DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloro-ethane) is an insecticide that was first used worldwide in 1946 to increase agricultural production and to reduce disease vectors (carriers). Although formulated in 1874, DDT's insecticidal properties were not discovered until 1936. Paul Muller of Switzerland won the Nobel Prize for that discovery in 1948.

The neurotoxin DDT interferes with the action potential along neurons. It affects insects and vertebrates by means of this same primary mechanism. It has a greater effect on insects simply because they are smaller and absorb it more readily. At a high enough dosage, DDT can have as detrimental an effect on vertebrates, including humans. Symptoms of DDT toxicity include apprehension, headache, anorexia, nausea, hyper-excitability, muscle fibrillation, respiratory arrest, coma, and death.

DDT is relatively inert and stable, and is nearly insoluble in water. This combination of attributes allows it to be stored easily in fat. As a result, fatty tissues act as biological magnifiers...