INSIDE OUT

Some of you might come here wondering, "why"? "Why do you care about all of this hoopla!? It's just a fad! I fed my kids beef, dairy, *plastic*, etc, etc. when they were 3 months old and they turned out fine"! Or, "I've been using any and all hair care products, nail products, soaps, etc, etc, etc, etc. from the cheapest and most convenient retailer all my life and I'm fine! I've been drinking homogenized milk since I was a baby and... oh you get my drift.

I understand the animosity. I had it too. I rolled my eyes at vegans and the like and thought it was all a bunch of crazy jargon to make themselves feel better. Anything they said seemed like so much emptiness, backed by unsubstantiated claims. "For every one study that says this, there's another study that says the opposite", afterall. Until, I realized where these studies were coming from.

The Dairy Industry will ALWAYS state the 'obvious', "Drinking millk is not only good for you, the calcium you get from it is 'ESSENTIAL'" Well, anyone who does any investigating will see that most of those studies "OUTSIDE" the dairy industry actually confirm that our bodies simply don't absorb the calcium to justify stealing calves' milk from their mommies and ingesting the many hormones, chemicals, bleaches, etc that are found in our North American Beef. The beef my grandmother ate and fed her kids is not the beef we eat today.

We have got to at least, 'think' about the potential dangers. I used to believe that if it was bad for us, the government would not sell it. That they would warn us of the 'potentials' at the very least. Well, for the sake of profit... this is just not true. I won't say they don't do 'anything'. But, is it enough? I realize they "sometimes" do what they can but do they eliminate the cancer-causing chemicals altogether or just "minimize" them? Wouldn't you hope that if they KNOW something is bad for us that they would not allow them to be sold? Is simply minimizing harmful cancer causing chemicals enough?

Here's href="http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/chem-chim/contaminants-guidelines-d..."> a quote directly from the government of Canada and a statement you might want to think about the next time you wonder if the government would really let us buy something that was bad for us. Take note of the governments "jargon":

"Maximum levels exist for a number of chemicals and retail foods, although the list is limited. There are several reasons for this. The finding of a chemical in food does not automatically lead to the conclusion that there is an unacceptable health risk to humans. The chemical may be at such low levels that it does not pose an unacceptable risk and therefore, risk management (e.g. the establishment of a maximum level) is not required" (HA! That's EXACTLY what they said about Bisphenol A - A chemical in BABY BOTTLES, which negatively effects our children's future fertility)!!!!

They then go on to say, "Maximum levels are established in an effort to reduce exposure to a particular contaminant." Did you catch that?? Do you see the words they are using? "Does not 'automatically'"... "therefore risk management is not required"! And did you catch the "effort to 'reduce' exposure'? I'm sorry, is it just me or shouldn't the government be *ELIMINATING ALTOGETHER*, the exposure to a "particular contaminant". All this means is that it's minimized. What does that mean? If toxins never release from our bodies (a fact I recently learned) and chemicals build up over time, these "minimal toxins" eventually stop being considered "minimal" and pose a crucial health risk over years of exposure.

The FSA (the European Union's more aggressive approach to chemicals and their harmful effects) has helped the public make decisions based on known and even *SUSPECTED* carcinogens. We've got to research and read labels. Not everything at the grocery store causes cancer or effects our children's fertilty. But, some do. We've got to know which ones might be even suspected to effect us negatively and in turn, make our own choices whether or not to avoid them.

Unfortunately, the Canadian government knows all too well the financial effects this would have on big corporations. If these chemicals in question (i.e. studies, which show that there are potential negative impacts on children or adults, yet are simply not completed) turn out that said chemical is safe in the end, they've caused a paranoia in the public that has tainted this particular item and potentially brought down a well-meaning business!

This is an understandable dilemma.

But please, let "us" make that decision. Please let us know about all of these known AND suspected cancer-causing, fertility-effecting chemicals in a reader-friendly manner that is readily accessible to the public. Chemicals have only begun to infiltrate our food, drug, cleaners, beauty products, in such mass amounts in this past century. As already mentioned and is worth repeating, chemicals, once entered into our blood stream do not leave it. They continue to build and build into our system over years and years. One cancer-causing shampoo application will not hurt us. The fact that I've been using it since I was 2 might!!!!

Some more things you might want to read:

href="http://ec.europa.eu/food/food/index_en.htm">Informative website on the EU's fight against harmful chemicals. Lots of information but, a great read if you don't "really" believe that "ignorance is bliss":

href="http://msds.chem.ox.ac.uk/carcinogens.html">Known or suspected Carcinogens found by Oxford University

href="http://ec.europa.eu/food/food/chemicalsafety/contaminants/hormones/index_en.htm">Why to avoid meat in North America the FSA has already deemed unsafe:
(*note: Canada's guidelines for the hormones in the beef industry is a bit more strict than our friends in the south)

I could link you to hundreds if not thousands of sites dedicated to this topic and others. It is all too easy to find consensus, with information at our fingertips.

SO WHAT

So what and why do I care about all of this? Well, dairy, as one example of many I could conclude with, is known to help CAUSE arthritis in the vast amounts of our elderly. The calcium the dairy industry says we so desperately need is actually contributing to it. I will grow old. We all, yes, eventually die anyways. HOWEVER, if I live for another 30 years, I want those 30 years to not be filled with the pain and suffering I see happening with the women in my family. My genes might support arthritis occurring, yet if I protect my body and not treat it as a garbage disposal, I know I will minimize the effects and not, as I see in my own family, be kept up every single night for years on end, in pain because "we all die anyways".

It might seem overwhelming to you and even sometimes, for me. Yet, it's not as overwhelming as you might think. I live a very fulfilling life, full of wonderful foods and flavors, great-smelling, effective household cleaners, creative means to play, laugh and simply 'be'. Sometimes, I find out something new or that something I thought was better, was not. I just do more research and figure out how to adjust. We can't throw up our arms and give it "all" up for the sake of not having it "all figured out". We must try. For the sake of our future and our children's. Lets not just sit back and say, "Why bother? We're all gonna die anyways." Let's make that journey towards death as fun and as painfree as we possibly can along the way.