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The Hundred-Year Lie: How Food and Medicine Are Destroying Your Health
"A frightening wake-up call... if Fast Food Nation made you consider some serious lifestyle changes, The Hundred-Year Lie will inspire you to go ten steps farther." -- Boston Herald
Combining the impact of the classic bestseller Silent Spring with Fast Food Nation, The Hundred-Year Lie: How Food and Medicine Are Destroying Your Health presents a devastating exposé of how chemicals in everyday products are ruining our health.
Combining the impact of the classic bestseller Silent Spring with Fast Food Nation, The Hundred-Year Lie: How Food and Medicine Are Destroying Your Health presents a devastating exposé of how chemicals in everyday products are ruining our health.
Over the past one hundred years, we have been guinea pigs in a vast chemistry experiment that uses our bodies, our health, and our good will to test the proposition that modern science can improve upon nature.
In The Hundred-Year Lie, investigative journalist RandallFitzgerald shatters dozens of myths being perpetuated by the chemical, pharmaceutical and processed food industries.
Find out why you would never be FDA-approvedand why humans are becoming one of the most polluted species on the planet:
The average American now carries a body burden of 700 or more synthetic chemicals, including Teflon, plastics, and dozens of pesticides.
Musk fragrances used in detergents and air fresheners are not filtered out by our current water treatment facilities, ending up in our drinking water.
The artificial sweetener aspartame, an ingredient in 1,200 food products from diet drinks to chewing gum, has been linked to eighty-eight toxic symptoms.
Fitzgerald not only sheds light on the problems we face from the unprecedented chemical onslaught, he presents suggestions for what we can to do to turn the tide.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published June 22, 2006
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October 18, 2018
To quote The Princess and the Frog. . . ah shi tanza. This book is . . . something else entirely.
First I’m going to talk about what I liked about this book, because it’s substantially shorter than what I didn’t like.
----------------THE YAYS----------------
>> This book made me do some research into the few cosmetics I use (mascara and eyeliner) and the safety of their ingredients. It also persuaded me to stop using plastic storage containers for food after doing a little more research. Yay.
>> The author does believe in SOME medical advances, like kidney dialysis, pacemakers, and heart surgery. He’s a nut, but maybe not the biggest nut at the grocery store. A pistachio, maybe, rather than a Brazil nut.
>> Not all his claims are careless fear mongering. He’s right about some things. Like the fact that chlorine probably causes cancer. And fluoride might, but that’s inconclusive. It’s true that flame retardant fabric treatments are probably carcinogenic. Ditto concerns about dry cleaning fluids. It’s true, too, that processed food gives us a body burden of toxins that probably do some harm to our health. A good diet made from whole, plant-based foods, is great for your long-term health. Finally, it’s pretty obvious that we greatly overmedicate, especially our children.
----------------THE NAYS----------------
BUT CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE GLARING ISSUES WITH THIS BOOK.
I thought this was going to be a science-based book. Kind of like a Michael Pollan-esque thing.
It is not.
It sounds like one, if you read without really paying attention to what’s being said, but the reality is that this book presents fact and fiction side-by-side with zero self-consciousness.
Let’s start with this:
1. VACCINES DO NOT CAUSE AUTISM YOU ILLOGICAL NINCOMPOOP.
I should have known, seeing that in the introduction, of all places, that things were going to go downhill.
And I did know! I did.
But I have a policy where I commit to my books. If I start it, I have to finish it.
Look, he’s not completely wrong when he says vaccines contain mercury and mercury might fuck with your kid’s head. Thimerosal (aka ethyl mercury)-containing vaccines have been linked in some CDC studies to certain (mild) neurological changes (not autism). However, partly because of the public’s concerns, vaccines no longer contain thimerosal or any mercury-containing compounds (with the exceptions of some flu shots).
So where I’m going with this is:
Vaccinate your kid. Vaccinate your kid. Vaccinate your kid.
Did I stutter?
2. He uses statistics uncritically.
For instance, he’ll cite things like “In 1900, cancer was responsible for only 3% of all deaths. Today it is the cause of 20% of all deaths.”
Well, that’s probably true. Of course, in 1900, most people didn’t live long enough to contract cancer. All kinds of things killed them first. Cholera, polio, tuberculosis, typhoid, diphtheria, even the flu.
And do you know why those things no longer kill us? BECAUSE VACCINES. See #1.
3. This phrase, used unironically: “apologists for the synthetics belief system.” Lol how am I supposed to take you seriously when that’s the term you use for your opponents?
4. Some things he references I can’t find any information on. Maybe they’re true. Likely they’re not.
Like this disease supposedly suffered by airline attendants from toxic fumes in the aircraft—colloquially termed “skypoxia.” I can’t find a single mention of this outside of this book.
Or Brick, New Jersey’s apparent “autism epidemic” from “contaminated water.” It just . . . doesn’t have any data to back it up. Brick’s autism levels are similar to other New Jersey regions.
