3 ms·

> "I find it fascinating to know what previous generations thought was safe, and then we learn, oh, actually, that might not have been a great idea to use these

> "I find it fascinating to know what previous generations thought was safe, and then we learn, oh, actually, that might not have been a great idea to use these brilliant dyes," Weinstein-Webb says. Yep. William Morris was a divil for this, and refused to acknowledge the dangers well past when they were known. I wonder though - in terms of human potential and lives lost, do all of those examples put together come anywhere near what we're doing today with PFAS, microplastics, agricultural & industrial runoff, neonicotinoids, etc.? It's easy to point fingers now and laugh at the Victorians smearing lead pain on their face, or the folks taking radioactive suppositories for health... Fun too. But like... We're in the most glassy house imaginable. We know better, like Morris, but we're still letting people away with this stuff (and even imprisoning the activists fighting it). Takes a lot of the fun out of it :/

SturgeonsLaw 2y ago
The thing too is that we know better, but we still use those toxic substances because the people who are profiting off it aren't the ones suffering ill effects. Well, at least the petrochemical people flooding the world with microplastics also have it in their bodies.
- mandmandam 2y ago
  > Well, at least the petrochemical people flooding the world with microplastics also have it in their bodies. Hate to smudge your consolation, but the tech is probably there for them to filter their blood now, or it will be soon. [0] Course, it will be far too expensive for poor people. Still! At least the microplastics in their brains will be harder to clean! [1] ... Seriously, these people need stopping. They're never going to stop on their own. 0 - https://www.mdpi.com/2673-8929/3/3/28 https://www.mdpi.com/2673-8929/3/3/28 1 - https://www.smh.com.au/national/human-brain-tissue-made-up-of-0-5-per-cent-microplastics-study-reveals-20240822-p5k4ed.html https://www.smh.com.au/national/human-brain-tissue-made-up-o...
  - the8thbit 2y ago
    > 1 - https://www.smh.com.au/national/human-brain-tissue-made-up-o https://www.smh.com.au/national/human-brain-tissue-made-up-o... holy shit 1/200 molecules in your fucking brain is straight up plastic jesus christ
    - mandmandam 2y ago
      Brings a whole new meaning to the word 'neuroplasticity', amirite? crickets
ErigmolCt 2y ago
The comparison between historical hazards like toxic dyes and modern environmental issues is a gooood one! The evolution of our understanding of risk and safety.
harimau777 2y ago
I've been learning to use makeup recently and I've been surprised at how common it is to do things that I would instinctively avoid. (I realize this is probably all extremely pedestrian for people who grew up wearing makeup, but it was surprising to me). For example, it's fairly common to use eyeliner on the "waterline" of your eye where it will wash off into your eye over time. You need to reapply lipstick periodically; partially because some of it ends up getting washed off and swallowed. A lot of these eye and lip makeups contain (cosmetic grade) glitter. A lot of makeup is in the form of sticky sprays or powders that presumably get partially inhaled. I don't mean this as some sort of hysterical "makeup is a conspiracy to kill us!!1!1" sort of thing. I know that it goes through extensive testing and is probably mostly safe. However, I do wonder if some of these might eventually be found to be less safe then we originally thought.
- mandmandam 2y ago
  I've worn makeup a few times... What amazed me is how gross it feels. It might be the ADD or whatever, but I really detest the feeling of being caked in grease. I've often wondered what kind of damage its doing to people's skin to block gas exchange, clog pores, soak in weird chemicals, etc. Gotta say though, it never occurred to me how much goop is going in people's eye holes, or how much lipstick they're ingesting. The inhalation I've thought about a lot... It's not easy to get shit out of your lungs once it goes in there. High hopes for earth-friendly (and lung friendly) glitter to become more of a thing. All that said - I get it. We're incredibly shallow, generally, and I've seen in myself and others the difference a little makeup can make in how you're treated.
- wafflemaker 2y ago
  Buying good (not killing you or damaging your skin) cosmetics and using them properly is an art, as I've observed watching my wife. To be honest, the best really is to just use retinol creams? and take care of your diet. This way you can get away using hardly any make up. Bonus is that you don't need to wash it off afterwards. But beauty treatments and knowledge is expensive, that's why poorer or less informed people have to make do with make up. Don't quote me on this, but usually the most advertised brands are also the ones that are most toxic (just repeating what I've learned from my wife).

