toxicity

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.

Macropanic Over Nanoplastics?

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Thu, 11 Jan 2024 19:48:05 +0000

I keep teasing my analytical chemist colleagues that they are responsible for the anxiety that so many people have about chemicals invading their lives. Hardly a day goes by without some report of phthalates, perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), pesticides, dioxins, bisphenol A, or a host of other mischievous “toxins” being detected in our food and water. That detective work is carried out by analytical chemists who continue to devise better and better means to uncover smaller and smaller amounts of contaminants.

DMSO Is Not a Cure-All. But the FDA’s Panic Over It Birthed a Myth.

Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. — Fri, 17 Nov 2023 15:37:28 +0000

Imagine a drug so powerful, your government didn’t want you to have it. Now, add the claim that this drug is all natural (it’s not) and that people report it cured them of any ailment you can think of, and you have the recipe for a good old-fashioned conspiracy theory.

They are abbreviated as PFAS-are they destined to abbreviate our lives?

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Wed, 01 Mar 2023 21:22:38 +0000

“Not everything that can be counted, counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.” That quote is commonly attributed to Einstein although there is no evidence he ever said it. Even if he did, he certainly didn’t have toxicology in mind. But the concept is very relevant to toxicology, especially these days when substances can be detected at the part per trillion level. How small is a part per trillion? That would be 1 cent in 10 million dollars or one second in 32,000 years, which is longer than human civilization.

An End to “Gilder’s Palsy”

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 24 Feb 2023 11:00:00 +0000

Physicians today are unlikely to encounter “Gilder’s palsy.” But prior to the 19th century this ailment had to be considered when a patient presented with tremors, irritability, increased salivation and fatigue. The culprit was mercury. And the patient may very well have been a “gilder.”

You Don’t Need a Binder in Your Detox Kit, and You Don’t Need a Detox Kit

Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. — Fri, 13 Jan 2023 11:00:00 +0000

“You don’t even know what a binder is when you’re doing a parasite cleanse. I came from Western medicine and I didn’t know what a binder was! We didn’t use those!” So says Kim Rogers, who proclaims herself a “worm queen,” to her nearly half a million followers on TikTok.

Concerns About Cookware Chemistry

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 21 Jan 2022 19:45:13 +0000

Like most chemists, I like to cook. After all, what is cooking but the appropriate mixing of chemicals? In the lab we use flasks and beakers, but how do we equip our kitchen? Tiffany's in New York offers a silver frying pan for thousands of dollars, specialty stores sell gleaming copper pots for a couple of hundred while a thin aluminum pot can be had almost anywhere for a few bucks. What's the difference?

Why is COVID-19 prompting questions about Proposition 65?

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Wed, 19 Aug 2020 15:56:47 +0000

The tentacles of COVID-19 reach into every area of life. I’ve been getting a flurry of calls about vacuum cleaners, air filters, and cordless hair clippers. Sales of these items have increased because of concerns about the coronavirus with people wanting to reduce any possible transmission by dust or air. People have even resorted to cutting hair at home instead of venturing to the hairdresser. But the calls I have been getting about these items have nothing to do with the virus. Not the coronavirus anyway.

What is "Hormesis"?

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Sat, 25 Jan 2020 00:21:22 +0000

Just about every textbook of toxicology pays homage to Paracelsus, the sixteenth century alchemist. Why? Because he introduced the idea that “only the dose makes the poison.” It makes no sense to talk about the toxicity of a substance, Paracelsus said, without talking about the extent of exposure. A high dose can be lethal, but minute amounts of the same substance may be perfectly safe. This really is the approach authorities take today to determine the toxicity of substances to which we are likely to be exposed.

Is Dental Floss Toxic?

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 18 Jan 2019 17:00:00 +0000

A recently published paper in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology managed to create a great deal of public angst about using some types of dental floss. “This is the first study to show that using dental floss containing PFAS is associated with a higher body burden of these toxic chemicals,” opined lead author Katie Boronow of the non-profit Silent Spring Institute in Massachusetts.

What is the difference between organic and inorganic arsenic?

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Thu, 30 Aug 2018 19:31:39 +0000

Atoms of arsenic can combine with atoms of other elements to form a variety of compounds. These can be divided into two categories, “inorganic” and “organic.” In this case, the term “organic” is used in its proper chemical sense, referring to molecules that have a framework of carbon atoms. In an “organic” arsenic compound, the arsenic atom is attached to a carbon that may, for example, be part of a sugar molecule such as ribose. This "organic" variety is more complicated in structure, but it is harmless.

The Chlorpyrifos Controversy

Cassandra Lee, OSS Intern — Wed, 07 Jun 2017 16:35:54 +0000

“Science not silence,” screamed the signs carried by many of the marchers in a number of American cities last Earth Day.

Are Foam Puzzle Mats Toxic for Children?

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Tue, 11 Feb 2014 08:09:26 +0000

There was a question about the possible toxicity of the popular foam puzzle mats that children play with and on. The concern is about exposure to formamide being released. This chemical is used in the manufacture of ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) foamed plastics to make them more pliable. It's a liquid, but like any liquid formamide does evaporate. There is no question that exposure to the liquid should be avoided; it is corrosive and has been linked to problems in a developing embryo. But the small amounts that outgas from foam present a totally different situation.

Artificial Turf, Real Issues

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Mon, 13 Jul 2015 11:08:18 +0000

There exists a simmering controversy about the safety of playing sports on artificial turf. For those who have engaged in any type of activity on this surface, you would know that they heat up in the sun a whole lot more than natural grass. So much more so that players experience a greater risk of heat exhaustion. They also complain of carpet burns and blisters on the feet. But the bigger concern is potential toxicity.

Crafty Kraft

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 05:47:20 +0000

Kraft processed cheese singles, at least the full fat version, is not the same anymore. You won’t notice any change in taste though because the only difference will be a substitution of one preservative for another. Sorbic acid is out, natamycin is in. Why? Not because it is a more effective preservative. Both inhibit the growth of moulds, yeast and fungi. But since it is isolated from a soil bacterium, natamycin can be promoted as a “natural” preservative. And that sells!