Health Issues

'Forever' chemicals, which are often referred to as PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals), are a class of heat and water-resistant chemicals used in a variety of industrial products, flame retardants and nonstick products, such as raincoats, cookware and packaging and have leeched into water supplies in almost every state in the country, according to The Hill. They are known carcinogens and do not degrade in the environment nor in the human body.

The gut, or gastrointestinal tract, comprises the mouth, esophagus, stomach, large intestine, and small intestine and is essentially a long tube through which food travels after we consume it. It doesn’t seem like this collection of organs could possibly have a connection to soil, but it does—a deep one, in fact.

Some people claim that chemical regulations stifle innovation. Just the opposite is true. It will require tremendous innovation to move away from hazardous chemicals and toward materials that are safer. It can be done. The scientific knowledge we possess today about what causes chemical harm is deep and wide, so much better than what we knew when hazardous materials in widespread use today were designed. Let's use that knowledge to innovate.

I have been writing for a long time about Coca-Cola Co.'s unethical marketing of its obesity-producing products, especially to children. For example, though Coca-Cola vowed to stop advertising directly to audiences that were composed of more than 35% children in the 200 countries and territories in which it operates, its promises were found to be false.