Maybe it's really true that everything causes cancer
Whenever I order a sandwich I always ask that they hold the pickle because, well, I don’t like pickles. Turns out that aversion may also be good for my health in the same way that a hands-free set-up might be good for those of you who seem incapable of ever putting your cell phones down.
From an article on Slate.com:
The World Health Organization classified cell phones as “possibly carcinogenic” on Tuesday, placing them in a category that includes the pesticide DDT, engine exhaust, and pickled vegetables. Wait … pickled vegetables?
Yup, pickled vegetables. When Chinese hospitals started systematically tracking cancer incidence 50 years ago, they found that certain regions suffered from startlingly high rates of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, a cancer of the cells lining the esophagus. Epidemiologists observed that people in these areas relied on fermented vegetables for nutrients for long parts of the year, when fresh veggies weren’t available. Researchers now think the culprit is the fungi responsible for the fermentation process. As part of their natural life cycle, the microorganisms release a variety of possible carcinogens.
You can read the details; I didn’t have to myself.
Of course, I don’t let tomatoes anywhere near my sandwiches, either, and that apparently costs me a few points in the battle against the Big C.
Life is full of trade-offs.
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