Now I’ll admit this: it’s interesting that New Jersey really does have unusually high levels of autism as a state, and it also happens to be one of the most notoriously polluted states. Is that worth paying attention to? Probably. Still doesn’t mean this wasn’t poorly presented information.
-------------CONCLUSIONS-------------
There is soooo much fear-mongering in this book, and lots of “purity politics.” You know what I’m talking about: instilling moral panic over “toxins” and urging “pure food” and “cleanses.”
That kind of framing is damn seductive to me—someone who had a raging eating disorder as a teenager, and who still obsesses over eliminating “impurities” in her life—from “impure” foods (meat, dairy, eggs, unwashed food, packaged food, food other people made) to to germs (I go through a litre of hand sanitizer a month. Not an exaggeration).
I think it’s a seductive binary to a lot of people. It’s also cheap, melodramatic, and exploits peoples’ fears for profit.
Should we panic about the rampant, uncontrolled use of dangerous plastics and harmful chemicals permitted in our food because of corporate lobbying and influence? Of course. That’s practically a tautology. But should we be panicking about the realities (which are plenty scary enough) or about some shoddy “research” and incorrect data meant to make it seem scarier than it is?
The worst part is, everything in this book sounds credible. He presents it intelligently and convincingly. He cites data to back it up—it suddenly seems like the obvious answer.
But he’s misusing a lot of that data. He’s neglecting to mention important qualifiers, or overreaching with the data’s meaning, or forgetting to note that this “important doctor” he’s quoting has been shunned by the entire medical community as a money-seeking snake oil salesman quack.
*Deep breath.*
Lots of reviews characterize this book as “opening their eyes” to the toxins in their life. I’m glad people are realizing the FDA/EPA do very little (and that it’s a revolving door industry—half of them worked at these companies earlier in their careers- can we say conflict of interest?), but don’t eat this bullshit up uncritically. Learn what you can without accepting fiction as fact.
Read between the lines. Pay attention to what he is saying and how he is saying it. Read critically. Cross-check claims. Cross-check again.
And really, just think for yourself. Do you really believe, in your heart of hearts, all his claims are plausible? That they’re not sensationalized? That he doesn’t stand to make a profit from them?
First I’m going to talk about what I liked about this book, because it’s substantially shorter than what I didn’t like.
----------------THE YAYS----------------
>> This book made me do some research into the few cosmetics I use (mascara and eyeliner) and the safety of their ingredients. It also persuaded me to stop using plastic storage containers for food after doing a little more research. Yay.
>> The author does believe in SOME medical advances, like kidney dialysis, pacemakers, and heart surgery. He’s a nut, but maybe not the biggest nut at the grocery store. A pistachio, maybe, rather than a Brazil nut.
>> Not all his claims are careless fear mongering. He’s right about some things. Like the fact that chlorine probably causes cancer. And fluoride might, but that’s inconclusive. It’s true that flame retardant fabric treatments are probably carcinogenic. Ditto concerns about dry cleaning fluids. It’s true, too, that processed food gives us a body burden of toxins that probably do some harm to our health. A good diet made from whole, plant-based foods, is great for your long-term health. Finally, it’s pretty obvious that we greatly overmedicate, especially our children.
----------------THE NAYS----------------
BUT CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE GLARING ISSUES WITH THIS BOOK.
I thought this was going to be a science-based book. Kind of like a Michael Pollan-esque thing.
It is not.
It sounds like one, if you read without really paying attention to what’s being said, but the reality is that this book presents fact and fiction side-by-side with zero self-consciousness.
Let’s start with this:
1. VACCINES DO NOT CAUSE AUTISM YOU ILLOGICAL NINCOMPOOP.
I should have known, seeing that in the introduction, of all places, that things were going to go downhill.
And I did know! I did.
But I have a policy where I commit to my books. If I start it, I have to finish it.
Look, he’s not completely wrong when he says vaccines contain mercury and mercury might fuck with your kid’s head. Thimerosal (aka ethyl mercury)-containing vaccines have been linked in some CDC studies to certain (mild) neurological changes (not autism). However, partly because of the public’s concerns, vaccines no longer contain thimerosal or any mercury-containing compounds (with the exceptions of some flu shots).
So where I’m going with this is:
Vaccinate your kid. Vaccinate your kid. Vaccinate your kid.
Did I stutter?
2. He uses statistics uncritically.
For instance, he’ll cite things like “In 1900, cancer was responsible for only 3% of all deaths. Today it is the cause of 20% of all deaths.”
Well, that’s probably true. Of course, in 1900, most people didn’t live long enough to contract cancer. All kinds of things killed them first. Cholera, polio, tuberculosis, typhoid, diphtheria, even the flu.
And do you know why those things no longer kill us? BECAUSE VACCINES. See #1.
