There are many reasons for concerns about environmental pollution and radiation exposure in this day and age. This is more true around big cities, but even in the rural sections of this nation, air and water contamination is spreading, and pesticides are a danger everywhere. Unless we want to go live in the wilderness, we need to be aware of many environmental toxins and learn how to protect ourselves from them; however, the wilderness is likely to be contaminated these days as well. Also, the air and waterways transport industrial and agricultural pollutants, and radioactive fallout may affect living things anywhere.

Environmental pollution has become a major political and health issue for all of us. The issue of short-term profit versus the health of our planet and ourselves is what we are really addressing. Many of the specific issues and individual environmental toxins, as well as the politics involved, are discussed in detail in Chapter 11. This section also examines some of the specific toxins but is primarily designed to offer a general program on how to minimize, handle, and protect ourselves from the many environmental pollutants and their effects upon us.

Exposure to environmental pollution is inevitable. A healthy human can adapt to mild and periodic exposure to pollutants in our air, water, and food. Some chemicals are easier to avoid than others. We have more control over what we take into our body than what goes into our air and water. Healthy food choices, such as "organic" produce and purified water, and avoiding food additives, cigarettes, and home chemicals will certainly diminish our risks.

Our immune defenses, gastrointestinal and liver functions, and other systems of elimination all play an important role in handling and clearing body toxins. With increased or prolonged exposure or with a diminished ability to handle chemical contamination for a variety of reasons, such as a weakened immune system or a liver overworked with excessive demands from processing certain drugs or consuming too much fat in the diet, our interaction with these toxins can have many damaging effects. The damage may range from mild tissue irritation or immune suppression to an increase in the formation of carcinogenic cells. If these processes continue unchecked, cancer could develop. (See Chapter 11 for a discussion of chemical carcinogenesis.)

Understanding the hazards and where and how we are exposed to these environmental dangers is an important beginning. Our greatest insurance is maintaining a healthy, functioning body and immune system through positive lifestyle habits, such as eating a wholesome diet, exercising regularly, minimizing stress and maintaining positive attitudes. In addition, many nutrients in our diet and extra nutritional supplements can both support needed functions and protect against possible dangers.

This program is designed for people subject to regular (daily) environmental exposure, such as those living in a smoggy industrial city, as well as for people who are chronically or acutely exposed to particular chemical agents. These include artists, chemical workers, metal workers, electronics workers, people who use pesticides, printers, those exposed to x-rays, either as technicians or as patients, and those who work around or at nuclear or other power plants.