I was so toxic that I miscarried my first child, forgot to breathe while sleeping, had muscle spasms so annoying I wanted to jump out of my skin, and had food sensitivities that closed my throat with nearly everything I tried to eat. My toxicity extended to my
children. I experienced gestational diabetes during each successful pregnancy, but now know that my children also received the full assortment of toxins I had in my blood.
How did I get that way?
Why am I telling you this?
Most people don't know about my toxic past. I didn't even make the connection of poor health to personal toxicity until 2006. I wasn't stupid, but I didn't have the right information either! I just knew that good health had more to do with natural solutions than with medications. So I suffered for years because I wouldn't take prescription
medications. Thank God!
Who knew then what dangers pervaded my playtime as a child? Though it was never meant to be a toy, mercury, prized for its accuracy in thermometers and its fun-factor to kids, is now known as a hazardous waste and potent neurotoxin . . . and yes, I played with mercury from broken thermometers.
My childhood was laced with heavy metals and other toxins. I helped paint creosote wood preservative on the fence posts surrounding our yard (arsenic.) We used pesticides in our home that came in a neat red spray can with a dead ant on the label (neurotoxic pyrethrins and irritating petroleum chemicals.) Our dog wore a flea collar which had a residue
and we also dusted him with flea powder. When I snuggled with my dog, I’m sure I was also protected from fleas! My mother sometimes repaired my jewelry with solder as I stood by watching, inhaling the fumes too (lead) and then wearing the repaired piece close to my skin.
We had an oil tank in our cold, New Hampshire basement. I frequently took a little heating oil from the tap to use as a solvent for oil based paints in my artwork.
Most of the food we ate was freshly prepared, but packaged foods were becoming more popular. High in saturated fats and generally mysterious due to lack of labeling and lack of knowledge about the ingredients, we ate brightly colored cheeses in neat little square slices, red-coated salty pistachios (yes, we licked off the salt and got red mouths),
individually wrapped cakes filled with creamy, sugary concoctions and bright red drinks we could mix with cups and cups of sugar to quench our thirst because it “taste great- wish I had some- can’t wait.”
Based on just these childhood recollections I could tally up a complete profile of toxins; a wide range of heavy metals, pesticides and petroleum carcinogens, as well as artificial ingredients, saturated fats, dyes and preservatives in foods, not to mention high sugar, salt and cholesterol . . . and that doesn't even come close to my toxic exposure as a
biology teacher living in South Korea.
