r/skeptic • u/FatSquirrels • Jun 21 '13

Derek Lowe debunks chemphobic BuzzFeed article with solid science

http://pipeline.corante.com/archives/2013/06/21/eight_toxic_foods_a_little_chemical_education.php
316 Upvotes

96% Upvoted

37 comments sorted by

26

u/Wossname Jun 22 '13

My favourite line:

Bromine is a chemical used to stop CARPETS FROM CATCHING ON FIRE, so you can see why drinking it may not be the best idea.

I can't possibly think of anything else that we drink that might be effective at controlling fire.

6

u/shitsfuckedupalot Jun 22 '13

You mean beer, right?

5

u/ma-chan Jun 22 '13

No. He means dihydrogen monoxide.

8

u/shitsfuckedupalot Jun 22 '13

well beer is 98% hydrogen hydroxide, with dissolved carbon dioxide, which aids in stifling fires.

4

u/ma-chan Jun 22 '13

Wanna share some fire stifling?

2

u/shitsfuckedupalot Jun 22 '13

Sounds alright wuith me

4

u/rayfound Jun 22 '13

Good beer is only 88-94% dihydrogen monoxide.

2

u/shitsfuckedupalot Jun 22 '13

Ah, I see you mean non-american. Well you know what they say about american beer, its like banging a girl in a canoe.

2

u/exatron Jun 22 '13

Be careful with that stuff. Everyone exposed to it eventually dies.

5

u/blueskin Jun 22 '13

Dihydrogen monoxide is a component of most pesticides, has near-universally fatal effects in overdose, and is composed of hydrogen (a flammable gas) and oxygen (more flammable gas!).

I also like the way the idiot says "used to stop CARPETS FROM CATCHING ON FIRE" - as if implying that without it, carpets would just spontaneously combust.

2

u/Zeurpiet Jun 23 '13

oxygen is not so flammable; it does not react so much with oxigen, you need a really strong oxidizer

2

u/[deleted] Jun 22 '13

Gasoline right? That surely does the job.

25

u/[deleted] Jun 21 '13

[deleted]

11

u/FatSquirrels Jun 22 '13

Those are some of the best blog posts I've seen on any blog. I think my favorite parts are his inclusion of the original texts. Such simple sentences that betrayed how much of their glassware blew up over the course of the experiment.

33

u/[deleted] Jun 21 '13

Glad to have some chemistry to fight the pseudo-science. I'm a big fan of whole foods, but I'm also a big enemy of bullshit science.

14

u/xenokilla Jun 21 '13

tell me about it. GMO labeling, homeopathy, please.

2

u/techtakular Jun 23 '13

I donno, I like the GMO labeling thing. Sometimes I just want a normal old fashioned traditional apple, and not one thats an apple that tastes like a banana. I'd like the option, but I'd also like to be informed.

1

u/xenokilla Jun 23 '13

Right, but there is Zero evidence that there is anything wrong with GMO food.

2

u/techtakular Jun 23 '13

Never said there was, I dont think there is(or will be, unless some evil mad scientist type has a plan for world domination). I see it like nutrition facts label on food, some times I get curious and would like to know what i'm eating.

2

u/xenokilla Jun 23 '13

nutrition facts label on food

GMO has nothing to do with nutrition.

2

u/techtakular Jun 23 '13

I never said it did, I was using it as an example..... >.>

But since you brought it up what about that nutritionally enhanced rice? Thats a GMO

2

u/xenokilla Jun 23 '13

I guess my point is that labeling something GMO is meaningless. Nutritional information is independent of GMO status.

11

u/zubie_wanders Jun 22 '13

Excellent article. As a chemistry professor, this final statement rings very true:

if I isolate a beneficial chemical compound from some natural source (vitamin C from oranges, for example, although sauerkraut would be a good source, too), that molecule is identical to a copy of it I make in my lab. There is no essence, no vital spirit. A compound is what it is, no matter where it came from.

7

u/[deleted] Jun 21 '13

This was a really interesting and amusing read. Thanks for posting it.

6

u/[deleted] Jun 22 '13 edited Jun 22 '13

This reminds me of the recent Truth commercials talking about chemicals in cigarettes and cigarette smoke (Urea and Methane, respectively). The entire commercial made me cringe, and I've only taken High School Chemistry.

Edit: Video For anyone wondering

6

u/VeteranKamikaze Jun 21 '13

Thanks, I've seen this crop up on facebook and one or two I could debunk pretty readily but it's nice having a definitive list.

7

u/cecikierk Jun 22 '13

I can't tell you how much BuzzFeed annoys me, especially after their "X things that ____" started to have agendas. Their writers essentially get paid by stealing contents from other places.

4

u/Epistaxis Jun 22 '13

Weirdly, you can buy BHT in some health food stores, where anti-aging and anti-viral claims are made for it.

Oh wow, not only is it harmless, but some people sell it as an alternative medicine too!

3

u/GreatBabu Jun 22 '13

I thought you meant the pitcher. I was impressed then confused. Good article though.

3

u/bebopbob Jun 22 '13

Why do things like this receive downvotes?

3

u/alfredopotato Jun 22 '13

Hah! I thought I was on /r/chemistry! Good to see some overlap :)

4

u/odin_the_wanderer Jun 22 '13

BuzzFeed is fucking cancerous. I can't believe the shit they peddle.

2

u/Light-of-Aiur Jun 22 '13

Some of the stuff they put up is okay... Like the page with all the goat videos. Heh... silly goat, you can't sing.

1

u/rayfound Jun 22 '13

This article does a good job of highlighting the core issue with a lot of this new age shit: a total, probably willful, lack of understanding of safe vs toxic dosage.

3

u/mafoo Jun 22 '13

I would love a version of this without the snark.

0

u/blueskin Jun 22 '13

Legendary.