate commerce in misbranded food and drugs. Harvey Washington Wiley, chief chemist of the Department of Agriculture, had been the driving force behind this law and headed its enforcement. In the 1880s, when Wiley began his 50-year crusade for pure foods, America's marketplace was flooded with poor, often harmful products.
In 1902, Wiley was given a grant of $5,000 in order to study the safety of the chemical preservatives that were being added to foods. With this money, he assembled a troop of twelve men who became known as “The Poison Squad”. All of the men involved were were graduates of the civil service exam and were said to have high moral character and reliability. These men would meet in the basement of the Department of Agriculture (DOA), dressed in suite and tie, for the finest meals. The goal of the Poison Squad was to consume some of the most commonly used food additives in order to determine their effects. During each of the Poison Squad’s trials, the members would eat steadily increasing amounts of each additive, carefully tracking the impact that it had on their bodies. They would stop when they started to get sick. The members of the Poison Squad took an oath that, for a year, only allowed them to eat food prepared in the DOA kitchen. The goal was to
The Poison Squad tested additives such as borax, sulfuric acid, saltpeter, formaldehyde and benzoic acid. These brave and iron stomached men suffered from many ailments including nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, liver damage, kidney damage, brain damage, and jaundice. The Poison Squad experiments got wide media coverage and caught public attention. It allowed people to question what they ate, and become open to change.
In 1907, the Poison Squad came to an end. In 1912 Wiley went to work for Good Housekeeping Magazine as the head of testing. It was during this time that the Good Housekeeping “Seal of Approval” became so desirable on a product Wiley also explored the effects of additive sugar and the negative effects of cigarettes. In 1921, an article of Wiley’s contributed to the passage of the Maternity Bill, which increased Federal funds for improved infant care and led to a reduction of the appalling infant mortality rate.
Quality food is important. Still today many preservatives are put in our food that we may not know the long term health effects of. Harvey Wiley started to examine the many questions that were proposed about preservatives and coloring in our food and opened up scientific and public knowledge on the subject.
In 1902, Wiley was given a grant of $5,000 in order to study the safety of the chemical preservatives that were being added to foods. With this money, he assembled a troop of twelve men who became known as “The Poison Squad”. All of the men involved were were graduates of the civil service exam and were said to have high moral character and reliability. These men would meet in the basement of the Department of Agriculture (DOA), dressed in suite and tie, for the finest meals. The goal of the Poison Squad was to consume some of the most commonly used food additives in order to determine their effects. During each of the Poison Squad’s trials, the members would eat steadily increasing amounts of each additive, carefully tracking the impact that it had on their bodies. They would stop when they started to get sick. The members of the Poison Squad took an oath that, for a year, only allowed them to eat food prepared in the DOA kitchen. The goal was to
“Investigate the character of food
preservatives, coloring matters, and other substances added to foods, to
determine their relation to digestion and to health, and to establish the
principles which should guide their use."
-Wiley
The Poison Squad tested additives such as borax, sulfuric acid, saltpeter, formaldehyde and benzoic acid. These brave and iron stomached men suffered from many ailments including nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, liver damage, kidney damage, brain damage, and jaundice. The Poison Squad experiments got wide media coverage and caught public attention. It allowed people to question what they ate, and become open to change.
In 1907, the Poison Squad came to an end. In 1912 Wiley went to work for Good Housekeeping Magazine as the head of testing. It was during this time that the Good Housekeeping “Seal of Approval” became so desirable on a product Wiley also explored the effects of additive sugar and the negative effects of cigarettes. In 1921, an article of Wiley’s contributed to the passage of the Maternity Bill, which increased Federal funds for improved infant care and led to a reduction of the appalling infant mortality rate.
Quality food is important. Still today many preservatives are put in our food that we may not know the long term health effects of. Harvey Wiley started to examine the many questions that were proposed about preservatives and coloring in our food and opened up scientific and public knowledge on the subject.
Advertisements for many different remedies in the late 1800's and early 1900's
"The Poison Squad"
Harvey W. Wiley
http://www.fda.gov/aboutfda/whatwedo/history/default.htm
http://www.fdahistory.com/Clips_and_Trailers.html
http://www.blackcollegetv.net/VideoDetail.aspx?assetId=24712259746&pv=bio
