What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You… Weaker?
I am a kid of the 80’s. I grew up drinking from garden hoses, spending daylight hours outdoors, and restaurants were guaranteed to smell faintly of cigarette smoke. We didn’t have warning labels on plastic wrap reminding us you can suffocate from it and playground slides were super fun because they were made of metal and you went super-fast going down. Now, on a hot summer day it would give any part of you that touched it a third-degree burn, but you weigh the risks. I say this to make it clear I do not have a victim mentality. Although I used to wave the “What don’t kill ya makes ya stronger” flag, I have since been persuaded otherwise.
First world countries have higher rates of autoimmune disease and obesity. Since the early 2,000’s, colon cancer rates in people under 50 have been rising 2% every year according to a report by the American Cancer Society. Fertility rates are dropping, early onset menstruation is on the rise as well as other gynecological issues including PCOS, endometriosis, and fibroids.
Why are these issues on the rise? The reasons behind this surge are multifaceted. Consider environmental factors such as increased exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (like BPA and phthalates) and micro plastics in our food, beauty products and environment. In an article published on ScienceDirect.com, research shows that in late 2024 for the first time microplastics were discovered in umbilical cord blood. Diet and lifestyle have their impact in the form of increased consumption of processed foods and seed oils, low activity and chronic stress.
It may be tempting to glorify the simpler, olden days before plastics and chemical laden food and the invention of things that kept us entertained but inactive like television and out hand-held computers that are at our fingertips 24/7 but, the flip side is we also have the medical awareness, specialized professionals and technological advances to combat a lot of the consequences. I relay this information not with the desire for you to feel fear or distress, rather with the hope that you will identify areas in your life you can modify to reduce your exposure to harmful things that our ancestors did not have to think about. Think about beginning with small changes that make the most impact over time like changing from a plastic water bottle to one made of stainless steel. Switch out your plastic cutting board for one made of wood and make sure you are cooking family meals on a skillet not coated with Teflon. Consider booking a call with me to discuss health issues you or your family are dealing with and we can talk about a plan to limit your exposure to things that, though they may not be directly killing you, aren’t making you stronger.
So, while I do cherish the times I spent out-doors and exploring with abandon all the freedom my childhood in the 80’s had to offer, I do wish I could undo that BPA -laden water I was consuming with the hose. It didn’t kill me, but maybe it wasn’t the healthiest choice.
