Slow arsenic poisoning

[Not dead yet!]

So I'm reading stuff as usual, and I stumble on yet another health supplement which at least gets a healthline.com writeup: http://www.healthline.com/health/benefits-of-moringa-oleifera

And at the bottom, it says it can slow down or help treat subclinical arsenic poisoning which happens in "other countries" (it's always "other" countries, right?). Hmm, I tend it live in a world that assumes such things are the stuff of movies. But it turns out rice is a common food that is laced with arsenic. So I look at symptoms, etc...

http://www.healthline.com/health/arsenic-poisoning#overview1

Gee that's funny, sounds like CFS, especially the part with constant sore throat.

Then the map. Well gee-shucks, I have a hard time believing that Nevada is the highest user of pesticides, followed by Arizona, or that the use of pesticides fits the Jet Stream so neatly. This is the kind of thing that makes me think... there's something missing in the information map of the world.

Has anyone considered the possibility of subclinical poisoning? There was an event in my life where I suspected I was exposed to something scary. I've always instinctively believed that I was poisoned at least slightly. But by what? The absence of proof has me questioning it myself. You'd think if they make grand statements like "people aren't exposed to traditional poisons in the USA", they'd have the testing to prove it. But not once has anyone offered me such a test. Am I barking up the wrong tree?

 

[Issie]

I had high arsenic one time and corrected it with cilantro and sodium arginine.

 

[Empty]

https://nutritionfacts.org/topics/arsenic/

Here is some great information on arsenic. I promised a while back that I would post the 15 or so videos in a series Dr.Greger has done specifically on the subject of rice and arsenic but I think its only just come out and I haven't seen it yet. It may take a few months before it is free.

However there are still quite a few free arsenic you tube videos on nutritionfacts.org

Ways to decrease one's arsenic from rice:

https://nutritionfacts.org/?fwp_search=arsenic&fwp_content_type=video (ETA: Sorry, I have linked to the wrong video. Basically brand is important, brown is better than white and soaking it and rinsing, then cooking it in a big pot of water gets rid of most of the arsenic. Throw away your rice cooker).

 

[Merida]

@Issie
Wow. I am always amazed by what you have been through and what you have learned. Had no idea about arsenic in rice til recently. Thanks for the links Empty.
I have history of insecticide exposure from dog flea control. In early years, prior to new meds for dogs - spraying house, flea bathing dogs, etc. These sprays are mostly all cholinesterase inhibitors - with some possible permanent influence.
I remember from college biochem that arsenic inhibits ATP production at a certain point in the Kreb's cycle. We actually extracted mitochondria from rats' livers and injected various chemicals, measured the micromoles of Oxygen utilized, so we could see exactly where the cycle shut down. So, this arsenic question brings us back to the mitochondria and lack of ATP production?

 

[Not dead yet!]

I happen to be a big fan of the SE Asian dim sum food, Congee. I found this very in depth article while looking into the arsenic situation some more:

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2015/01/how-much-arsenic-is-in-your-rice/index.htm

Once again, traditional cooking techniques which have been largely abandoned are to blame for the issues we're seeing today. I mean, you know you're "supposed to" rinse rice before cooking, and you know you could theoretically cook it in too much water and drain it if you wanted to.... but how many of us do that? We've been told that having the rice soak up all the water preserves vitamins, right? But I haven't seen the actual evidence for that (apologies if that data exists, but I haven't seen it).

I'm also comforted to know that buckwheat and millet, two of my favorite "grains" are low in arsenic.

"Grains" became important to me after I'd been keto for a long time. It seemed like I needed something slow to digest but that provides constant blood sugar support. Many "Paleo" eaters became enamored of "resistant starch" at this time. But for me, it was about a source of continual blood sugar support, not butyrate. To that end, I'd often buy an order of Dal (dhal?) from a local Indian food restaurant and eat it slowly over several days. Eventually I made my own at home. I probably ate not much more than 40g of carbs that way, but the inclusion fixed a lot of blood sugar issues I seemed to have.

I am thinking maybe to try making congee with "cream of buckwheat." You know those boxes of Pocono brand stuff in health food stores? They look kind of like Farina boxes in the supermarket, only much smaller. That's one of the first health foods I truly enjoyed as a teenager.

I like this article because it doesn't just raise an alarm, it gives solutions that work. Be well!

 

[Issie]

It won't let me correct my post. It was sodium alginate and cilantro.
@Merida
Yes, I've had quit a journey and a lot to sort. On a new path now with CIRS.

Issie

 

[Empty]

Ive been on quinoa mainly just for a break from rice.

https://nutritionfacts.org/video/cancer-risk-from-arsenic-in-rice-and-seaweed/
(This one explains the numbers well).