3. This phrase, used unironically: “apologists for the synthetics belief system.” Lol how am I supposed to take you seriously when that’s the term you use for your opponents?
4. Some things he references I can’t find any information on. Maybe they’re true. Likely they’re not.
Like this disease supposedly suffered by airline attendants from toxic fumes in the aircraft—colloquially termed “skypoxia.” I can’t find a single mention of this outside of this book.
Or Brick, New Jersey’s apparent “autism epidemic” from “contaminated water.” It just . . . doesn’t have any data to back it up. Brick’s autism levels are similar to other New Jersey regions.
Now I’ll admit this: it’s interesting that New Jersey really does have unusually high levels of autism as a state, and it also happens to be one of the most notoriously polluted states. Is that worth paying attention to? Probably. Still doesn’t mean this wasn’t poorly presented information.
-------------CONCLUSIONS-------------
There is soooo much fear-mongering in this book, and lots of “purity politics.” You know what I’m talking about: instilling moral panic over “toxins” and urging “pure food” and “cleanses.”
That kind of framing is damn seductive to me—someone who had a raging eating disorder as a teenager, and who still obsesses over eliminating “impurities” in her life—from “impure” foods (meat, dairy, eggs, unwashed food, packaged food, food other people made) to to germs (I go through a litre of hand sanitizer a month. Not an exaggeration).
I think it’s a seductive binary to a lot of people. It’s also cheap, melodramatic, and exploits peoples’ fears for profit.
Should we panic about the rampant, uncontrolled use of dangerous plastics and harmful chemicals permitted in our food because of corporate lobbying and influence? Of course. That’s practically a tautology. But should we be panicking about the realities (which are plenty scary enough) or about some shoddy “research” and incorrect data meant to make it seem scarier than it is?
The worst part is, everything in this book sounds credible. He presents it intelligently and convincingly. He cites data to back it up—it suddenly seems like the obvious answer.
But he’s misusing a lot of that data. He’s neglecting to mention important qualifiers, or overreaching with the data’s meaning, or forgetting to note that this “important doctor” he’s quoting has been shunned by the entire medical community as a money-seeking snake oil salesman quack.
*Deep breath.*
Lots of reviews characterize this book as “opening their eyes” to the toxins in their life. I’m glad people are realizing the FDA/EPA do very little (and that it’s a revolving door industry—half of them worked at these companies earlier in their careers- can we say conflict of interest?), but don’t eat this bullshit up uncritically. Learn what you can without accepting fiction as fact.
Read between the lines. Pay attention to what he is saying and how he is saying it. Read critically. Cross-check claims. Cross-check again.
And really, just think for yourself. Do you really believe, in your heart of hearts, all his claims are plausible? That they’re not sensationalized? That he doesn’t stand to make a profit from them?
November 16, 2013
Below are key excerpts from the book that I found particularly insightful:
"An effect of this contamination is that we are now one of the most polluted species on the face of this planet," contends Paula Baillie-Hamilton, an Oxford-educated physician in Britain who is one of the leading authorities on toxins in food. "Indeed, we are all so contaminated that if we were cannibals our meat would be banned from human consumption." How did we become so toxic? What thrust us as a culture and as individuals onto this slippery slope? How can we navigate our way back to a healthier and less toxic future? These were some of the questions that haunted me as I undertook the research for this book."
"However, broadly speaking, the evidence indicates that most naturally occurring foods and medicines are healthy for us, as they have been for our species for thousands of years, while many if not most synthetic chemicals in foods and medicines pose some health risk. Exposure to a few toxic substances, or to a wide range of molecules from a variety of synthetics, may not trigger illness or disease in you. But the again, it might. Medical science simply cannot predict who is susceptible to which chemicals, at which dosage levels, or how synergies create toxic conditions in the human body These risk-factor uncertainties during the normal course of our lives constitute a form of biological Russian roulette that each of us plays with our bodies every day based on our food. medicine, and environmental choices."
"By willingly participating in the risky synthetics paradigm we have implicitly agreed to a social contract in which we are each playing the role of guinea pig in a continuing chemical and genetic experiment. Some of us will sicken or die during this experiment. A few of us might mutate and evolve effective immune system defenses. Others of us will decide to no longer play this deadly game. Once the genie of awareness is set loose, once denial is penetrated and the truth is spoken, none of us is have an excuse to play the innocent victim anymore."
"One of the more obvious recurring patterns that emerges from reading the Slippery Slope Index is how often harm is inflicted on human health because of insufficient testing of new chemicals, especially testing of the long-term health effects. ^s we will see in Part II, entrenched institutional forces within the economy and government cooperate to keep the public largely unaware of the extent to which a toxic threat exists within their foods and medicines."
"As we will explore in the next chapter, "disease industries" have sprung up in response to the health ravages of synthetic chemical foods, but what they offer as remedies for symptoms simply become additional toxic body burdens for us to bear."
