In ancient Rome lead was commonly used in many different aspects from lining wine caskets to plumbing. Wealthy women also used lead for cosmetics. Where as the poor got water from the aqueducts(made from clay) and would use simple ash for the same cosmetic purposes their rich counterparts used lead for. In this case the poor were better off as they were not subjecting themselves or their offspring to lead poisoning. It has even been speculated that some of the mad behavior of some of the more mad emperors may be attributed to lead poisoniong! Clearly they had no idea what they were doing to themselves. I am coming to believe that we may be in a similar situation today. It seems that we're finding out that many of the products that have been developed over the last 80 years or so may have consequences that we are just now begining to realize.
We have become a throw away society, if it's broken throw it away. Use a paper towel once and then throw it away. What to drink some water? Get a plastic bottle of water out of the fridge and when you are done throw it away. Do we we even think about how that plastic bottle was made or what is in it or if it has any effect on the water? No. Our action are beginning to have consequences to both are planet and our over all health. I guess this to some may be tree huger stuff...but I'm OK with that. :)
I think teaching environmental and then finding out that my migraines were caused by a gluten intolerance and dairy allergy have caused me to think more of these issues lately. At some point I realized they were not necessarily separate. As we have used technology more and more in the production and packaging of food and products we use daily it seems that as a society our health steadily eroded.
