Why Chemicals Aren't Bad

Chemicals get a bad reputation. It is a scientifically proven fact that you are, in fact, made of chemicals. Take a look at the following picture, courtesy of Everyday Scientist:

If you saw a label full of those hard-to-pronounce chemicals, would you steer away from that food? The only thing that is chemical-free is a vacuum. I know that when most people use the term chemical, they mean synthetic chemicals. Well, synthetic chemicals can be bad, and they can be good. Natural chemicals can be bad, and they can be good. In 2001, researchers from California who studied natural and synthetic chemicals in the human diet wrote, “Among the agents identified as human carcinogens by the International Agency for Research in Cancer 62% occur naturally: 16 are natural chemicals, 11 are mixtures of natural chemicals, and 10 are infectious agents. Thus, the idea that a chemical is “safe” because it is natural, is not correct” (source, emphasis added). 

Chemicals benefit you more than you probably realize. When you got up, you dragged yourself out of your high density polyurethane foam bed, took a shower in water made clean using chlorine and ammonium sulfate, soaped yourself with soap containing surfactants and fragrance, used shampoo, shaved, used a blow dryer, brushed your teeth, all with the aid of over 200 chemicals (source).

Just in terms of food, the positive difference that chemicals make is enormous. "Without these important crop protection and pest control technologies, U.S. food production would decline, many fruits and vegetables would be in short supply, and the price of food would rise. What’s more, America’s production of important fibers for clothing, such as cotton, would decrease as farmers would lose their harvests and livelihoods to crop pests and diseases" (source).

Next time you buy all-natural, organic food, think of what that really means. The legal definition of organic is hazy. Just because something says organic doesn't mean it contains no pesticides. And natural or all natural has no legal definition--none.  Are there really any benefits to buying organic, or are they just perceived?  This quote is from Wikipedia, and is backed up by nine sources: "Evidence on substantial differences between organic food and conventional food is insufficient to make claims that organic food is safer or healthier than conventional food.^{[3][4][5][6][7][8][9]} With respect to taste, the evidence is also insufficient to make scientific claims that organic food tastes better.^[5][3]"

So, what I'm trying to say is that you shouldn't get caught up in the natural, chemical free, organic bandwagon just because it sounds healthy and good. Farmers that use pesticides do so because it helps them produce better crops. I don't recommend drinking the pesticide, but used correctly, it is beneficial. Our bodies usually can handle small amounts of toxins pretty well anyway. But if you eat enough lima beans, the chemicals in there can kill you. We just want the benefits of the chemicals we use to outweigh the risks, and there are companies and agencies that test that.

If you google all natural or chemical free, you'll be sure to find tons of people using hokey science, unfounded claims, and scare-tactics to promote their agendas. If you really want to understand more, take a chemistry or biochemistry class. And if you do buy something organic, I won't judge you.

If you read this far, congratulations. I could go on and on about things like this--SLS, parabens, GMOs, vaccines, but I'll probably go back to posts full of pictures of Camille now.