When I read the title of Rick Smith and Bruce Lourie’s new book, I freaked out a bit. It is called “Slow Death by Rubber Duck: The Secret Danger of Everyday Things.” My son’s bathtub is filled with rubber ducks.
Smith and Lourie did things we each do every day. For two days, they ate, showered, shampooed, and played Guitar Hero on the sofa. But, one thing they did that we don’t do every day is they took blood and urine samples to monitor for toxins.
While their research noted that they had levels of the seven toxins for which they were testing in their system before they started, that amount grew drastically as they performed that activities that most of us do every day.
The two environmentalists have been researching toxins, our exposure to them, and the health risks involved for years. They noted in the book that pollution is now something most people “marinade” themselves in daily. They also said that once these toxins get in our systems, some are impossible to get out.
This may be stuff we don’t even think about. How many times have you warmed up a dish in a plastic bowl in the microwave? How many times have you sat on your carpet that has been treated with stain repellent? Do you know what is in the shampoo you use?
Smith and Lourie said there are about 82,000 chemicals that we are surrounded by day in and day out. Chemicals that can be found in our clothing, furniture, toys, air, water, electronics, and food. Of those 82,000, only about 200 have been tested to see how toxic they are and of those 200, only 5 have been banned.
Not everyone agrees with the pair about toxins. They have been bashed as scaremongers in the Wall Street Journal and other media outlets, but we know that certain things, such as autism, ADHD, cancers, diabetes – these are all on the rise and you have to ask yourself why.
If you are wondering about the title of the book, the authors say that phthalates are found in rubber ducks. Maybe I should take those ducks out of the bathtub, huh?