I’m Killing Myself by Being a Consumer
May 27, 2007
That’s it. I’m going into hiding. It is no longer safe for me in this society of manufactured, artificial, technological wonders! I’m heading to the hills or the caves or the clouds or something.
Ok… maybe I’m over-reacting. But this morning I’ve run across two - yes two - instances of my health being put at risk because of simple, common products that I consume:
DNA-Altering Soft Drinks?
Flip that can over. Yeah… the one you’re drinking that Sprite or Coke or Dr. Pepper or whatever out of. Does it contain sodium benzoate? Products have been using sodium benzoate for years as a preservative. We’ve probably all consumed a great deal of it.
And now scientists think it might be altering our DNA and causing the shut down of the mitochondria in our cells.
I’m Putting What In My Eye?
Mere minutes after running across the story about Coke (which I happened to be drinking at the time), I ran across an article talking about a recall of a specific saline solution. Hmm, I thought… that sounds familiar. So I went and checked. Yep… it’s the kind I use.
Apparently this saline solution has been under investigation since 2004 by the CDC for links to a blinding eye infection. Since 2004??? And they’re still selling on shelves today?? They’re recalling it NOW??
This stuff is on the rise all the time. It seems like an almost daily event to hear about some product that we consume getting recalled. Why? What’s going on? Have manufacturing processes gone down hill? Are we testing more today than when did yesterday?
The way I see it… I have two options: 1) produce my own consumables (yeah… that’ll happen)… or 2) deal with the fact that something I buy at the grocery store and put into my body could potentially be poison. I have no idea which products those are. But it could be any of them.
Should I start eyeballing all store shelves suspiciously? Should I start taking test kits to the supermarket to run analysis on all products before I buy them?
But I guess the idea that a simple trip to the store is really a game of Russian Roulette should add some much-needed excitement to my life.
Posted in Personal, Rants, Society
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June 2nd, 2007 at 6:41 pm
Thank you for your interesting story!
I thought perhaps you may interested in this related ongoing discussion:
Longevity Science: Soft Drinks Linked to Aging ?
http://longevity-science.blogspot.com/2007/05/soft-drinks-linked-to-aging.html
June 2nd, 2007 at 8:17 pm
Thanks for the link!
June 5th, 2007 at 10:17 am
I stick to hot tea (a good british tradition) with no milk, for the antioxidants. Also am slowly moving away from processed foods back to natural ones (not quite ready for the organic thing). This just confirms that I’m heading in the right direction. It’s more of a lifestyle change and it takes a while for tastes and habits to change. It’s also being more aware of what I throw in my shopping cart; that’s where the battle is won because if it’s not in the cupboard, I won’t eat it.
June 5th, 2007 at 10:22 pm
Long time no see ;) Glad to see you’re still around.
You’re right, too - the best time to make decisions like that is while you’re shopping. It’s hard to throw something out if it’s already in your house. But if the bad stuff never makes it home… that’s a different story.
I’ve never understood the British tradition of hot tea :P I’ve tried it numerous times and I just can’t get on board. Haha. Of course… I’m not a huge fan of coffee or other hot drinks, either.
I like ice. Lots and lots of ice.
June 6th, 2007 at 9:39 pm
Yup, you’re right there. The unsafe plastic cutting board. The sunblock that blocks vitamin D production. Blah, blah, blah…yes, the never ending list…wait a minute, didn’t researchers find some pesticides in tea leaves???
June 6th, 2007 at 10:11 pm
Maybe the best course of action is to embrace our overly-polluted world and consume away. If it’s impossible to avoid this stuff why bother?