NATURALLY DANGEROUS:SURPRISING FACTS ABOUT FOODPDF电子书下载

OVERTURE Is Anything Safe? 1

Exaggerated Health Scares and Scientific Ignorance 3

CHAPTER 1 Chemicals Lurking in Your Grocery Store 7

Proteins and Amino Acids 7

Essential amino acids 9

Protein diets 12

Carbohydrates 12

Artificial sweeteners 15

Bread and Cereals 17

Fats 17

Trans fats 19

Fat substitutes 21

Chocolate 22

Asparagus 23

Foods Rich in Oxalate 24

Flowers 25

Vegemite 26

Spices: Ancient Herbal Antibiotics 27

Flavor Enhancers 28

Natural Toxins in Food (Even Vegetables Can Be Dangerous) 29

Organic Foods 31

Is America Ready for High-Tech Dining? 33

Choosing between natural and genetically modified foods and medicine 34

Smoked Meats and Fish 35

Beware of Jerky (Trichinosis from Wild Game) 36

Alcoholic Beverages 37

CHAPTER 2 The Pharmacy 45

Prescription Drugs 45

Contraindicated Drug Combinations 49

Antibiotics, Good News and Bad 50

Over-the-Counter Medications 53

Medicines and Drugs Derived from Plants 53

Marijuana (cannabis) 54

Opium 55

Morphine 56

Heroin 56

Codeine 56

Cocaine 56

Synthetic narcotics 57

Quinine 58

Taxol 59

Chapter 3 Is "Health Food Store" an Oxymoron? 61

Herbal Medicines 61

Vitamins 66

Hormone Supplements 76

Melatonin 77

Steroid hormones 79

Peptide hormones 81

Performance-Enhancing Drugs 83

Chapter 4 Infectious Agents: Are All Microorganisms Bad? 87

Viruses 87

Bacteria 93

Fungi 98

Algae 98

Lesser-Known Microorganisms 100

Mad-Cow and Related Prion Diseases 102

Chapter 5 Cancer and the Environment 107

Cancer and Risk Assessment 107

The Delaney clause 112

The Immune System: Jekyll and Hyde 113

Examples of the Role of Microorganisms and the Immune System in History 117

CHAPTER 6 Nature Is Elemental 121

Metals 121

Lithium 121

Sodium and potassium 122

Beryllium, magnesium, and calcium 124

Chromium 125

Iron 126

Cobalt 126

Copper 127

Zinc 128

Aluminum 128

Lead 128

Mercury 130

Thallium 133

Nonmetallic Elements 133

Boron 133

Carbon 133

Nitrogen 135

Phosphorus 140

Arsenic 140

Oxygen 142

Sulfur 145

Selenium 145

Fluorine 146

Chlorine 148

Iodine 151

Radon 153

Chapter 7 Natural and Unnatural Molecules in the Environment 155

Perilous Natural Toxins 155

Aphrodisiacs 157

Pheromones 158

Man-Made Chemicals in the Environment 162

Insecticides 162

Gasoline additives 164

CHAPTER 8 Is the Sky Falling?? 169

Acid Rain 169

Global Warming and the Greenhouse Effect 173

The greenhouse gases 176

Water vapor 178

Carbon dioxide 178

Methane 181

Freons 182

Nitrous oxide, laughing gas 183

Other natural causes of global warming 183

The Ozone Hole 190

CHAPTER 9 Dust, Magnets, and Scuba Diving 195

Small Particles (Dust Can Be Dangerous) 195

Electromagnetic Fields (Are Electric Blankets Dangerous?) 198

Sunlight 199

Chemical photosensitivity 201

Inherited photosensitivity 203

Underwater Dangers (Scuba Diving) 203

CHAPTER 10 We Are All Radioactive! 209

Radiation in Nature 215

Irradiation of Food 223

EPILOGUE There Is No Free Lunch! 225

Further Reading 227

Glossary 239

Index 259