"Our nations waste^water treatment plants are simply too unsophisticated to remove synthetic chemicals before water is recycled back into the environment. Nor can our municipal water treatment plants, despite the use of chlorine, neutralize all of these synthetic chemicals before we drink the tap water or bathe ourselves in it. Not only that, but most of the nations so.ft drinks and beers are made with municipal tap water, which means we are slowly and cumulatively drugging ourselves in multiple ways."
"Our culture treats medical emergencies and the symptoms of illness and disease relatively well in the short term, thanks to remarkable technological advances in medical science. We are mostly failures, however, when it comes to the prevention of illness and disease and in understanding the importance of using diet to enhance the strength of our immune systems."
"As a result of a century of innovations in synthetic chemical manufacturing, we have inherited a virtually indestructible residue of toxins in the environment. Synthetic chemicals have seared into nature a seemingly immortal stamp. Whether they are pesticides or pharmaceutical drugs, what all of these ; synthetic chemicals set loose among us have in common is the identity of having been conceived by chemists and birthed in laboratories to be "magic bullets." They were intended to either kill something, preserve something, clean something, or mask the symptoms of something. Now we mi;t consider the prospect that some of these chemicals will survive longer than the species who created them."
"Now that we know animal studies may incorrectly imply the absence of risk in humans and that animal tests showing harm may not indicate a real danger to people, where does that leave us regarding health concerns from chemical exposure? The simple answer is that we should use the results of animal tests in biomedical research as suggestive of harm or of safety and not as predictive."
"Protecting ourselves from what we don't know can harm us sometimes requires a a leap of faith into self-reliance. When authority figures and institutions fail us, when the resulting apocalyptic scenarios challenge our ability to cope, we have five thousand years of ancient wisdom about food and medicine to fall back upon."
"For those of you who choose to believe that government or industry or science will rescue us in the near future, consider the following reasons why that hope may be naive: 1. We cannot completely rely upon government at any level to protect us...2. We cannot rely upon manufacturers to place our health above profit margins...3. We cannot completely rely upon science to predict what is healthy or harmful."
"There is a straightforward three-step process you or anyone can initiate u become serious about protecting your health. 1. Limit your exposure to synthetic chemicals of all types at all times. 2. C Get yourself tested to determine your chemical body burden. Develop a detox strategy for yourself to eliminate the toxins detected in your body."
"9 PRACTICAL STEPS YOU CAN TAKE...1. Study the Labels...2. Replace Home Pesticides...3. Drink Wheatgrass juice...4. Do Intermittent Fasting...5. Detox with Saunas...6. Eat Organic Foods...7. Choose Nutritious Organics...8. Compile a Personal Toxins List...9.Read and Sign the Declaration."
"An effect of this contamination is that we are now one of the most polluted species on the face of this planet," contends Paula Baillie-Hamilton, an Oxford-educated physician in Britain who is one of the leading authorities on toxins in food. "Indeed, we are all so contaminated that if we were cannibals our meat would be banned from human consumption." How did we become so toxic? What thrust us as a culture and as individuals onto this slippery slope? How can we navigate our way back to a healthier and less toxic future? These were some of the questions that haunted me as I undertook the research for this book."
"However, broadly speaking, the evidence indicates that most naturally occurring foods and medicines are healthy for us, as they have been for our species for thousands of years, while many if not most synthetic chemicals in foods and medicines pose some health risk. Exposure to a few toxic substances, or to a wide range of molecules from a variety of synthetics, may not trigger illness or disease in you. But the again, it might. Medical science simply cannot predict who is susceptible to which chemicals, at which dosage levels, or how synergies create toxic conditions in the human body These risk-factor uncertainties during the normal course of our lives constitute a form of biological Russian roulette that each of us plays with our bodies every day based on our food. medicine, and environmental choices."
"By willingly participating in the risky synthetics paradigm we have implicitly agreed to a social contract in which we are each playing the role of guinea pig in a continuing chemical and genetic experiment. Some of us will sicken or die during this experiment. A few of us might mutate and evolve effective immune system defenses. Others of us will decide to no longer play this deadly game. Once the genie of awareness is set loose, once denial is penetrated and the truth is spoken, none of us is have an excuse to play the innocent victim anymore."
"One of the more obvious recurring patterns that emerges from reading the Slippery Slope Index is how often harm is inflicted on human health because of insufficient testing of new chemicals, especially testing of the long-term health effects. ^s we will see in Part II, entrenched institutional forces within the economy and government cooperate to keep the public largely unaware of the extent to which a toxic threat exists within their foods and medicines."
"As we will explore in the next chapter, "disease industries" have sprung up in response to the health ravages of synthetic chemical foods, but what they offer as remedies for symptoms simply become additional toxic body burdens for us to bear."
