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I think everyone understands that plenty of things in nature are poisonous or dangerous in other ways. But it's also reasonable to trust our intuition that foo
by tomhoward 8y ago
I think everyone understands that plenty of things in nature are poisonous or dangerous in other ways.
But it's also reasonable to trust our intuition that food is generally better - i.e., more easily digested and more nutritionally complete - the closer it is to its natural form.
In the linked article, the supplement in question was was far from natural; it was highly refined and concentrated.
So the cause of the damage in this case was not from consuming a natural product, but from taking a highly _unnatural_ product.
If he'd just had ordinary green tea (i.e., dried tea leaves steeped in water) once or twice a day, as millions of people have done for many generations, this would not have happened.
- adminu 8y ago> I think everyone understands that plenty of things in nature are poisonous or dangerous in other ways I think, many do not, at all. > So the cause of the damage in this case was not from consuming a natural product, but from taking a highly _unnatural_ product. There is a big difference in your definition of natural and what is marketed as natural.
- arethuza 8y agoI would recommend reading the book to find out the plant in question and why you would be killed.... :-)
- tmoravec 8y agoCare to share a spoiler? :-)
- arethuza 8y agoThe author, a junior doctor at the time, later acts the consultant what plant he was referring to and the consultant says "a water lily". I think the consultant in question had a bit of a thing about people consuming large quantities of "natural" products and being surprised that this could make them quite ill and indulged in a bit of a rant.
- camtarn 8y agoHa! There actually is a tree which will kill you if you hang around it for long enough (the manchineel tree), but to be fair I wouldn't expect to find it in somebody's garden. https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/whatever-you-do-do-not-eat-touch-or-even-inhale-the-air-around-the-manchineel-tree https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/whatever-you-do-do-not...
- arethuza 8y agoSlightly surprised that tree isn't native to Australia - I guess though that pretty much any tree of a decent size will potentially kill you if you stand under it long enough!