Castoreum, which is not the same as a castor bean, is a
flavor enhancer used in a lot of processed foods. It is also used for anxiety,
restless sleep, and some women take it to start their menstrual cycles or to
lessen the pain during the cycle. Castoreum has been deemed safe to ingest by
the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Flavor and Extract Manufacturers
Association (FEMA), and is generally recognized as safe. It is an extract that is dipped in alcohol
(not the kind people use to get intoxicated) and is used as a vanilla
flavoring. The crazy thing about this is the extract comes from beavers. The
secretion is extracted from the beaver’s castor sacs which are located I between
the tail and pelvis of the beaver. Since the castor sac is close to the anal
glands, Castoreum often has anal gland and urine residue mixed in it. It is a
brown slime with a similar texture to molasses. It is not easy to manufacture
enough Castoreum for the massive food production. Some extractors have stated
that a popular method is to milk the anal glands and the Castoreum gushes right
out. As disgusting as it sounds, they say this is the most effective method. Since
Castoreum comes from animals and according to its FDA classification, food
companies are allowed to out “natural flavoring” instead of putting Castoreum which
is pretty misleading to say the least. Its loopholes like this that do not help
those people who are conscience of what they eat and use the food labels as
guides. Although it has been deemed as safe from the FDA, using Castoreum in
foods just doesn’t seem natural. As much new scientific discoveries as we have,
there should be a way to extract these flavors and scents from the actual
produce/foods that they come from.
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Sunday, November 16, 2014
Dr Gerald Pollack and EZ Water
Dr. Gerald Pollack got his PhD from the University of
Pennsylvania in 1968. He got his degree in biomedical engineering and has been
a professor at the University of Washington. His main studies were how the
muscles worked. During his research he discovered that when muscles are
contracting they don’t use water although the muscle tissues are 99% water
molecules. Dr. Pollack wrote a book in 2001 called “Cells, Gels, and the
Engines of Life” where he described different ways that the cell operates in
the human body. He believes that water has another form besides the known
three: gas, liquid, and solid. He has stated that there is a transition stage
and has devoted his time and research to prove that this theory is correct. In
the book he states, “Water is absolutely central to every function of the cell
- whether its muscle contraction, cells dividing, or nerves conducting, etc.” In
this book there are a lot of unproven ideas about the nature of water and the
most mind boggling idea is that our human cells are able to store water while it’s
in a different state in order to transport it. Pollack believes our cells have
something called an exclusion zone and the water that is stored in the cells assumes
a form that is ordered like a crystal. He calls it structured water. This EZ
water got its name from Pollack and his team when they discovered that the
water excluded all particles from entering the cell. The Exclusion Zone is
located on the outer rim of the cell. Places where EZ water can be obtained are
ice glaciers, spring water that is deep in the ground, and also sunlight. Light
is key component to EZ water because of its electromagnetic energy. The ultraviolet
and infrared wavelengths allow the EZ water to build on water loving and
hydrophilic surfaces.
Tuesday, November 4, 2014
The Pros and Cons Of Using Glyphosate
Glyphosate is an organophosphorus compound. It is first made
as a isopropylamine salt. Although it is an organophosphorus compound , it
cannot be described as a organophosphate but more of a phosphanoglycine since
it does not contain any cholinesterase qualities. Glyphosate is used on crops
and home lawns to kill unwanted plants and also crop eating insects. The most
popular products that you can find it in are Roundup, Rodeo, and Pondmaster. It is an herbicide and also a pesticide.
Glyphosate is not super toxic, but is still harmful enough to force companies
to a warning label on the products containing it. During acute toxic testing,
it caused severe eye irritation, but it did not cause any changes to the skin.
The chronic toxic tests was performed on animals, however there was no harm
done from the compound. There were no reproductive, teratogenic, mutagenic, or
carcinogenic effects caused by the glyphosate. It is not easily absorbed by the
digestive tract and it did not cause any changes to the rate of body weight
gain, the blood, kidneys, or liver. Some benefits of using glyphosate are it is
low in toxicity and it is very effective weed control. Glyphosate has a
half-life of 40 days, which means half of it will be gone after 40 days. One of
the biggest cons is the fact that it still toxic. Considering everything in
this world being a form of poison, glyphosate is not that bad for our health in
small dosages. Although it kills it’s intended target, glyphosate needs to be
handled with care. The way it works is it prevents a plant’s ability to use
certain enzyme pathways to grow. When it is being applied, it can do this to
any other plants that it comes into contact with. This is part of the reason
people who use high concentrations of it need a license first because they
understand the damage that this compound can do to foliage.
http://www.popsci.com/blog-network/our-modern-plagues/pros-and-cons-herbicide-tolerant-gmos
Sunday, November 2, 2014
Lead Poisoning In Ohio
In Ohio, over 42% of houses were built before 1950, meaning
they most likely are a cause of lead poisoning. There are about 3.7 million
houses in the state that contain lead based paint on the interior or exterior.
Also floors can have dust and paint chips from old painted walls and the dust
can be inhaled or infants can ingest it from chewing on toys that were in the
dust. Lead can damage almost every internal
system in the body, no matter the age. Lead poisoning is the biggest
environmental threat to kids in Ohio. In
2009 in Athens County, 0 .99-2.02% of children tested for blood lead levels greater
than 10 milligrams. From 2005-2009 the highest blood-lead level from a confirmed
lead poisoning case has decreased by .81. In 2005 the number was 1.85 and in
2009 the number was 1.04. The prevalence of confirmed blood lead levels of
children less than 6 years old has decreased dramatically. In 1999, the
prevalence was 8.7%, in 2006, 2.2%, and in 2013, 0.8%. Some easy ways to
prevent children from being exposed to lead are: keeping them away from peeling
paint, mop floors and wipe dust of surfaces at least once a week, make sure
children wash hands often, and wash children’s toys, especially those that are
often chewed on by the child. Foods rich in iron and calcium such as meats,
dairies, and vegetables are good foods to eat to help prevent lead poisoning. The
number of children tested for high blood lead levels in Athens county back in
2009 was about 800. In Franklin County, however, over 30,000 were tested. In
2013, Athens county had 788 children under the age of 3 were tested for high
levels of blood lead. 761of the children had levels under 4 milligrams and 2 of
them had levels higher than 10 milligrams.
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