The toxic truth about toxicity!

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LabRat529
LabRat529 Posts: 1,323 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
K... this has been bugging me lately :(

I keep reading these comments about toxic substances in whatever. Usually it's people claiming that aspartame is the evilist stuff ever because it's metabolized into methanol (and other stuff) and the methanol is then metabolized into formaldehyde and formaldehyde is toxic.

So here's something to chew on:

I culture neurons. I take these neurons out of a little rat brain, put them into a dish, and feed them glucose, pyruvate, insulin, transferrin, putrescine, selenium, and other stuff that I don't feel like listing.

Go to http://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/summary/summary.cgi?cid=1045 and see what it says about putrescine.

Notice the word "toxic" in there?

Why am I dumping something "toxic" on my neurons?

BECAUSE EVERYTHING IS CONCENTRATION DEPENDENT.

At low concentrations, my neurons need this stuff to live.

At high concentrations, it will kill them.

That's true about EVERYTHING I put into my culture solution. Everything. All of it.

So please, please, please, please think about concentration before you start trying to scare people by telling them that formaldehyde, arsenic, cyanide, whatever is in their food or drink.

/end rant
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Replies

  • LabRat529
    LabRat529 Posts: 1,323 Member
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    P.S. I don't really care about aspartame that much... this is not meant to start yet another aspartame war.
  • oharabears
    oharabears Posts: 85
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    As "they" say: "The dose makes the poison."
  • Jorra
    Jorra Posts: 3,338 Member
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    But Dr. Oz says there is arsenic in apple juice and we should all panic and ignore the fact that arsenic is there because it occurs naturally in apples!
    xgJZC.jpg

    Just kidding. This is a fabulous post on a very simple concept in science that everyone needs to understand.
  • itgeekwoman
    itgeekwoman Posts: 804 Member
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    Drinking too much water can be toxic. Know your doses. Good point!!
  • recriger
    recriger Posts: 245 Member
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    But Dr. Oz says there is arsenic in apple juice and we should all panic and ignore the fact that arsenic is there because it occurs naturally in apples!
    xgJZC.jpg

    Just kidding. This is a fabulous post on a very simple concept in science that everyone needs to understand.

    big O may be right!! I remember several years back reading about a fella that gave himself Arsenic poisioning from eating apple seeds.

    I almost felt bad until I read that he ate nothing except 3 cups of seeds a day for 6 days in preperation for a race.
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
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    Oxygen kills. Everyone who's ever died has breathed oxygen.
  • RayRay1500
    RayRay1500 Posts: 158 Member
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    Thank you, I feel the same way! Glad you have the science behind it. :smile:
  • dumb_blondes_rock
    dumb_blondes_rock Posts: 1,568 Member
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    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iywaBOMvYLI&ob=av2n
  • vjrose
    vjrose Posts: 809 Member
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    OP I agree, I stay away from all those discussion because the truth is in the dose, now true if you are consuming 12 cans of diet soda a day you might eventually develop a problem, but if you are not allergic, and you have an occassional can, no harm done. Same for coffee, alcohol, sugar, fat, protein, water, and pretty much anything else, heck water has an MSDS (health threat evaluation) and so does many other common household items. If some folks read the MSDS on bleach they would likely never use it again, lol. Back to dose and exposure.
  • beckie1185
    beckie1185 Posts: 22
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    As a chemist, this annoys the crap out of me as well! Everything is toxic at the right concentration. You know what else really annoys me? When people say they want to stay away from chemicals. People are MADE of chemicals, and so is EVERYTHING around us. It drives me up the wall!!
  • Jorra
    Jorra Posts: 3,338 Member
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    http://banDHMO.org/
    Dihydrogen monoxide (DHMO) is colorless, odorless, tasteless, and sickens over 4 billion and kills over 2 million people every year (United Nations World Health Organization, 2008: www.WHO.Int). Most of these deaths are caused by accidental inhalation of DHMO, but the dangers of dihydrogen monoxide do not end there. Prolonged exposure to its solid form causes severe tissue damage. Symptoms of DHMO ingestion can include excessive sweating and urination, and possibly a bloated feeling, nausea, vomiting and body electrolyte imbalance. For those who have become dependent, DHMO withdrawal means certain death.

    Let's send this one in to Oz. It sounds really important!
  • Silverkittycat
    Silverkittycat Posts: 1,997 Member
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    At low concentrations, my neurons need this stuff to live.

    At high concentrations, it will kill them.

    :wink:


    Great post. :heart:
  • Jorra
    Jorra Posts: 3,338 Member
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    today is my free day, eating some dorito cool ranch, are they okay?

    Only if you let me have some.
  • MrDude_1
    MrDude_1 Posts: 2,510 Member
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    today is my free day, eating some dorito cool ranch, are they okay?

    depends... are you crushing them up, heating them on a spoon, then injecting them directly into your bloodstream?


    no?
    oh, yea, they're probably fine then.
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
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    http://banDHMO.org/
    Dihydrogen monoxide (DHMO) is colorless, odorless, tasteless, and sickens over 4 billion and kills over 2 million people every year (United Nations World Health Organization, 2008: www.WHO.Int). Most of these deaths are caused by accidental inhalation of DHMO, but the dangers of dihydrogen monoxide do not end there. Prolonged exposure to its solid form causes severe tissue damage. Symptoms of DHMO ingestion can include excessive sweating and urination, and possibly a bloated feeling, nausea, vomiting and body electrolyte imbalance. For those who have become dependent, DHMO withdrawal means certain death.
    Let's send this one in to Oz. It sounds really important!
    :laugh:
  • BondBomb
    BondBomb Posts: 1,781 Member
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    I say we form an MFP science council.
    We can go around debunking these ridiculous myths and misconceptions.

    Im a biochemist - these conversations often make my head hurt. Its like trying to convince people that cold weather or wet hair does not give you the flu.
  • Corina72
    Corina72 Posts: 15
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    :flowerforyou: right to the point!
  • 57rainbows
    57rainbows Posts: 101 Member
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    Absolutely true, but don't think that "normal" amounts won't cause problems, either. Ever wonder why cancer is so prevalent in the US right now? It's not because small doses are completely harmless. Do think about what you put into your body. Eat healthy, natural foods.
  • LabRat529
    LabRat529 Posts: 1,323 Member
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    I say we form an MFP science council.
    We can go around debunking these ridiculous myths and misconceptions.

    I've been trying :(

    It's pretty much impossible. People adhere to their myths with religious conviction.
  • MrDude_1
    MrDude_1 Posts: 2,510 Member
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    Ever wonder why cancer is so prevalent in the US right now?

    Because we can detect it now, compared to centuries of people dieing from it undiagnosed?

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