Both Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) and its close relative Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES) are very effective foaming agents, chemically known as surfactants. SLS and SLES are esters of Sulphuric acid. SLS is also known as "Sulfuric acid monododecyl ester sodium salt" and over 150 different names by which it is known. In fact, SLES is commonly contaminated with dioxane, a known carcinogen. Although SLES is somewhat less irritating than Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, it cannot be metabolized by the liver and its effects are therefore much longer-lasting. National Institutes of Health...
Read more...
Aspartame is the technical name for the brand names NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, and Equal-Measure. It was discovered by accident in 1965 when James Schlatter, a chemist of G.D. Searle Company, was testing an anti-ulcer drug. Found to be sweet as sugar but lower calorie, it was the perfect drug to market as a food. Primary ExposureAnything "diet" or low calorie. Health Conditions Aspartame is made up of three chemicals: aspartic acid, phenylalanine, and methanol. The food industry claims Aspartame is safe, but most of the studies were done by the...
Read more...
Trichloroethylene is used mainly as a solvent to remove grease from metal parts and as an industrial solvent. It is also an ingredient in adhesives, paint removers, typewriter correction fluids and spot removers. Industrial abbreviations include TCE, trichlor, Trike, Tricky and tri. It has been sold under a variety of trade names. Under the trade names Trimar and Trilene, trichloroethylene was used as a volatile anesthetic and as an inhaled obstetrical analgesic in millions of patients. Trichloroethylene is not thought to occur naturally in the environment. However, it has been...
Read more...
Toluene (methylbenzene, toluol, phenylmethane) is an aromatic hydrocarbon commonly used as an industrial solvent for the manufacturing of paints, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and rubber. Toluene is found in gasoline, acrylic paints, varnishes, lacquers, paint thinners, adhesives, glues, rubber cement, airplane glue, and shoe polish. Toxicity can occur from unintentional or deliberate inhalation of fumes, ingestion, or transdermal (skin) absorption. Toluene abuse or "glue sniffing" has become widespread, especially among children or adolescents, because it is readily available and inexpensive. Toluene is commonly abused by saturating or soaking a sock or rag...
Read more...
Sunscreens are chemical agents that help prevent the sun's ultraviolet (UV) radiation from reaching the skin, or that is what you have been led to believe. SPF stands for Sun Protection Factor and is a measure of a sunscreen's ability to prevent UVB from damaging the skin. Here's how it works: If it takes 20 minutes for your unprotected skin to start turning red, using an SPF 15 sunscreen theoretically prevents reddening 15 times longer — about five hours. For decades, irresponsible cosmetic companies and a small group of very...
Read more...
Food preservation is the procedure of treating and handling food to prevent or greatly slow spoilage by micro-organisms, improve appearance of the food or extend its shelf life. A preservative is any ingredient added (additive) that you would not find in/on that food in nature. There is a reason that nature produces foods with a limited shelf life. The fabulous invention of man to preserve foods makes them look much more appealing, but it is once again at the risk of causing harm to the body. Some of the most...
Read more...
Of course, everyone realizes petroleum products are used in the gasoline that fuels our vehicles. But did you know petroleum-based components are in medicines, food, and even in the clothes we wear? One 42-gallon barrel of oil creates 19.4 gallons of gasoline. The rest (over half) is used to make things like paint, cosmetics, plastic, vitamin capsules, lip gloss, lotion and 6,000 other things. We are exposed to products that have some petroleum derivative every day. From the health perspective, petroleum has infiltrated our lives on so many levels that...
Read more...
These cancer-causing agents can be sealed into fruit and vegetables by the wax that is used to make produce look shiny. Don't buy shiny produce! Since these pesticides become airborne, even organic produce may carry toxins blown over by the wind from nearby conventional farms. It is best to wash all produce before consuming it. This is especially important when feeding children, as they are more susceptible to the long-term effects of pesticide exposure. Wash them until they squeak! However, washing produce will only remove surface pesticide residue. Pesticides can...
Read more...
Polychlorinated Biphenyl (PCB) belongs to a broad family of man-made organic chemicals known as chlorinated hydrocarbons. PCBs were domestically manufactured from 1929 until their manufacture was banned in 1979. They have a range of toxicity and vary in consistency from thin, light-colored liquids to yellow or black waxy solids. Due to their non-flammability, chemical stability, high boiling point, and electrical insulating properties, PCBs were used in hundreds of industrial and commercial applications. These include: electrical, heat transfer, and hydraulic equipment; plasticizers in paints, plastics, and rubber products; in pigments, dyes,...
Read more...
Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) are flame retardant chemicals added to products so they won't catch fire or burn so easily if they are exposed to flame or high heat. PBDEs have been used for over 30 years in products such as mattresses, upholstered furniture, foam carpet pads, draperies, television sets, computers, stereos and other electronics, cable insulation, adhesives, and textile coating. PBDEs can migrate out of flame retardant products and accumulate in indoor air, house dust, and eventually the environment. PBDEs do not break down quickly in the environment and...
Read more...
The primary commercial source of nicotine is by extraction from the dried leaves of the tobacco plant. Since nicotine is the drug in tobacco leaves, whether someone smokes, chews, or sniffs tobacco, he or she is delivering nicotine to the brain. Each cigarette contains about 10 milligrams of nicotine. Because the smoker inhales only some of the smoke from a cigarette and not all of each puff is absorbed in the lungs, a smoker gets about 1 to 2 milligrams of the drug from each cigarette. A drop of pure...
Read more...
Chemically speaking, MSG is approximately 78 percent free glutamic acid, 21 percent sodium, and up to 1 percent contaminants. It's a misconception that MSG is a flavor or "meat tenderizer." In reality, MSG has very little taste at all, yet when you eat MSG, you think the food you're eating has more protein and tastes better. It does this by tricking your tongue, using a little-known fifth basic taste called umami. Umami is the taste of glutamate, which is a savory flavor found in many Japanese foods, bacon and also...
Read more...