Fear No More: Reclaiming Chemicals

This is an article I wrote for Pure Path Magazine in early 2013. I have since updated some of it, which I can now share.

Fear No More:  Reclaiming Chemicals

In 1989 awareness of the chemical dihydrogen monoxide first took shape bringing to light the disastrous effects that it has on our life. Between 1989 and 2002 independent studies by universities around the globe have come to the following conclusions: 

·         it is fatal if inhaled.

·         it has been known to cause burns ranging from minor to severe 3^rd degree.

·         it is an environmental hazard that has been known to cause erosion of land and buildings, accelerate the corrosion and rusting of many metals, while also known as “hydroxyl acid" it is the major component of acid rain and as such is a major contributor to the “greenhouse effect”, a large part of global warming.

·         it has been linked to electrical failures and decreased effectiveness of machines, including the safety systems in automobiles.

·         it has been found in excised cancerous tumors.

Despite the danger, dihydrogen monoxide is often used:

·         as an industrial solvent and coolant including in nuclear power plants.

·         in the production of such items as Styrofoam, plastics and other products considered hazardous to our health and to the environment.

·         in many forms of torture of both people and animals.

·         it is a main ingredient in many pesticides. Even after washing, produce remains contaminated by this chemical.

·         as an additive in a vast array of food products, including popular junk foods and even those labeled as “health foods” according to FDA standards.

Millions of people globally have signed petitions to ban dihydrogen monoxide in their areas. Several governing bodies, including members of the New Zealand Green Party and the city of Aliso Viejo, California had proposed bans on their agendas, while in a voting advice application of the Finnish parliament showed that 49% of the candidates were pro-ban of dihydrogen monoxide.

The problem with this is that were we to actually ban this chemical, the vast percentage of life on Earth would die. It’s a drastic statement, I know, but true. In scientific form dihydrogen monoxide is broken down like this: Two hydrogen particles- H2= dihydrogen, and one single particle of oxygen- O=monoxide. H2O. In its most common name dihydrogen monoxide is in fact just water.

Every danger and every use listed is quite true but it also brings to light one of the problems that our society currently faces. As we trend towards “natural” living, wanting to be “greener” and “organic” in our day to day lives we have come to rely on the new adage “If you can’t pronounce it or don’t recognize it, then don’t eat it.” Natural, green and organic are the new and improved buzzwords manufacturers use to get your attention, and your dollar, while the fear of “chemical” has become so ingrained in us that we lift our forks to our faces in a perpetual state of unnecessary terror.

There is one other truth that we seem to overlook; natural is not always the best way either. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), during the final quarter of 2012, they documented the highest amount of food recall activity seen in the past two years. The 552 recalls of FDA-regulated food products announced during the fourth quarter maxed out at about 6 events per day totalling nearly 18.4 million items, including *certified organically labeled* fresh fruit and vegetables, nut products and other foods and beverages. Several of these were recalled for food bacterial contamination; E. Coli, Salmonella and Listeria. All are completely natural and all are things we don’t want to ingest.

When we read labels there are “natural flavorings”, which according to the FDA occur in such trace amounts that they need not be labeled exactly.  In fact the wording according to the Code of Federal Regulations is something that gets the head spinning;
  “the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional” (21CFR101.22).

That paragraph is full of perfectly acceptable, perfectly natural words that most people with an education outside of the sciences would not know or recognize. This means that the use of beaver anal gland excretion as a natural flavoring is completely acceptable, and it falls smack under the “natural” labeling that we cling to. Yet, is this truly acceptable as a food product to you?

Chemicals are not the evil additives lurking in our foods, waiting to build up in our bodies and shut them down. Everything in our lives from what we wear to what we ingest to how we treat our skin and hair has been attributed a chemical name. Even synthesized chemicals do not deserve the bad rap they have received.

In the 1780’s the plant Digitalis (commonly known as Foxglove) was explored as a treatment for heart problems. Over the years the benefits of it in treatments in arrhythmias, specifically atrial fibrillation and congestive heart failure, have been refined. The problem entered when it was understood that Digitalis is actually toxic and the margin for diagnosis error is quite slender. A slight ingestion of too much of this herb takes a person from a steady heart rate to stomach pains, convulsions, delirium, vomiting, diarrhea and in rare cases, death.

Instead of discounting the herb all together, modern science has isolated the functional chemicals in the plant, cardiac glycoside (digitoxin and digoxin) as well as a naturally occurring steroid (digoxigenin)  used in marking DNA and RNA. Two medically used chemicals, ones dismissed when looking at the names, derived from an herb recognized for hundreds of years and adapted for safer use into modern medicine.

Other examples:

Thymol, the anticeptic that makes up anywhere from 24-56% of Thyme is but one of several useful chemicals and compounds in the plant. Flip a container of Lysterine and you will find it as an active ingredient.
Phytoestrogens, used to help ease the symptoms of menopause and PMS can be found in varying degrees in the herbs sage, oatstraw and wild yams, but have been refined into prescription pills.
Melatonin, a chemical that helps to gently lull the body to sleep (and one I use on a fairly regular basis) is found in tart cherries and tart cherry juice. This is available in over-the-counter sleep aids.
I could go on but I think you get my point.

The blending of science and herbs/naturals is one that needs to not be feared. Instead of having to eat 80 cherries every night, I can take an extremely concentrated form of tart cherry juice or I can pop a melatonin capsule.  The concentrates of the extracted chemicals allow us to live easier, more comfortably and more naturally without taxing our ecosystems attempting to produce the copious amounts of plants we would need to produce the same medicinal amount naturally.

Modern science also gives us the benefit of a more consistent, safe dosage- every time. No longer do the fears of someone taking just a little too much Foxglove exist.  A person requiring Digitalis can take their pills with confidence that it will be the correct amount. Plants are subject to their environment. Improper soil, too little light, water differences, temperature variations produces varying amounts of those beneficial chemicals we need. One batch of oregano could contain 6mg of Vitamin K, while the next might produce only 4mg because the soil was depleted of nutrients. The refinement of science has allowed for exact measurements. This is especially important when looking at treatments while already taking medications.

As Western Herbalism steps out of folklore and into being accepted as complimentary medical treatments, the pharmacological studies being done on plants are more extensive. Notions previously brushed off as the mad actions of a shaman, a witta, or a country grandmother are now being explored in depth in laboratories. Every day we become more aware of what chemicals in the plants work on different ailments, and why.
Chemicals.
Those things we are told to avoid. Those crazy, unpronounceable words that are nothing more than fancy ways of labeling the basic components that make up our world.

Our world is full of stress and anxiety enough, we simply don’t need to listen to every adage, old or new, that tacks on more. If you don’t know the words on a product, or where it is grown, then look it up. The internet, while able to create hysteria, is also the greatest weapon against it these days. Never fear asking a professional for their credentials before you ask them for their help. And most importantly, don’t fear chemicals. Instead of questioning every little thing you eat or breathe, question the hype first. Look beyond the marketing. 
Remember that we’d all die without dihydrogen monoxide.