Death by Shower

As if life weren't already stressful enough, I just learned that every time I shower or bathe I expose myself to dangerous toxins that are building up in my organs and slowly killing me. Great! Now, while I'm soaking my tired body, enjoying the hot water swirling around me and inhaling the fragrant aroma of my cinnamon/clove bath oil while trying to escape the daily grind through Madame Bovary, I will be picturing these evil toxins working their way through my skin, into my blood stream and internal organs. That's certainly going to add to my relaxation-NOT!

These claims come from Mercola.com. This is one of those sites I often use as a starting point for health-related articles. I don't consider the site a legitimate medical resource, since they also sell products to counteract or prevent said health issues. However, their articles are usually backed up with study statistics that can be researched, and the site has inspired me with interesting article ideas many times.

To make a long story short, the article points out that few consumers have no qualms about bathing themselves in tap water that they wouldn't drink, or even wash their vegetables in. Apparently heated water releases known carcinogens (including chlorine, chloroform, trichlorethylene, and hydrogen sulfide) as vaporous gasses which are absorbed into our skin. We also inhale these vapors, which is reportedly 100 times worse for us than skin exposure.

If the toxins in my bath water don't do me in, my household goods will. The plastic food storage containers are in cahoots with the vinyl-backed rugs. The food I buy is also out to get me. E. coli is waiting just around the corner, and his buddy Salmonella is right behind him. It's only a matter of time before some mutant virus starts eating my flesh. I think I'll go live in a cave, hunt and forage my own food, and weave my own rugs with non-toxic dyes and fibers.

But before I go, let's put this into perspective: Every day we're warned of some new toxic danger that we must avoid, but we can be in the best of health and get hit by a bus while crossing the street, A former employer of mine was a health nut; he ate a vegetarian diet, jogged regularly, and didn't smoke. At the age of 39 he required a triple bypass. Go figure.

I haven't done further research on this topic yet, but I doubt it would make any difference in my bathing habits. What good does it do to limit our enjoyment of life by obsessing about every potential health risk? So I am going to continue to enjoy my showers and baths as often as I want, and if I live to be 95 instead of 100, so be it. Perhaps I should just try to hold my breath during my ablutions. If you don't hear from me again, I've probably drowned.