Sort of money related. Tea -keep it or chuck it??

catsareniice1 · January 2015

I just learned that many teas have toxins if they're not labeled organic and can be very harmful. I have tons of tea!! I'm not sure if I should use them or chuck them in the garbage. WWYD? I cant return them.

CuriousKiddosMama · January 2015

Considering I just spend a good chunk of Christmas $ at the Teavanna annual sale, I would say keep it. I searched and read an article, and it doesn't say how much you have to drink, but I'm going to assume you would have to drink gallons of tea every day in order to develop any side effects from the toxins involved. Use what you have, and if it makes you feel better, buy organic in the future. I am surprised that an expensive brand like Teavanna made the list though, I'm glad you made me look this up. It's interesting!

Erikan73 · January 2015

I agree with PP, drink it. To be honest, there are toxins in so much that you can consume. Unless you only eat organic meat, fruits & vegetables & never eat processed foods & never eat out, at some point you will get some toxins into you system. Like PP as long as you aren't drinking gallons a day, I'm sure you'll be fine.

hoffse · January 2015

What kind of toxins are you talking about? Natural ones or pesticides?

If you're talking about natural toxins.... my viewpoint on these sorts of things is if it's something that people have been consuming for hundreds of years, I'm not going to allow one or two "studies" to change my eating habits. For me, tea would qualify. It's kind of like how eggs were awesome, and then they were going to kill you, and then we decided they were awesome again. The food industry has gone through the same thing with butter, coffee, chocolate, etc.

If you're talking about pesticides... take the "organic" labels with a grain of salt. Regulations for organic foods have been progressing, but it's still not great. In fact, I think most organic foods are allowed to have some amounts of hormones, pesticides, etc. and still qualify. Organic products certainly have less of all of this stuff than inorganic... but don't let the name fool you. The regulations just aren't there yet to guarantee clean eating when you buy organic.

All that said, if you aren't going to drink it then you might as well toss it. Or better yet, donate it to a food pantry. It's cold outside.

Xstatic3333 · January 2015

I would definitely not toss it. If you're worried about pesticides, I get that (I am too, and have the high grocery bills to prove it) but just throwing it away seems so wasteful, especially since tea is healthy in general. Maybe just bring it in to the office for people to use if they want?

strickland8052 · January 2015

I would still drink it. Like Hoffse said, I take organic labels with a grain of salt, especially if the product is imported from outside of the U.S. A lot of the agencies that certify organic are paid by the producers themselves, which is such a conflict of interest. There are so many toxins out there that I just kinda give up. As long as I'm eating somewhat healthy and not microwaving Styrofoam, I consider the day a success.

However, if you feel uneasy about drinking the tea and this new knowledge prevents your from enjoying it, maybe you should just donate it (or maybe find some alternate use for it... craft? bath? stick a bag in a drawer to make clothes smell good? Idk?)

Wulfgar · January 2015

There is a movement in the food system that anything that isn't organic is bad and dangerous for you. Considering that people have been eating these foods for thousands of years putting all kinds of things on them to help them grow, protect them from bugs, etc I take the scare mongers with a grain of salt.

I just read in the newspaper that the people in charge of the suggesting what we eat are now going on a green kick and will be removing most meats from their suggestion of what a healthy diet consists of. A lot of people are against the Government telling people what to eat based on feelings versus actual scientific research.

I also have lived long enough to see that at one time in the past 40 years almost every type of food was considered bad for you then good for you.

Xstatic3333 · January 2015

Wulfgar said:
There is a movement in the food system that anything that isn't organic is bad and dangerous for you. Considering that people have been eating these foods for thousands of years putting all kinds of things on them to help them grow, protect them from bugs, etc I take the scare mongers with a grain of salt.

I just read in the newspaper that the people in charge of the suggesting what we eat are now going on a green kick and will be removing most meats from their suggestion of what a healthy diet consists of. A lot of people are against the Government telling people what to eat based on feelings versus actual scientific research.

I also have lived long enough to see that at one time in the past 40 years almost every type of food was considered bad for you then good for you.

Although I agree with this to a point, there is some actual science about reducing (not eliminating) meat consumption for human health.

Unrelated, the specific pesticide that I worry about (glyphosate, aka Roundup) has only been around since the 1970s and is banned in the EU. It's impossible to avoid completely, as even organics show traces of it and I eat plenty of restaurant food, etc. of unknown origin. I just try to minimize my personal consumption. It doesn't directly harm people, but MAY harm the bacteria in our digestive systems and is also not good for bees. There's a lot still unknown.

I do agree that I don't want the government telling me what to eat. Way too many special interests affecting that. It's important to do your own research.

catsareniice1 · January 2015

Thanks everyone! I will probably use what I have then only buy organic going forward.

Sort of money related. Tea -keep it or chuck it??

Re: Sort of money related. Tea -keep it or chuck it??

Choose Another Board

Search Boards