And this month’s ingredient of the month is…pthalates! Pthalates, (pronounced thalates) is a large family of molecules used in a variety of industries. Pthalates are used to flavor cheap whiskey, and they are what makes plastics flexible. The rule of thumb is; the more clear and flexible the plastic, the more pthalates it contains. So stretch wrap and clear water bottles contain a lot of the stuff. PET #1 plastic, which is considered safe for food, drugs and cosmetics, (and the ubiquitous water bottles) is also full of the stuff.

Pthalates were not a part of our collective chemical exposure before this century. However, every modern human is now full of them. Pthalates do not cause cancer. Rather, they seem to act as cancer enhancers, speeding up breast cancer cell mitosis (the rate the cells divide) as much as 40X. Note: this is not 40% – this is 40X the cancer cell’s normal rate of reproduction!

If you are watching your chemical load, this is an easy one to avoid. Stay away from prepackaged processed food and plastic water. Do not microwave or freeze plastics. Eat a lot of fresh, homemade food…like kale!

Regular readers of this column know that I promulgate a kind spiritual/molecular view of the world. As one cultivates this perspective it becomes clear that all things biological and chemical exist in a balance. I like to think of it as yin/yang on steroids. So it stands to reason that if cancer enhancers exist, so do cancer erasers. Since we already know that that we are being exposed every day to cancer enhancers and cancer creators, it is more important than ever to counter this onslaught with known tumor inhibiting molecules.

Turns out we are in luck. Cancer inhibiting molecules exist all around us. You can find them in fresh organic produce such as the cole (kohl) crop family that includes cabbage, broccoli and kale. Try to eat some every day if you can. Black cumin seed oil from Egypt is another. My personal favorite is a common weed that grows throughout Vermont called Wormwood. Wormwood contains a molecule called artemesinin that is being studied for its cancer inhibiting properties. For more information about this see

So it turns out your hippie grandmother was right. Fresh, organic local food IS healing and processed plastic food…well…

There was a comedian that once said, “Listen to the words”. After all, who was it that put the con into con-venience!

This is the Soapman advocating that we all Eat More Kale!

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