Toxins in your food (to scare you away!)

I am here to scare you…
So here are some possible toxins hidden in your food.

MERCURY
It is highly mobile and reactive. It is known to attack cellular proteins, toxic to the nervous system. It stays in the body for a long time, especially if it manages to get to the brain. It is important for everyone to watch for this metal but especially for pregnant women and children.
Most of our exposure to mercury comes from our diet, thorough affected fish. avoid top of the chain predators and ones from lakes.

DIOXIN
Like mercury dioxin doesn't break down, but instead it bioaccumulates through the food chain. It can cause cancer, endometriosis, diabetes, immune disorders, altered blood lipids leading to cardiovascular diseases, leaning disorders, and impaired male reproductive function.
A wide array of foods have trace levels of dioxin, But its deposits are greatest in the fatty tissues of animals

PCBS
It is part of the dioxin family. Dioxin is generally more toxic than PCBS, but if you eat lots of fish the exposure to PCBs may be higher. It is associated with many health concerns, but the most worrisome effect is their ability to interfere with fatal brain development, likely due to their inhibition of the mother's thyroid gland.
Like dioxins PCBs is found in the fat of animals and move up the food chain.

PESTICIDES
-PERSISTENT
Dieldrin, DDT, chlordane, and toxaphane. These pesticides stay in the environment for so long. Even they have been banned a decade ago , they are still being detected in our food. These are highly toxic because they are carcinogens and endocrine disruptors.
-TODAY'S
Modern pesticides are less persistent than the banned pesticides but it lasts long enough to make it to our plates. Assuming these pesticides are tested  and are below their respective tolerances how can we know the effects from different pesticides combined? and of course we haven't been using these chemicals long enough to determine if they are safe in a long term.

DIETARY HORMONES
To get the animals to bulk up faster at a lower cost, growth enhancing hormones are fed to the animals like beef. Children are most sensitive to the hormone. It may explain more younger girls are maturing quicker, and it may increase the risk of hormone related cancers such as breast and ovarian cancers.

ARTIFICIAL COLOURINGS
Artificial colourings are used in many fresh (such as meat) and processed food to make them look fresher, attractive and better quality than it actually is. All of them used today have been approved by FDA but some sources have associated with cancers, genetic damages, allergic reactions and hyperactivity in children. It is worth noting than there are no regulatory limits on mow much can be used in food.

So the food contaminate are everywhere,  but you can still easily pick many foods that are low in contaminants.
-minimise the consumption of animal products, including eggs and dairy
-choose organic
-read labels to avoid additives and artificial colourings
-make food from scratch!