The dose makes the poison

I posted earlier about allegations that Corelleware contains lead that could be harmful to human health. There’s no doubt that lead is a dangerous neurotoxin when ingested or inhaled in sufficient quantity. But we ingest dangerous substances all the time.

Acrylamide is a neurotoxin that forms in some foods as a by-product of high-temperature frying, roasting and baking. Benzo[a]pyrenes are carcinogens that form as result of, e.g., grilling meat. The nitrite and nitrate preservatives in processed meats (bacon, ham, hot dogs) are known carcinogens. Arsenic, a well-known poison, concentrates at higher levels in rice than in other food crops and is the biggest food source of inorganic arsenic. Fluoride, which in low concentration is beneficial for oral health (fluoridated water and toothpaste), is toxic at high levels. Ethanol, the alcohol found in beer, wine and spirits, is a risk factor for various cancers.

The old adage in toxicology is “the dose makes the poison.” We’re constantly ingesting and inhaling dangerous stuff, so why are we still here? Because that stuff is generally in such minute quantities that our bodies can deal with it. So before you get rattled by scarelore about lead in cookware or consider yourself immune because you use “organic” ingredients in your bread or rice-based meals, it would be well to understand the everyday “risks” each one of us takes. You’re more likely to die in a traffic accident or from age-related dementia than from modest amounts of baked goods, bacon, fluoridated water or rice, or from eating off of Corelleware plates.