Friday, December 12, 2008

Food Contamination - What Can We Do About It?

By Lidia Peru

It seems that every time I turn around there is another story in the news about food contamination. Whether it is tomatoes, spinach, or strawberries, there doesn't seem to be any way to know that the food we are buying in our fancy supermarkets is safe.

It doesn't seem to matter whether that food is imported. We've all heard there are fewer controls on growing conditions and safety in other countries. No, the word gets out about the outbreak of contamination in spinach grown in California.

In a report edited by W. Jongen at the Wageningen University in the Netherlands, there are many considerations in improving the safety of fresh fruits and vegetables. Foods can come in contact with contaminants many times during their growing and processing cycle.

One of the dangers in storing foods is the pathogens found naturally in our foods. Microbes can actually form a barrier to protect bacteria, a coating known as biofilm. This coating protects bacterial growth, and can hold disease causing pathogens such as E. Coli and Salmonella.

The residue of pesticides used over the growth cycle of foods can also stay on our produce. Looks can be deceiving, and while that fruit make look pretty and healthy it can contain a layer of pesticide residue on its skin.

Mycotoxin is a toxin in the fungus family. Due to their microscopically small spores,fungi are found nearly everywhere in small quantities. They feed off organic matter when the conditions are right. In too great a quantity mycotoxin poisoning can take place. This overdose can come through direct consumption or by feeding contaminated feed to livestock.

Is there anything the consumer can do to improve the qualities of their food prior to consumption? One tool I have found is to use a low cost naturally occurring chemical process that occurs when I mix miracle mineral solution, or MMS, with a food based activator, like lemon juice. The chemical reaction is to produce chlorine dioxide, an important chemical that is also produced in our bodies. Chlorine dioxide has been recognized as a water purifier for over 70 years.

One step we can take in our food preparation is to do that final cleaning prior to use of our produce. The method I prefer is to use MMS, or Miracle Mineral Solution and a little citric acid to produce chlorine dioxide. This combination was discovered several years ago, and used to treat thousands of malaria cases, hence the name miracle in Miracle Mineral Solution. The resulting chemical output is chlorine dioxide, a water purifier and naturally occuring detoxifier in the body.

Miracle mineral solution is a powerful tool for your home and wellness. It takes only pennies to mix a solution of chlorine dioxide, and when we spray or soak our produce prior to consumption we take charge of our own health and nutrition.

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