Re: Arsenic in chicken, phytoestrogens in food

[Guest guest]

If you've got the time to do some research, look up

diethylstilbestrol and chickens - that was the previous estrogen-

imitator given to livestock to make them gain weight faster.

Sometimes it's just called stilbestrol, and it's the source of all

the problems the " DES daughters " had, because their mothers took it

when pregnant; but it was also widely used in the meat industry to

make the animals get to market weight faster and farmers had

problems because of exposure to it as well as some who just ate the

meats. I saw a really interesting documentary about it once, but

don't remember the name.

--- In , " " <oz4caster@...>

wrote:

>

> I was googling on the internet today to research whether there

might

> be substantial phytoestrogens in soy fed chicken and eggs. So

far, I

> haven't found any articles that report on any such measurements.

> (but I haven't read all of the " about 57,900 " search results

>

> However, I did run across a couple of interesting articles:

> Arsenic in Chicken

> by Greger, M.D.

> http://www.drgreger.org/february2004.html

> " After reviewing 5000 chicken samples, researchers from the

National

> Institutes of Health and the USDA's Food Safety Inspection Service

> recently reported alarmingly high levels of arsenic contamination

in

> the flesh of broiler chickens.[1] These government researchers

found

> that the amount of arsenic in chicken greatly exceeded the

> Environmental Protection Agency's new upper safety limit of arsenic

> allowed in drinking water. In fact, the amount of arsenic found in

> chicken was 6 to 9 times that allowed by the EPA. A " bucket " of

> Kentucky Fried Chicken would be expected to have up to almost fifty

> times the amount of arsenic allowed in a glass of water.[2] How

did

> the arsenic get into the chickens? The poultry industry fed it to

> them. Most broiler chickens (which constitute 99% of the chicken

meat

> that people eat) are fed arsenic in the United States[3,4] Although

> fish and shellfish also present significant dietary sources of

> arsenic,[6] according to the Food and Drug Administration arsenic

> compounds are extensively added to the feed of animals--

particularly

> chickens and pigs--to make them grow faster.[5] The animals

Americans

> eat are so heavily infested with internal parasites that adding

> arsenic to the feed can result in a " stunning " increase in growth

> rates.[7] " (see link above for more, including PCB's in farmed

fish)

>

> And:

> Arsenic In Poultry Meat And Eggs

> by dr. aajonus vonderplanitz, ph.d. nutrition

> http://www.wewant2live.com/site/811618/page/822785

> " Arsenic contaminates many of your favorite foods, including rice

and

> chicken, intentionally. In this article, we focus on chicken meat

and

> eggs. For many decades, chicken farmers have been feeding chickens

> arsenic to hasten and increase growth and conceal symptoms of

disease

> at youthful stages of chicken development. Of the 8.7 billion

American

> broiler chickens produced each year, at least 70 percent have been

fed

> arsenic. Some of that arsenic remains in chicken meat; the

following

> chart shows how much by brand and cut. "

> (see link above for chart and remainder of article - the chart

appears

> to be USDA data but is not credited)

>

> I guess the moral is - raise your own chicken or find out more

about

> the source of the chicken you buy. (easier said than done

>

> Also:

> Chemicals, Food, Herbs that are Estrogenic

> http://www.annieappleseedproject.org/chemfoodhert.html

> " Phytoestrogens, Naturally Occurring Plant Estrogens Plants produce

> chemicals that mimic estrogen, and block progesterone. In general,

it

> is thought that they tend to wash out of the body within several

days

> in contrast to months or decades that the xenoestrogens take to be

> excreted. Whole grains, fruits, seeds, beans and herbs all are

know to

> have estrogen and/or progesterone activity. In general, any food

that

> has been eaten by a culture or people group for centuries is

probably

> all right to eat if the people group in question is relatively free

> from these estrogen related diseases. When referring to

> phytoestrogens, it is generally thought that a " weak " estrogen may

> actually be protective against cancer causing xenoestrogens. The

best

> example, is Lilian PhD's work that showed that oral ground

> flax seed reduced breast cancer size to one half between the time

of

> diagnosis and surgery. A strong phytoestrogen may actually make the

> disease worse. Again the list that follows is incomplete because of

> the lack of research money and interest:

> Coffee is a known phytoestrogen. Coffee is commonly known to make

> fibrocystic breast disease worse. It is not thought to be the

> caffeine, but coffee itself mimics estrogen strongly. Thus,

> decaffinated coffee still may be estrogenic. "

> (see link above for remainder of list and article, including

Clover,

> Red Clover tea, Alfalfa Sprouts, Sunflower Seeds, Queen Anne's

lace,

> Pomegranate, Fennel, Licorice, Red Clover, Yucca, Hops (Beer),

> Motherwort, Bloodroot, Ocotillo, Mandrake, Oregano, Damiana,

> Pennyroyal, Verbenna, Nutmeg, Tumeric, Yucca, Thyme, Calamus rt.,

Red

> Clover, Goldenseal, Licorice, Mistletoe, Cumin, Fennel, Camomille,

and

> Cloves)

>

> This is the first time I have heard anyone refer to coffee as a

> phytoestrogen - so I'm not sure I believe it. But since I quit

> routine coffee back in February I should be good to go

>

> If anyone has found any articles on whether phytoestrogens from soy

> feed get into chicken meat and eggs please post. I searched the NN

> archives and <slethnobotanist@> said:

> /message/68318

> " If soy fed chicken is to be avoided, it is most likely because the

> soy is gmo. I read an article a couple years back where Enig

> seemed to be saying that chickens are one animal that can be fed

soy

> and its still okay for humans. "

>

> But I found no references to any actual measurements.

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

According to www.jcrow.com, iodine can affect the breakdown of

estrogen to make it into harmless compounds instead of the more toxic

forms. Iodine use is also associated with resolution of fibrocystic

breast problems, maybe because of the estrogen thing. I think it also

enhanced fertility in farm animals.

--- In , " Emma Davies " <emma@...>

wrote:

>> Wow. I have a friend who has fibrocystic breast disease. I knew

about

> the coffee connection, but I didn't know about a coffee/phytoestrogen

> connection. It makes sense if it's true, and it does look that way

> when you google it.

>

> Might also explain a little more about falling sperm counts!

>