ADVANCEDBROWSE SUBJECTS
alive Academy
Alive Forum
Event Calendar
Health Retailer Search
Alive Awards
Alive Web Exclusives
Alive Australia


APEX Awards 2009

Find a store
Subscribe to our Free Newsletter!

Enlarge Font Printer Version Email It to a Friend
Scientists Speak Out on Nuked Food

Food irradiation is currently one of the hottest issues in food safety. Food products are exposed to ionizing radiation to extend shelf-life and kill insects, fungi and bacteria. Since alive published several articles questioning whether Health Canada should allow more irradiated products in Canada, we’ve certainly felt the blast! But we’re not the only ones speaking out"

"I am opposed to food irradiation because it is clear this process increases the levels of mutagens and carcinogens [agents that cause mutation and cancer, respectively] in food. The inevitable consequence of this is that in two to five decades, the incidence of cancer will increase from what we see now, in direct proportion to the amounts of irradiated food consumed." -George L. Tritsche, PhD, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY

"The large scale irradiation of food, as proposed by industry and administration, represents the largest prospective toxicological experiment in human populations in the history of public health." -Samuel S. Epstein, MD, Professor of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago

"There are potentially serious concerns about issues of waste disposal, engineering safety, transport of radioactive material, production of new isotopes, handling by poorly trained personnel, and others we haven’t even thought of yet." -Sheldon Margen, MD, Professor Emeritus, University of California, Berkeley

Web sites to check out: citizen.org, cnp.ca, hans.org, sierraclub.ca. Then drop Health Canada an e-mail at irradiation@hc-sc.gc.ca voicing your opinion.

Get Involved! Research provided by the Health Action Network Society (HANS), a consumer-based, non-profit, charitable organization in Burnaby, BC. HANS is dedicated to collecting information and monitoring health issues and environmental concerns that affect human health. Annual membership: $35. Web site: hans.org. Phone: 604-435-0512.

Source: alive #S

Back to top

See Related Content
BC's Oldest Naturopath
Eighty-six-year-old naturopath Fred Loffler has been known to kill time before a talk by standing on his head. It's not hard to imagine as the ex-wrestling champion and Olympic Marathon contender strides to the stage. He's wiry, bald and throws his arms out to punctuates his words.
US Approves Meat Irradiation
Effective February 22, new US Department of Agriculture (USDA) rules will allow US meat processing plants to use low levels of irradiation on raw red meat products. The use of irradiation for red meat products was initially approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in December of 1997.
The Unknown Dangers of Food Irradiation
Radiation damage, decreased food value and ineffectiveness are just some of irradiation's many pit falls. Food irradiation is being promoted as a safe method of decontaminating foods for human consumptio.
9-1-1 Naturopath
I remember visiting my grandmother in the hospital after she collapsed due to heart failure. Without the skilled knowledge of the paramedics who arrived at her home, she would have died.
Health in a Box
On June 16, 2001, Health Canada proposed a new labelling format for nutritional facts and health claims on Canadian-made food products. These regulations are intended to update our 13-year-old nutrition labelling laws..
Treating Toxic Bodies With Environmental Medicine
The scientific and medical world of the 19th and 20th centuries was dominated by the germ theory. The present century is dominated by chemicals and toxins.
The Nature of Natural Healing
Never before has there been such a great interest in natural self-healing--and such a resistance to it. Natural healing requires re-visioning. It cannot be viewed through the magnifying glass of modern medicine that sees everything in small, unconnected parts.
Shop Smart, Stay Whole
Quick convenience products are undeniably helpful in this time-crunched world. Luckily for those of us trying to eat healthfully, the popularity of "healthy" packaged foods has grown, expanding into almost every food section, from snacks to frozen foods through to canned goods and packaged pastas.
Spring Clean Your Liver
It may not feel like it yet, but soon the frost will melt and springtime will arrive--a natural time for growth, renewal and regeneratio.
The Boucher Institute of Naturopathic Medicine
There's excitement in the air as you step through the solid wooden doors of Canada's newest naturopathic college in New Westminster, BC. Or perhaps a better phrase to describe the feeling is "pioneer spirit.
Food Irradiation Rears Its Ugly Head In Canada

Irradiation is a controversial preservation proce.
Sound The Alarm Bells: Food Irradiation is a Growing Pain
Decades ago alive sounded the alarm regarding food irradiation. Along with hundreds of thousands of Canadians, we were able to initiate a labelling law requiring a radura symbol to indicate irradiated food.
Best of Both Worlds
bridging the medical divide

For decades, a medical war has rage.
Accountability of Bureaucracy: Is It Even Possible?
This is the same Health Canada that allowed the blood supply to become tainted with HIV and hepatitis C v.
Good News for Canada's Newest College
At the campus in New Westminster, BC, they paid their tuition, bought textbooks and attended classes - all without a guarantee that they'd be able to practise once graduating from the program.
A Sign of the Times
The strides gained in the naturopathic profession have been phenomenal given its near extinction only a few decades ago. Naturopathic medicine has hit the mainstream with a bang.
Naturopathic Medicine and Bone Cancer Prevention
The general public perception is that there is very little an individual can do to reduce his chances of getting bone cancer. This view can be challenged, because enhancing the body's ability to resist bone cancer is within our reach.
US Organic Rules Lacking
Ten years in the making, the new US National Organic Standards released in December aren't pleasing everyone. The new standards will ensure the label "made with organic ingredients" means at least 70 per cent organic. But they also allow food additives in both these and 100 per cent certified organic products..
Meaningful Makeovers Part II
Last month you met Rob, a writer, and Toni, a costumer, who each want to become fitter and healthier. They've begun their alive makeovers by undergoing a naturopathic assessment to discover what they'll need to work on to achieve optimal health.
Integrative Medicine
The progressive educational experience of one Vancouver naturopathic doctor will forever influence his practice and his patients, and reveals the future of medicine.
Holistic Health Care
If you’re a holdout because you don’t know the difference between naturopaths and homeopaths, let this introductory guide, well, guide you.

Back to top