FISH STORIES IN THE NEWS
If you have read recent articles in the news you may have grave concerns about the foods you are eating.
Pesticides.
They tell you that some fruits and vegetables are at very high or high risk of being “contaminated” by banned pesticides.
Does that mean that you would be contaminated if you ate them? No.
In fact, if you are like the average consumer you WASH your fruits and vegetables before consuming them. Gentle washing removes soil, insect feces, germs from other people handling the food, and almost all pesticides. Leaving little risk to you.
Why don’t they just tell us to wash fruits and vegetables before consuming them?
Second, LOOK at the list of “worrisome” produce. They include potatoes. Who doesn’t scrub the skins or peel them before cooking? They include watermelon. I’m guessing there are few people licking the rinds. Kale, on the other hand, is a concern. How can vegans survive without kale?
Third, what are these “banned” pesticides? That sounds risky, right. Except it isn’t always. Malathion (not-banned) is a cancer risk, but certain pesticides have no known risk to humans (they are a risk to birds and fish). It is important to know the EXACT pesticide. No one should imply a blanket “risk” for a long list of pesticides banned for use in the United States. Each pesticide has specific risks and specific benefits. Further, you could well imagine they are talking about “insecticides” and you would be mostly wrong. Insecticides kill insects and, when used per label, carry low risk to non-target groups. They are talking about products to control fungi (fungicides), weeds (herbicides), snails (molluscicides), and maybe rodents (rodenticides). Yet they lump the entire category of “pesticides” into their article. Although technically “true” it is also unprofessional and misleading.
Microplastics.
Thousands of microplastics in the foods you eat, too. Even fruits and vegetables have microplastics inside them, even in the seeds. Apparently the plants uptake whatever is in the soil. Like poop? Like rotting plant materials? Like fish eyes? I think we have to assume that bird droppings ARE inside fruits and vegetables. Where are THOSE stories?
You are supposed to panic, I guess.
But there is no link between microplastics and disease. Funny thing is, we are living longer than our ancestors … so … maybe they needed microplastics in their diets? What is it about plastics that contribute to our longevity? Clearly plastics make food safety more achievable. Plastics protect us in our cars. Plastics shield us from the corrosives in our batteries. There are silly plastics, too! Toys and plastic toothpicks, golf balls, and fake-surface floors. We should reduce the junk plastic uses we buy. But I don’t think we should eliminate all plastics out of hand. Plastics can make our lives safer and help us to live longer.
There are hundreds (perhaps thousands) of types of plastics, different chemical signatures, different uses. Even our car tires are mostly plastics, and we cannot live without those. So, it seems there should be studies of the risk of each type of plastic. By the way, there are naturally occurring “plastics,” including certain animal horns and natural rubber from the rubber tree. Nature makes several other of its own versions. We might assume from the article that they are talking only of man-made versions, and we might be wrong. They don’t distinguish natural from manufactured, so we don’t know.
So, again, although technically “true” it is misleading and unprofessional to throw the blanket term “plastics” out there. Since each type of plastic has its own chemical signature it would not be difficult to find the culprits which could be eliminated without causing harm to humans.
Don’t swallow every “fish story” hook, line, and sinker. Be a bit more discerning than that.
[PLEASE NOTE that Don is always open to discussing the thoughts and opinions he shares here and welcomes comments as shared in the comment section. He doesn’t use other social media platforms and won’t see whatever you’d like to share with him if you post it elsewhere.
ALSO, Don is always open to offer his thoughts on various topics. If you have a specific request, you can let him know in a comment; he reads – and replies to – them all. ~ Sherry]
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Very interesting read. Don, you should consider sending this in to your local paper. Your local paper probably has a section for “reader viewpoints” where they publish your views for free.
Or, you could offer to start a new weekly column about pests and pesticides because you are very knowledgeable about these things.
…. I am not trying to meddle in your business. Just wanted to tell you something that I did once upon a time. When I worked in healthcare, I would send in informational articles to our local paper (at the time, I stuck to women’s health). I never got paid, but did it because I enjoyed it.
Appreciate the idea, E.
Thanks for the compliment, too.
I love pests. Had Argentine ants trailing into my house this week. Thousands of tiny black ants. I’m glad I knew what to do and didn’t break out the Raid. (Which would have failed miserably.)