Are natural products really natural?

1. Everything is composed of chemicals--if it's "chemical free" it's nothing but empty space
2. All food plants are toxic to some degree--they have to be or consumers would eat them off the planet
3. 'Organic' varieties are generally significantly more toxic than conventionally grown produce for the simple reason they are selected for "natural resistance" to bug attack, i.e., they produce more toxic compounds to deter insects from eating them
4. 'Organic' produce doesn't mean 'without applied pesticides'--in fact organic producers use heavy metals like copper sulfate instead of modern biodegradable, low-toxicity pesticides
5. 'Natural' ain't benign--small pox is natural, so is arsenic, syphilis and cyanide
6. Promoters of 'natural' and 'organic' products are simply exploiting fear and ignorance to rip off consumers--it is a scam

Natural product retailers racked up $36 billion in sales in 2010, according to a survey conducted by Natural Foods Merchandiser. But is it possible to know if a product is made with natural ingredients just by reading the label? "There are very few guidelines when it comes to labeling and natural products," said Caroline Freedman, founder of NurturMe Organic Baby Food. "If something is 'all natural' or says it's 'non-GMO' [genetically modified organisms] or even 'gluten free' — there is no government standard certification to prove this." Freedman said that while there is no governing body in place for products that claim to be "all natural," there are now organizations that have taken steps to certify glutens and GMOs. "Organic certification is monitored, but there's nothing to hold companies accountable for all these other natural claims that you will see on the labels,” she said. “We know this is something our customers are very concerned about.”

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