With Thanksgiving behind us and Christmas ahead. probably no one wants to hear about managing diet. Of least interest might be a discussion regarding salt. Still, salt deserves our attention. It has a deadly link to plastic. That’s what researchers from South Korea’s Incheon National University and Greenpeace East Asia have learned. Their study revealed the average person consumes about “2,000 pieces of microplastic every year from salt.” (“Plastic in your table salt,” The Week, Nov. 9, 2018, pg. 20.) The minute particles affect the body’s immune system when plastic’s toxic chemicals and pathogens are digested and assimilated into the body. Not a happy thought as you reach for a French fry. Worse, there’s little to do about the situation except to take life with less than a pinch of salt.
Switching to organic foods may not counteract the evils of plastic, but it produces other good effects. It reduces the risk of cancer, for example. “People who regularly eat organic foods are much less likely to get cancer than those who don’t.” The French study, conducted over 4 years. shows an impressive difference between those who eat organic and non-organic foods. Researchers think pesticides may produce hormones in the body that elevate a cancer risk. Unfortunately, the actual trigger is yet to be discovered. (“Organic food may reduce cancer risk,” The Week, Nov. 9, 2018, pg. 20)
I have a sign on my refrigerator door which asks a question: “If you don’t take care of your body, where will you live?” It’s a thought worth considering.
Now that I’ve spoiled your culinary gusto, would it be wicked of me to wish you, “Bon Appetit” ?