A November 22, 2005 article by Mike Schwartz from the Press-Enterprise quotes ACSH's Holiday Dinner Menu and Nutrition Director Dr. Ruth Kava:
"A few are known human carcinogens...arsenic is one," said Ruth Kava, director of nutrition for the American Council on Science and Health in New York, which publishes a Holiday Dinner Menu highlighting natural poisons and cancer-causing agents lurking within...
Kava, a registered dietician with a Ph.D. in nutrition, says these chemicals are naturally present in only trace quantities.
What's more, they have proven carcinogenic mainly to rodents if ingested in massive amounts. And even known human toxins or carcinogens may not be harmful at very low doses, she said.
"The ACSH puts out the Holiday Dinner Menu to make the point that the mere presence of a supposed cancer-causing agent -- whether natural or synthetic -- doesn't necessarily make that food dangerous," Kava said.
All chemicals -- even table salt -- are potentially toxic at high-enough doses but perfectly safe in trace amounts, Kava said. "The dose makes the poison"...
The real danger, said Kava, is still "too much of a good thing."
Another real holiday risk, said Kava, is food poisoning. Major food preparation mistakes include splashing or dripping juices from raw turkey on other foods...
