Poisoned

After years of prosecuting hard-core criminals, rising legal star Alan Bell took a private sector job in South Florida’s newest skyscraper. Suddenly, he suffered such bizarre medical symptoms, doctors suspected he’d been poisoned by the Mafia. Bell’s rapidly declining health forced him to flee his glamorous Miami life to a sterile “bubble” in the remote Arizona desert.

As his career and marriage dissolved, Bell pursued medical treatments in a race against time, hoping to stay alive and raise his young daughter, his one desperate reason to keep going. He eventually discovered he wasn’t poisoned by a criminal, but by his office building. His search for a cure led him to discover the horrifying truth: his tragedy was just the tip of the iceberg. Millions of people fall ill and die each year because of toxic chemical exposures—without knowing they’re at risk.

Stunned by what he discovered, Bell chose to fight back, turning his plight into an opportunity. Despite his precarious health, he began collaborating with scientists dedicated to raising awareness about this issue. Soon, he also found himself drawn back into the legal field, teaming up with top lawyers fighting for those who had already fallen ill.

Both a riveting medical mystery and a cautionary tale, this book puts a human face on the hidden truths behind toxic dangers assaulting us in our everyday environments—and offers practical ways to protect ourselves and our children.

Alan Bell is an attorney who prosecuted drug and homicide cases for the state of Florida before developing multiple chemical sensitivity. He is the founder of the Environmental Health Foundation, which advocates for victims of environmental injury. Alan lives in Capistrano Beach, California.

Jan Schlichtmann’s groundbreaking work on behalf of people injured by environmental contamination and toxic products has received international recognition and spurred original work in scientific, medical, and legal journals and books. His representation of eight Woburn, Massachusetts, families against W.R. Grace and Beatrice Foods for the contamination of the city’s water supply was chronicled in the New York Times bestseller A Civil Action. He lives with his wife and three children in Beverly, Massachusetts.

"Horrifying and inspirational." —Publishers Weekly

"An important cautionary memoir." —Kirkus Reviews

"[Bell's] compelling story is a canary-in-the-coal-mine call for more stringent regulation of industrial chemicals.” —Booklist

"A riveting read about a dynamic public health warrior." —Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

"Alan Bell is defending us and our children." —Alan Dershowitz, Harvard Law School

“We are under the greatest environmental assault in the history of humanity. The saga of Alan Bell will break your heart but leave you hopeful.” —Suzanne Somers, actress and author of TOX-SICK

"Poisoned is a moving and inspiring story about one man's descent into the environmental hell that threatens the health and existence of us all. Alan Bell makes a unique and profound contribution to the understanding of how technology's toxic residue is eating away at the fabric of our life." —Jan Schlichtmann, Esq., environmental and toxic torts attorney

“The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth: in this emotional new memoir, former Miami prosecutor Alan Bell lays bare his own battle against a mysterious illness and warns us that we—and everyone we love—may fall victim to the same fate, unless we learn how to protect ourselves against the toxins being poured into our environment every day.” —Ed Begley, Jr., actor and environmental activist

"Bell’s amazing story must be told. His inspiring journey is compelling, riveting and a must read for us all. In contrast to saving the whales, birds or trees, Bell’s crusade in saving the humans brings the environmental movement to its most basic purpose: how it affects you and me, here and now." —Blair Underwood, actor

"Bell’s message takes the environmental movement to the bottom line. His story puts a human face on this hot issue. He is truly a dynamic fighter for the health of us all. A riveting read." —Jim Vititoe, Esq., Vititoe Law Group

“We are the first generation in history that has grown up in an age of environmental pollution. Pollution is taking a terrible toll, with a dramatic rise in human disease. The Environmental Health Foundation fights illness caused by pollution through prevention and by seeking cures. Let’s join Alan’s efforts in making a healthier America.”—Kenny Loggins, singer/songwriter

"Indoor air pollution makes millions of people sick and it doesn’t have to.Take simple steps to protect your health and your life. Join me in supporting the Environmental Health Foundation." —Matthew Perry, actor

"With dangerous chemicals abundant in our world, we need solid guidance coming from people we can trust, showing us the steps we can take to protect ourselves and our loved ones. And that is why I highly recommend Poisoned. Read it. It’s a fascinating story, and your life will be better for it." —John Robbins, president, the Food Revolution Network; author, Diet for a New America and The Food Revolution

"Alan Bell's poignant story calls our attention to the inherent vulnerability of the human condition and reminds us that there is no one, irrespective of his or her station in life or current health status, who is entirely immune to the potential adverse effects of neurotoxicants." —Marcia Ratner, PhD, neurotoxicologist, Boston University

“The Environmental Health Foundation [Bell founded] will produce a long-term agenda addressing the future of environmental health research. There is no question that we all can benefit from their efforts. I look forward to working with them.”—Al Gore, former vice president of the United States

“I congratulate Bell, and greatly admire what he is doing to increase awareness of and overcome the effects from exposure to environmental toxins. This is a mission I’m urging you to get behind, because if we don’t, this world we call home could be plagued by a host of environmentally linked diseases that could dwarf any we’ve yet known.” —Eugene A. Cernan, NASA astronaut and commander of Apollo 17

“Since 1950, more than 85,000 chemicals have been introduced into our environment. Few have been tested for their toxic effects on humans. We are conducting a massive toxicological assault on the American population, and our children and our children’s children are the experimental animals.”—Phillip J. Landrigan, MD, dean for Global Health, Mount Sinai Medical Center, New York