"Our nations waste^water treatment plants are simply too unsophisticated to remove synthetic chemicals before water is recycled back into the environment. Nor can our municipal water treatment plants, despite the use of chlorine, neutralize all of these synthetic chemicals before we drink the tap water or bathe ourselves in it. Not only that, but most of the nations so.ft drinks and beers are made with municipal tap water, which means we are slowly and cumulatively drugging ourselves in multiple ways."
"Our culture treats medical emergencies and the symptoms of illness and disease relatively well in the short term, thanks to remarkable technological advances in medical science. We are mostly failures, however, when it comes to the prevention of illness and disease and in understanding the importance of using diet to enhance the strength of our immune systems."
"As a result of a century of innovations in synthetic chemical manufacturing, we have inherited a virtually indestructible residue of toxins in the environment. Synthetic chemicals have seared into nature a seemingly immortal stamp. Whether they are pesticides or pharmaceutical drugs, what all of these ; synthetic chemicals set loose among us have in common is the identity of having been conceived by chemists and birthed in laboratories to be "magic bullets." They were intended to either kill something, preserve something, clean something, or mask the symptoms of something. Now we mi;t consider the prospect that some of these chemicals will survive longer than the species who created them."
"Now that we know animal studies may incorrectly imply the absence of risk in humans and that animal tests showing harm may not indicate a real danger to people, where does that leave us regarding health concerns from chemical exposure? The simple answer is that we should use the results of animal tests in biomedical research as suggestive of harm or of safety and not as predictive."
"Protecting ourselves from what we don't know can harm us sometimes requires a a leap of faith into self-reliance. When authority figures and institutions fail us, when the resulting apocalyptic scenarios challenge our ability to cope, we have five thousand years of ancient wisdom about food and medicine to fall back upon."
"For those of you who choose to believe that government or industry or science will rescue us in the near future, consider the following reasons why that hope may be naive: 1. We cannot completely rely upon government at any level to protect us...2. We cannot rely upon manufacturers to place our health above profit margins...3. We cannot completely rely upon science to predict what is healthy or harmful."
"There is a straightforward three-step process you or anyone can initiate u become serious about protecting your health. 1. Limit your exposure to synthetic chemicals of all types at all times. 2. C Get yourself tested to determine your chemical body burden. Develop a detox strategy for yourself to eliminate the toxins detected in your body."
"9 PRACTICAL STEPS YOU CAN TAKE...1. Study the Labels...2. Replace Home Pesticides...3. Drink Wheatgrass juice...4. Do Intermittent Fasting...5. Detox with Saunas...6. Eat Organic Foods...7. Choose Nutritious Organics...8. Compile a Personal Toxins List...9.Read and Sign the Declaration."
November 6, 2008
Very informative, lots of research presented. I found it a frustrating book to read in many ways, because the main premise about how we are exposed to all these toxins rings true for their solutions, too, and because everyone has a different level in their bodies, different genes, and we don't really know what/when we're exposed to something new, it's pretty impossible to make an informed decision on how to protect yourself. The opening paragraph of Chapter 9 expresses exactly my exasperation. I also found myself questioning, at points, the author's own understanding of all the issues. Sometimes it seemed that I was being persuaded to accept correlations without being shown proof that any research had linked the two previously. However, this journalist has certainly done his research - his bibliography is extensive (although I wish he'd chosen to use footnotes - you can't tell exactly what pieces in a chapter he obtained from which source.) All of this is so hard to pin down without much much more information and it's hard to know what to accept and what is going overboard. But I learned a lot from this book and found it hard to put down.
March 14, 2007
So far this is horribly depressing, but it is helping me in my quest to eliminate more toxins from my immediate environment. It shows more evidence that the reason I have so many allergy has been my toxic overload from the food I eat and the things I've been around. I need to get to the "what to do about it" section instead of all this "why the world sucks and you're going to die" first part. I do recommend this to everyone, though--its lovely to know just how little the government regulates the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, even when there are piles and piles of studies that irrefutably show how dangerous a substance is to human life.
February 19, 2008
Wow! If you're concerned about your health and question what our government tells us is "safe," you need to read this book. Warning: this book may make you slightly paranoid, but it will inform you on everything from organics & plastics to vitamins/prescriptions to crib death.
March 17, 2010
Better living through chemistry is not true. This book brings to light the downfalls of progress in the food industry. Advancements in food technology is driven by greed more than humanity. Different twist than the ideology I learned as a Food Science major in college.
October 18, 2018
This book takes a look at how all the synthetic chemicals in our world are affecting human health. The author looks at food and modern medicine, as well as some other chemicals in the environment, such as plastics and other chemicals in our houses (carpets, furniture, etc.). He also talks about organic foods and alternative/natural medicines and what you can do to mitigate the chemicals in your body.
