It has been my experience that so called “natural” products aren’t the panacea many folks believe they are. There is little to no oversight as to the legitimacy of the claims you so often see associated with such products, the ingredients are often a mystery or the list of them incomplete. Most don’t do a damn thing, no better than snake oil, and some are even dangerous if taken improperly. People do die from “natural” products all the time.

No matter what you may believe, the fact is quite simply that death is a natural part of life. There is no way to make the world we live in 100% safe and perfectly sanitized. To believe so is to delude ones self with what amounts to nothing more than wishful thinking. I know it is hard to overcome human nature sometimes with rational thought. Fear makes people say and do the strangest things, and the media has always be excellent at exploiting that fear. I believe the count is now fifteen deaths accountable to listeria, but for heavens sake this is nothing new folks! Listeria kills around 500 people every year in the USA for example, and that is from just one type of bacteria.

Feel free to look for all the healthy alternatives you want, but the fact will always remain that you can run but you can’t hide. When your time is up, it’s up and that is that. Live as safely and sensibly as you are able, hope for the best, but most importantly… actually LIVE! I’m speaking from experience when I say that life is much too short to spend it afraid of things beyond your control, even if you end up as one of the lucky ones who live to be 100.

When you see a cow out standing in a field, next to that gas well, do you think there is a remote possibility that gas well could be seeping H2S gas or the various gases, radon, methane, etc. that are composites of “natural gas”? Now if that animal is breathing those gases in and they are being absorbed into their system, do you think that could “taint” the meat that is processed in that animal. Check with your Health Canada department and see if there is any testing done for that,..I think not! When we elect a government, and then the leader of that government throws a Minister into a department who has absolutely NO BACKGROUND in that field,…do you think THAT is a good system? If so, the next time your car breaks down, take it to the pizza guy,…maybe he can tell you what is wrong with it or fix it for you.

Obviously you don’t KNOW what goes into HOT DOGS, if you did, you would NEVER eat another one from anywhere. This is NOT hysteria. These laws you so casually proclaim are being passed right NOW, under your nose. Google Bill C-51 and go to the government site and READ IT. Breast milk in their original containers,…women’s breasts would have to have labels on them listing the ingredients…if you think that insane,..read it and then add your blog to that. Then go to http://www.stopbillc-51.com and read their site and the links on that site,…and then stop, think, reason, and then blog again. Sorry your wife is not feeling well, and I am extremely sad for those that have lost their lives and are sick because of this catastrophe, but giving the government, the pharmaceutical companies, and the doctors the ability to pump more chemicals into our bodies by restricting natural health products. Natural health products have not killed anyone, when used properly, can the drug companies say that….watch the news and the ambulance chasers ads about all the law suits regarding the thousands and perhaps hundreds of thousands have killed in just the past few years.

Folks need to stop giving in to mass hysteria and irrational fears. I’m sure the government and other self interest groups would love to link events such as this one to terrorism. That way the general population won’t resist when new laws are created that take away even more of our liberties and freedoms, just like after 9/11. The fact is listeria is only really dangerous to folks with weakened immune systems. Proper cooking of meat that has listeria and most other forms of bacteria are perfectly safe to eat. That is the whole point of cooking!

I’ve read comments which commonly mention how doing it like in the old days is better, and how we should all eat food from local producers. These people are forgetting just how many people died from bad food and water in “the old days”. People who had strong immune systems were the one who usually survived these outbreaks, which is perfectly normal. It’s just Darwinism in action. The products local farmers sell are not any less likely to make you sick than food from a mass producer or food you grow and harvest yourself. In fact it is quite possible food from local farmers is more dangerous seeing as how there is no real oversight in place. The fact is that everything you put into your mouth, no matter the source, is always a gamble.

Some will likely label me as a corporate stooge, and they are free to express their opinions all they want. The reality will still be that I am not a stooge, and in fact my wife is one of those people whom have a suppressed immune system. We are currently debating which products to throw out and which to keep, and both of us absolutely refuse to give in to hysteria. Being constantly afraid is no way to live, and we also accept the reality that all things die. It is the natural order of things that nothing lasts forever, and the sooner one accepts that and learns to appreciate life, the better off that life will be. I’ve been ill a number of times in my life, but I once ate a hot dog at a movie theater and it nearly killed me. One of the worst experiences I’ve ever gone through, and one I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. Does that mean I should forever fear hot dogs? Of course not! It just means I should be more careful in the future, that is all.