SturgeonsLaw 2y ago

The thing too is that we know better, but we still use those toxic substances because the people who are profiting off it aren't the ones suffering ill effects. Well, at least the petrochemical people flooding the world with microplastics also have it in their bodies.

mandmandam 2y ago
> Well, at least the petrochemical people flooding the world with microplastics also have it in their bodies. Hate to smudge your consolation, but the tech is probably there for them to filter their blood now, or it will be soon. [0] Course, it will be far too expensive for poor people. Still! At least the microplastics in their brains will be harder to clean! [1] ... Seriously, these people need stopping. They're never going to stop on their own. 0 - https://www.mdpi.com/2673-8929/3/3/28 https://www.mdpi.com/2673-8929/3/3/28 1 - https://www.smh.com.au/national/human-brain-tissue-made-up-of-0-5-per-cent-microplastics-study-reveals-20240822-p5k4ed.html https://www.smh.com.au/national/human-brain-tissue-made-up-o...
- the8thbit 2y ago
  > 1 - https://www.smh.com.au/national/human-brain-tissue-made-up-o https://www.smh.com.au/national/human-brain-tissue-made-up-o... holy shit 1/200 molecules in your fucking brain is straight up plastic jesus christ
  - mandmandam 2y ago
    Brings a whole new meaning to the word 'neuroplasticity', amirite? crickets

ErigmolCt 2y ago

The comparison between historical hazards like toxic dyes and modern environmental issues is a gooood one! The evolution of our understanding of risk and safety.

harimau777 2y ago

I've been learning to use makeup recently and I've been surprised at how common it is to do things that I would instinctively avoid. (I realize this is probably all extremely pedestrian for people who grew up wearing makeup, but it was surprising to me). For example, it's fairly common to use eyeliner on the "waterline" of your eye where it will wash off into your eye over time. You need to reapply lipstick periodically; partially because some of it ends up getting washed off and swallowed. A lot of these eye and lip makeups contain (cosmetic grade) glitter. A lot of makeup is in the form of sticky sprays or powders that presumably get partially inhaled. I don't mean this as some sort of hysterical "makeup is a conspiracy to kill us!!1!1" sort of thing. I know that it goes through extensive testing and is probably mostly safe. However, I do wonder if some of these might eventually be found to be less safe then we originally thought.

mandmandam 2y ago
I've worn makeup a few times... What amazed me is how gross it feels. It might be the ADD or whatever, but I really detest the feeling of being caked in grease. I've often wondered what kind of damage its doing to people's skin to block gas exchange, clog pores, soak in weird chemicals, etc. Gotta say though, it never occurred to me how much goop is going in people's eye holes, or how much lipstick they're ingesting. The inhalation I've thought about a lot... It's not easy to get shit out of your lungs once it goes in there. High hopes for earth-friendly (and lung friendly) glitter to become more of a thing. All that said - I get it. We're incredibly shallow, generally, and I've seen in myself and others the difference a little makeup can make in how you're treated.
wafflemaker 2y ago
Buying good (not killing you or damaging your skin) cosmetics and using them properly is an art, as I've observed watching my wife. To be honest, the best really is to just use retinol creams? and take care of your diet. This way you can get away using hardly any make up. Bonus is that you don't need to wash it off afterwards. But beauty treatments and knowledge is expensive, that's why poorer or less informed people have to make do with make up. Don't quote me on this, but usually the most advertised brands are also the ones that are most toxic (just repeating what I've learned from my wife).