This was very interesting. A lot of it I have read/heard before, but this just reinforces those things. Me, I've already started to eat more organic foods and I have also recently started seeing a naturopath, so I hope those things will help, but there is plenty more I could be doing. Our world is so inundated with so many chemicals, it's impossible to get rid of them all. There are so many startling statistics, and (one of) the scary things is that chemicals are not being tested before being put out there as being safe. The onus is the other way around – to be taken out of circulation, they need to be proven harmful after they've already been out there. There's so much information in this book and it really is very interesting. Definitely worth reading to learn more about what is happening and what can be done to try to minimize the effects.
This was very interesting. A lot of it I have read/heard before, but this just reinforces those things. Me, I've already started to eat more organic foods and I have also recently started seeing a naturopath, so I hope those things will help, but there is plenty more I could be doing. Our world is so inundated with so many chemicals, it's impossible to get rid of them all. There are so many startling statistics, and (one of) the scary things is that chemicals are not being tested before being put out there as being safe. The onus is the other way around – to be taken out of circulation, they need to be proven harmful after they've already been out there. There's so much information in this book and it really is very interesting. Definitely worth reading to learn more about what is happening and what can be done to try to minimize the effects.
July 3, 2012
First of all, I think the author is probably right: processed food and Western medicine are probably destroying our health. The book, however, is poorly written. The argument is sloppy and poorly documented. The book takes a shotgun approach to evidence and has a scattered feeling to it. We also get a fair bit of the author's opinion on the matter, which doesn't carry much weight given that he is a journalist and journalists' credibility derive not from their own opinions but the credentials of their sources. I thank him for his efforts, but the topic deserves better.
October 10, 2014
If you're not shaken by the end of the book, then something has gone awry. This book has opened my eyes about food policy in the United States more than any other book I have read. From this experience, I will be far more mindful of what goes in my body and my house. Though sometimes disturbing and scary, I would, without hesitating, recommend this to every human being on this planet, but especially Americans.
July 11, 2012
This is a incredible, must-read book for anyone interested in maintaining their health and/or looking for answers to illness or ailments. That would be everyone wouldn't it?! The author intends to "inspire action and accountability not a gloom and doom attempt to immobilize with fear. We can never totally eliminate risk factors but we can learn how to limit our risks and manage exposure."
April 2, 2010
The more books I read, the more I want to simplify our lives in the sense of what modern conveniences we use. This author did a really nice job making the information accessible and had ways to move forward and address some of the issues.
September 4, 2010
This was a good compendium of, basically, what we're doing to our environment and our health in the modern age. More exposition than argument for specific alternatives, but a solid case and interesting case nonetheless.
August 9, 2016
I loved this book and have learned so much from this book. There are so many chemicals and toxins in our bodies that 1 might not affect us but 1000 is toxic! You can get even toxins from your mom when you are in the womb. From reading this book I will be working towards living a more "clean" life!
June 26, 2013
Generally, I like my science books to be written by scientists. This one was written by a writer, editor and reporter. That being said, it is a thorough debunking of many of the myths we love to believe about our food and medicines. Some of the myths: We are protected by the FDA because the government knows what is safe and prevents the marketing of unsafe products. Not so much. Most chemicals in foods have never been tested for safety individually, let alone the possible synergies that they can present when added to other chemicals, then multiple food products.
He traces the narrative of the lies - "better living through chemistry" that was heavily promulgated in the early years of the 20th century, when cancer accounted for only 3% of deaths and breast cancer was rare. Then came the Pure Food and Drug Act which gave us the comfort of believing that everything was being tested as safe. Unfortunately, the burden is on the government to prove a substance is UNSAFE before it can be removed from the market. There is NO BURDEN on the manufacturers to prove their product is safe.
Beginning with the refinement of sugar, the Monsanto invention of artificial sweeteners, the huge increase in artificial fertilizers, the hydrogenation of liquid oils, the foods we began to eat decreased in nutritional value and increased in their (and our)chemical burden.
Lead (from paint and gasoline), DDT, PCBs and many other synthetic chemicals are found in the blood of almost every human on earth.
Meanwhile, chronic disease rates soar, learning disabilities increase, obesity explodes, and drugs introduced to the public are taken off the market only after their serious side effects are discovered in the unsuspecting patients.
I think the author reinforces my already-held belief that we should be very careful. Read labels, buy fresh, buy organic, buy whole foods without additives, artificial colors and lots of chemicals to increase shelf life. Take as few medicines as possible - none is best.
Negatively speaking, I found a couple of factual errors in the book, and though minor, they were disturbing. He stated that a patient with an infection had been given Sudafed which he described as an antibiotic, which it is not. The science writer Gina Kolata had her name spelled incorrectly (twice), among others. He also is somewhat too strident for my tastes, including a suggestion for detoxifying which is inaccessible for most people, and combined with small errors, gives me pause. And gives him 3 stars instead of 4.
I do recommend the book, however.
