safety

Do You Want Artificial or Natural Dyes in Your Food? Wrong Question.

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 02 May 2025 14:47:48 +0000

The little bugs are making news. Carmine, the “natural” red dye they produce, is set to be more widely used as the food industry rails from allegations that its “petroleum-based, artificial” colourants are, in the words of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., “poisonous.” Before going any further, let me state that I am not opposed to the phasing out of food dyes, be they synthetic or natural, because they serve only a cosmetic purpose and make no nutritional contribution. But removing a food dye that serves as eye candy from candy will not make that candy any healthier.

Smoke Alarms Are Not Created Equal

Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. — Sat, 08 Jan 2022 09:00:00 +0000

Earlier this week, a fire broke out in a rowhouse in Philadelphia, killing at least 13 people. The deputy fire commissioner stated during a news conference that there were four smoke alarms but none of them apparently worked during the fire.

Feb. 18, 2021; "A Dose of Science" with Guest Oliver De Volpi

OSS — Thu, 18 Feb 2021 22:08:30 +0000

The “Greenwashing” Effect

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Wed, 22 Jul 2020 21:04:25 +0000

“Greenwashing” is the term used to describe the promotion of a product based on misleading claims of superiority to other products in terms of environmental impact or safety. For example, many cleaning products these days advertise that they are “plant-based” with the implication that these are somehow more environmentally friendly than ones that are formulated with synthetic ingredients. There are several issues here. First, there is the bogus notion that natural substances are inherently safer.

The Fascinating Chemistry of Airbags

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 21 Jun 2019 02:50:00 +0000

Leonardo De Vinci was fascinated by flight and dreamed of various flying machines. He was realistic enough, though, to consider the risks and thought that brave men who strapped on wings should also strap on bags of air to protect them in case they should fall out of the sky like a rock.

GMOs and Omega-3 Fats

Joe Schwarcz — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 19:30:55 +0000

Mention genetically modified organisms (GMOs), and watch the brows wrinkle. People just don’t want the genes in their meals modified, even if they are not quite sure what genes are. Better just leave them alone. It isn’t nice to fool with Mother Nature!