He has published five books focusing largely on environmental, dietary, and consumer safety issues, including Diet for a Poisoned Planet in 1990.

[1] In 1985 while writing for LA Weekly,[2] David Steinman learned that fish in the Santa Monica Bay were tainted with DDT and PCBs.

[3] He organized a research team from Loma Linda University that found levels of DDT and PCBs were elevated in the blood of local sport fishermen (including himself).

[4] In February 1986, Steinman was invited to testify as an expert witness before the Congressional Subcommittee on Health and the Environment chaired by Henry Waxman.

Soon after its release, the book garnered criticism from industry organizations like the California Raisin Advisory Board and the American Council on Science and Health (ACSH) for its "alarmist" views.