He traces the narrative of the lies - "better living through chemistry" that was heavily promulgated in the early years of the 20th century, when cancer accounted for only 3% of deaths and breast cancer was rare. Then came the Pure Food and Drug Act which gave us the comfort of believing that everything was being tested as safe. Unfortunately, the burden is on the government to prove a substance is UNSAFE before it can be removed from the market. There is NO BURDEN on the manufacturers to prove their product is safe.
Beginning with the refinement of sugar, the Monsanto invention of artificial sweeteners, the huge increase in artificial fertilizers, the hydrogenation of liquid oils, the foods we began to eat decreased in nutritional value and increased in their (and our)chemical burden.
Lead (from paint and gasoline), DDT, PCBs and many other synthetic chemicals are found in the blood of almost every human on earth.
Meanwhile, chronic disease rates soar, learning disabilities increase, obesity explodes, and drugs introduced to the public are taken off the market only after their serious side effects are discovered in the unsuspecting patients.
I think the author reinforces my already-held belief that we should be very careful. Read labels, buy fresh, buy organic, buy whole foods without additives, artificial colors and lots of chemicals to increase shelf life. Take as few medicines as possible - none is best.
Negatively speaking, I found a couple of factual errors in the book, and though minor, they were disturbing. He stated that a patient with an infection had been given Sudafed which he described as an antibiotic, which it is not. The science writer Gina Kolata had her name spelled incorrectly (twice), among others. He also is somewhat too strident for my tastes, including a suggestion for detoxifying which is inaccessible for most people, and combined with small errors, gives me pause. And gives him 3 stars instead of 4.
I do recommend the book, however.
August 25, 2011
I needed to choose a book about modern chemistry pollution and toxicity for a class I am teaching, and of my options, I read this first because, as it was written by a journalist, I assumed it would be the most fair and reasonable. Wow, was I wrong. This book is terrifically biased, down to the exceptionally one-sided and inflammatory use of language. It covers all of the popular topics of the genre - plastics, pharmaceuticals, food - and even hits on a few third-rail issues that immediately lost the author credibility in my mind - anyone who still questions vaccines needs some guidance (although, I will grant the author that this was written a few years ago, when it was trendy to question vaccines.) This book was full of contradiction, bias, and assumption. I suspect this book is great for preaching to choir of anti-chemistry fanatics, but to start a bigger conversation about these issues, regardless of how correct or incorrect the authors suppositions are, this book is sadly inadequate.
September 8, 2016
I liked the premise behind this book because I do feel like our diets and lives are too full of chemicals and synthetic material that could be contributing to our increased health problems. But the author was just a little to fanatical and stated his very certain assumptions as facts. I read the first 50 pages and skimmed the rest, I just couldn't finish because I couldn't stand how dramatic and over the top the writing was about everything. I wish it had been more factual and less opinionated. Also, recommending that everyone detox and then treat their health problems with old ancient remedies was just a little too hokie for me. Modern medicine and drugs - while some are not safe, aren't for nothing and do help certain ailments.
August 8, 2011
We all need to read this book. It's an easy to understand and one of the most informative books on reality of chemicals around us and also teach us to question conventional wisdom. It really transforms your minds and your lifestyle. It made me realize how scary it is to live a daily life without knowing our daily life is filled with highly toxic materials. The great thing about this book is to have comprehensive resources at the final section of the book to inform such health risks and measures to protect/prevent yourself from synthetic chemicals and ultimately to protect your health. First part is really on chilling stories.
June 2, 2008
THis was a book i had chosen to help me do a project. at first, i thought that this book was going to be really boring and crappy, but as i read deeply into the book , i found out things that i never even knew about. because of that book, i really change my ways now becasue of the facts and truth thats in the book. if anyone is smart at all, they would read about tis book becasue it would tell them about so many things they never knew about their foods. like this is what millions of people put into their bodies everyday and these are needed facts that you must know.
December 3, 2012
I'd call it the most important book of the year, but it was published in 2006. Seven years later and WHERE IS THE OUTRAGE? Nothing has changed. Not really.
The only way to change the world is pressure on the companies destroying it. MAJOR pressure. Financial pressure. Nothing will change in Washington but we have the power to refuse to purchase their products and to do our own lobbying to change the water treatment plants and the emissions standards and the burden of proof on the corporations and OH MY GOD IT'S HOPELESS... I just want to cry.
The only way to change the world is pressure on the companies destroying it. MAJOR pressure. Financial pressure. Nothing will change in Washington but we have the power to refuse to purchase their products and to do our own lobbying to change the water treatment plants and the emissions standards and the burden of proof on the corporations and OH MY GOD IT'S HOPELESS... I just want to cry.
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July 13, 2015This rag is not even worthy of one star. It was recommended by an acquaintance. After 3-4 pages I could smell a rat. “Dr.” Fitzgerald’s work balances on the edge of insanity and schizophrenia. This Spiritualist, cum naturalist, cum judge of mankind book is so poor it doesn’t even reach the level of a hoax.
