There are many things I’ve had to give up in the quest for optimal health. Wood-burning fires are one, and every winter I mourn the loss again! I loved a nice fire in the fireplace. All combustion products are toxic, whereby producing numerous chemicals that are toxic to humans. Air in wood-burning households has higher levels of toxins, particularly carbon dioxide, toxic oxides of nitrogen and sulfur, and carcinogenic hydrocarbons like benzo (A) pyrene. A study in the International Journal of Epidemiology found that people exposed to wood stove smoke have 2 to 3 times the risk of mouth and throat cancer. The authors of this study estimate that wood smoke may be responsible for up to 30% of all such cancers! In addition woodstoves are linked with nasal polyps and sinus disease. Could your woodstove be causing or contributing to your interstitial cystitis? Although I haven’t heard that woodstoves are related to this particular disease, everything we are exposed to either con…

A credible scientist is worried about the high oxalic acid (aka oxalate) content in green drinks and vegetarian diets.  Should you be concerned?  Maybe. Oxalic acid is found in plant foods. It’s also produced by the body in the course of normal metabolism.  Pretty nasty stuff, it’s the most corrosive acid in the body, a pro-oxidant, and it can combine with most minerals and heavy metals to form oxalate crystals. The most well-known of these crystals are kidney stones, but, according to chemist William Shaw, PhD, formerly of the Centers for Disease Control, high levels of oxalate can form crystals just about anywhere in the body, including glands, heart and brain. Like tiny pieces of glass, these crystals cause tissue damage and inflammation and have been implicated in arthritis, fibromyalgia, interstitial cystitis and a painful condition in and around the vagina called vulvodynia. Fortunately the human body is well-equipped to dispose of oxalate. If you’re in go…