Dioxins

{
  "id": "MLC-T-ENV-008006",
  "term": "Dioxins",
  "field": "Environment",
  "definition": "1. Any of a family of compounds known chemically as dibenzo-p-dioxins. Concern about them arises from their potential toxicity as contaminants in commercial products. Tests on laboratory animals indicate that it is one of the more toxic anthropogenic (man-made) compounds.\n\n2. Dioxins are man-made chemical compounds that enter the air through fuel and waste emissions, including motor vehicle exhaust fumes and garbage incineration. Skin rashes, liver damage, weight loss, and a reduction in the effectiveness of the immune system have all been attributed to human exposure to dioxins.\n\n3. Unwanted chemical byproducts of incineration and some industrial processes that use chlorine. Dioxins can accumulate in fish and wildlife and are suspected human carcinogens.\n\n4. Any of a family of compounds which has as a nucleus a triple-ring structure consisting of two benzene rings connected through a pair of oxygen atoms.\n\n5. A group of harmful chemical compounds that are released into the air from combustion processes such as commercial or municipal waste incineration and from burning fuels such as wood, coal, or oil.\n\n6. Highly toxic chemicals used in some manufacturing processes, can build up in the food chain. They may settle in sediment or on aquatic plants, then get eaten and concentrated by fish, other aquatic life, wildlife, and people. Dioxins are formed unintentionally by burning trash or leaded gasoline and as waste byproducts from manufacturing some pesticides. Dioxins are considered likely to increase cancer risk and may harm the immune system, hormone levels, and fetal development.",
  "subject": "Chemicals, toxics and pesticides",
  "references": [
    "Terms of Env",
    "Clean Energy Glossary",
    "Lake Erie Lakewide Management Plan (LaMP) Glossary",
    "EPA Dibenzo-p-dioxin/dibenzofuran vocabulary",
    "ACE Glossary of Terms; America's Children and the Environment Terms",
    "How's My Waterway Glossary"
  ],
  "url": "https://mlchart.com/terminology/environment/dioxins/"
}