Hormesis. A scientific phenomenon that was discovered in 1888 by a scientist named Hugo Paul Friedrich Schulz, but was latter forgotten about.
Hormesis is a two-phased relationship in regards to doses of substances and the response to such substances, in which small doses are beneficial, but large doses are toxic.
And in recent decades, there has been an increase of support within the scientific community for hormesis. But are still those who are unfamiliar with hormesis or reject it.
Let’s examine some of the substances in regards to hormesis. First, there is radiation. Extreme doses of radiation can result in cancer. But smaller doses can be good for one’s health. It should also be noted that nuclear power plants emit low levels of radiation, far less than the radiation people receive daily from cosmic rays and earthborn radiation. In addition, radiation is everywhere, and it fades away and dies down (especially in the case of natural radiation).
One particular example of the benefits of radiation is a former mine in Boulder, Montana. A miner and his wife (who had bursitis) visited the mine, and after several visits her bursitis was gone. As a result, the mine was converted into a health spa, and those with chronic pain and autoimmune disorders visit it. Thus, the amount of radon (a gas emitted by radium) is beneficial, despite being 400 times greater than the EPA-recommended level (which shows how much the bureaucrats know).
Second, there is alcohol. Consuming alcoholic beverages (e.g. wine) at low levels is good for one’s health, such as decreasing the chances of having cardiovascular disease. But excessive drinking is bad (e.g. cirrhosis of the liver, alcoholism).
Then there is dioxin. Demonized as perhaps the most toxic chemical, it is actually a benign by-product of various chemicals, including Agent Orange (which, contrary to popular myth, did not have harmful effects on soldiers serving in Vietnam). In low doses, it can be a deterrent to cancer.
In 2004, someone put dioxin in the food that Ukrainian opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko was eating. Despite having a bad case of acne and having consumed an amount of dioxin six thousand times higher than the normal level, his internal organs were unaffected and thus he survived.
Despite this evidence, some people choose to ignore the concept of hormesis, particularly in the cases of accidents such as Chernobyl and Three Mile Island (despite the low amounts of radiation being emitted).
At any rate, the concept of hormesis should be made known not just throughout the scientific community, but to the general public. And in doing so, knowledge will prevail over fear.