I suggest that if anyone ever tries to hand you a copy—“RUN!”
I suggest that if anyone ever tries to hand you a copy—“RUN!”
May 5, 2013
This is the first review I have actually left a comment on but I had to. WOW is all I can say. The statistics in this book are staggering and it's no wonder there are so many illnesses in America. Sadly, the figures show that we did it to ourselves.
www.nomorefooddye.blogspot.com
www.nomorefooddye.blogspot.com
January 22, 2016
Much of what I read I had heard about before in the various news snippets that much of the book is compiled from. I probably would have enjoyed it more if this book wasn't preaching to my choir. Very well researched though.
June 13, 2008
I'm skeptical, because the author has also written about UFOs....but it was almost free, so I thought I'd give it a shot.
June 27, 2008
Really good look into what food was like not to long ago and where it should be today.
June 1, 2010
An excellent perspective on the impact of the numerous chemicals used in our modern world.
January 3, 2015
eh. personal opinions masked by the author's journalism background is not a good mix on this very big subject.
February 17, 2018
The author lays out the extent of synthetic chemical products and use in food, medicine and the environment; the dangers these chemicals pose and the damage they have already done; and encourages readers to take steps to protect themselves and their loved ones through food choices and the investigation into ancient and traditional healing approaches. A very sobering read even if you are aware of the problem, especially as matters have continued to worsen since 2006. But the author states, "This book is intended to be a wake-up call that inspires action and accountability on your part, not a gloom-and-doom attempt to immobilize you with fear. It will offer tried and proven food and medicine alternatives to synthetic chemicals." That the author is a libertarian rather than, say, a progressive gives the work an added interest.
August 31, 2023
What the eye-opener "Bringing Nature Home" by Doug Tallamy is to our land, "The Hundred Year Lie " is to our bodies. This is a Must-Read book to educate ourselves about the food we've been eating, and how this food has been poisoned and altered to such an extent, that we are literally killing ourselves with what we have been eating and drinking. This book is not for the faint-hearted for it delivers a tough reality of what needs to change in our society. But at least the last 36 or so pages of the book describes to us what measures we can take to correct our diet and save our life and those we love from myriads of illnesses and diseases. It's a darn shame this book had to be written, and our government aught to be ashamed at allowing this to happen within our culture and these times. Open your eyes, people, and see what we are putting into our wonderfully made bodies. Sad.
September 11, 2025
A highly readable expose on the harm done by highly processed (i.e. synthetic) foods, and our reliance on “Better Living Through Chemistry” since 1906.
Investigative journalist Randall Fitzgerald explodes the myths foisted upon us by doctors and scientists, all with a profit motive. He tells readers the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) doesn’t do any testing of food or drugs, instead relying on what the manufacturers and purveyors tell them. Shocking.
Author Fitzgerald offers strategies for combatting a synthetic life. He suggests we pressure toxin manufacturers to detoxify their products, create a naturally occurring standard to eliminate synthetic vitamin and mineral supplements, encourage preventive health care, make dining a health education opportunity, and accept alternative remedies. Pass the wheatgrass, please!
Investigative journalist Randall Fitzgerald explodes the myths foisted upon us by doctors and scientists, all with a profit motive. He tells readers the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) doesn’t do any testing of food or drugs, instead relying on what the manufacturers and purveyors tell them. Shocking.
Author Fitzgerald offers strategies for combatting a synthetic life. He suggests we pressure toxin manufacturers to detoxify their products, create a naturally occurring standard to eliminate synthetic vitamin and mineral supplements, encourage preventive health care, make dining a health education opportunity, and accept alternative remedies. Pass the wheatgrass, please!
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July 31, 2021Παρόλο που από τον τίτλο φαίνεται σαν αφελές συνωμοσιολογικο βιβλίο , στην πραγματικότητα είναι μια ιστορική αναδρομή των προσθετικών στις τροφές και της φαρμακοβιομηχανίας. Δίνει κάποιες χρήσιμες πληροφορίες αλλά σίγουρα πρέπει να υπάρχει και κριτική σκέψη από τον αναγνώστη για α διεξάγει τη δική του έρευνα.
Σε κάθε περίπτωση σε αφυπνίζει για την πληθώρα των χημικών στα οποία βάλλεται το σώμα σου λόγω το σύγχρονου τρόπου ζωής. Βαδίζει αμυδρά στα χνάρια του εμβληματικου Silent Spring της Καρσον.
Σε κάθε περίπτωση σε αφυπνίζει για την πληθώρα των χημικών στα οποία βάλλεται το σώμα σου λόγω το σύγχρονου τρόπου ζωής. Βαδίζει αμυδρά στα χνάρια του εμβληματικου Silent Spring της Καρσον.
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