Our Toxic Environment

Environmental Chemicals Cause Ill Health and Death

Chemicals can clearly cause ill health and so can radiation, yet researchers continue to search for the cause of cancer as if it is not obviously on their doorstep.

This is not to suggest that all cancers are due to toxins or radiation because all ill health has multiple causes, but certainly, these toxins are a major contributory factor and may even be the deciding factor in the particular mode of expression of that combination of causes.

Of great concern to the average person is the increase in the number of new chemicals over which we have no control. Smoking can be stopped and so can betel chewing, but there is a whole range of new chemicals filtering into the food chain and environment over which there seems to be little control. Of particular concern are the following:

• Chemicals introduced into foods but not appearing on labels: Often these chemicals are still regarded as inert or non-poisonous or in too small a dose to have any untoward effect.
• Chemicals in the environment allowed because the benefits outweigh the risks: An example of this is chlorine and fluoride introduced into drinking water. Both chlorine and fluoride are byproducts of industry and highly poisonous. Chlorine is used to disinfect water by killing micro-organisms, while fluoride was introduced to decrease cavities in children's teeth.

CHLORINE

If chlorine disinfects water, it will do the same in the gastrointestinal tract by killing or inhibiting some of the body’s own micro-organisms. It is not clear what the long-term consequences of this would be, as there is little funding for this kind of research. No government wants to start worrying about changing the way water is sanitized when a system seems to be working; so from the government’s point of view, the risks are worth the benefits. Chlorine is converted into chloride in the body, and while this is not toxic, what happens to chlorine in the presence of organic material is particularly dangerous and toxic.

Chlorine forms disinfection byproducts (DBPs), which are a hundred times more toxic than chlorine. While the level of chlorine present in drinking water is regarded as safe, the fact is that chlorine water and its byproducts are present in numerous other sources such as drinks and foods grown in chlorinated water. Americans ingest from 300 to 600 times what the Environmental Protection Agency considers a ‘safe' amount. Chlorine and its byproducts are carcinogenic and add to the total load of carcinogens in the environment. Don’t expect any government to change this; you will be told that the benefits far outweigh the risks.

FLUORIDE

Fluoride poured into drinking water may even turn out to be a bigger scam than chlorine. There is insufficient data regarding the safe daily intake over the long term. Although the possibility of toxic effects is dismissed by government agencies and most medical scientists as insignificant, one cannot dismiss the fact that fluoride is a poison and that with time the total amount of fluoride in the environment will increase.

This increase will follow the increasing amounts appearing in watered plants and trees and eventually in fruit, vegetables, and even animal tissue. This increase will eventually filter down into the tissues of human beings who eat and drink contaminated foods and water. While there may be a level of control around the amount of fluoride present in the water, the accumulated traces of fluoride eventually ending up in the food we eat is very difficult to control.

CONCLUSION

So, we come to the sad truth. Governments won’t, and probably cannot, make real changes regarding pollution control because of the financial cost involved. Human beings are dispensable. We are part of a business model whose bottom line is financial and not health. This attitude will only shift if people rise up and demand such a change. So become the changes in your own home.

Guidelines for Home Changes

• Water filters are essential. Remember also to place a water filter in your shower.
• Grow your own organic vegetables or buy local at the farmers' markets.
• Buy only raw milk if available.
• Eat only pasture-raised animal meat or venison.
• Avoid junk foods and processed foods.
• Avoid refined oils and only use cold-pressed oils.
• Avoid margarines.
• No smoking.
• While one to two glasses of red wine are usually permitted, be careful of doing this daily as alcohol is a toxin to the liver.
• Use biodegradable cleaning solutions in your kitchen and house generally.
• Change your chlorinated pool to a biologically active pool.
• Use solar heaters.

Source: Brom B. Healthy Medicine – the Philosophy and Principles of Natural Medicine. Kima Global Publishers. 2016.

Editor's note: Please read the article Beware of Toxic Skin Care Products and we have a few article on detox such as Our Environment demands an Annual Detox and Detox Done Right – the purification process.