TOXIC
OUR TOXIC WORLDOUR TOXIC WORLD
There are more than nine million known organic compounds including hydrocarbon fuels, proteins, fats, sugars, cellulose, pesticides, dyes and more. Most are naturally occurring. But many are synthetically manufactured, with some highly detrimental to the environment and/or to human health. One notorious example, DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane or C14H9Cl5) was developed as the first of the modern synthetic insecticides in the 1940s. the well documented adverse effects of this compound was one of the founding events that spurred the environmental movement
Humans are exposed to a myriad of chemicals – in air, water, food, cosmetics, toys, carpets, paints and more as these series of articles explore.
Explosive Diarrhea – From Leafy Greens
OK – so the headlines use the term EXPLOSIVE DIARRHEA which certainly gets our attention. But from lettuce and other leafy greens? These are supposedly at the top level for healthy eating. But even this assumption can be wrong if there are insufficient sanitation protocols.
I can recall my mother teaching me at an early age about food safety – mostly from the handling of meat and fish from initial preparation to the final cooking to the proper temperature, paying attention to best before dates, washing up after preparation, avoiding cross contamination and more. Of course, we learned to wash produce before using but a quick rinse under the tap seemed to be enough. We now know we may need more rigor.
The Dark History of a Potent Man-Made Poison
I have had the honour of writing this article with a close friend and former associate- Dr Wayne Dwernychuk. He and I worked together for over 40 years on a diverse range of projects. Dr. Dwernychuk became especially well recognized for his work on the highly toxic set of chemicals known as dioxins. The impacts of this set of poisons was felt most prominently in Vietnam due to the spraying of defoliants contaminated with dioxins. I highly recommend that you also watch the “60 Minutes” piece referred to (with a link) in this article.
Toxic Chemicals in Everyday Products
There are hundreds of thousands of man-made chemicals on the market. One group are called ‘forever chemicals’ because they don’t break down. They are of particular concern, as they are used in so many of our everyday products – from cookware to makeup. Read on.
Are Plastics Inside Us
Are Plastics Inside Us? Are Plastics Inside Us? It is now clear that we are all part of a massive global experiment to determine if microplastics are affecting human health. There are ways though, to reduce individual exposure. Read on – 4 minute read Allan Maynard, MSc. – November 2025 Annual plastic production increased from two million tonnes in 1950, to about 475 million...
How to Minimize Exposure to Toxins
How to Minimize Exposure to Toxins Part 4 of 4 – series on exposure to man-made chemicals After reading my series of articles on man-made chemicals, some may now have the impression that we are living in a toxic soup with risks around every corner. This is not the case for most of us that don’t face --- occupational exposure (ie - farm workers, chemical factory workers,...
Linking Illness to Chemical Exposure
My wife of over 50 years suffered from Alzheimer’s disease. Were toxic chemicals used on the family farm a possible causative factor? We will never know. The linking of illness to chemical exposure is extremely complex as the following article explains. On March 18, 2021 – we (friends and family) lost a beautiful soul to Alzheimer’s disease. After my wife Margrit’s diagnosis...
A Daily Dose of Chemical Exposure
A Daily Dose of Chemical Exposure - There are over 9 million known chemicals – many of which are man-made. In the United States, there are some 90,000 chemicals licensed for use; In Canada and the European Union – that number is around 25,000. There can be great discrepancies country by country, in terms of how these chemicals are regulated. As we saw in the previous article...
Toxic Exposure – Forever Chemicals – Part 1
It’s likely that all of us have detectable levels of these 2 classes of forever chemicals in our blood – DDT and fire retardents. The phrase "Better Living Through Chemistry" is a variant of an advertising slogan DuPont adopted in 1935. The slogan was later changed to - "The miracles of science". But some such “miracles” came back to haunt us. INTRODUCTION Toxic Exposure -...
TEFLON – IS IT SAFE
TEFLON – IS IT SAFE? By Allan Maynard March 4, 2021 This was part of my breakfast a few mornings ago. And yes – it’s in a Teflon frying pan. It’s so easy – a tiny (well maybe not too tiny) dollop of butter, crack the egg in, flip after partial frying and out slides the perfect over medium fried egg. But – is Teflon safe? Because I am an environmental...