Modern medicine is dependent on petrochemicals, on the oil industry. Around 99% of pharmaceuticals are derived from petrochemicals. Many contain petrochemical derivatives. For example, PFAS in eye drops.
JD Rockerfeller monopolised the oil industry which he used to shape the world. He commissioned The Flexner Report whose author had no medical background. It was used to paint natural medical practises as quackery in order to develop a centralised medical system, a monopoly reliant on petrochemicals and synthetic chemicals. This enabled enormous profits and power for the oil and synthetic chemical industries.
The NHS spent £17.2bn on prescription medicines in 2022. According to this London School of Economics report, the amount we increasingly spend on pharmaceuticals is feeding corporate profits rather than improving health.
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"Chemical Farming and the Loss of Human Health"
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Toxic, synthetic chemicals pollute the environment and harm our health. The corporations which produce these harmful chemicals profit from an oppressive system of disease which is driving ecological collapse.
For example: Glyphosate (aka Roundup, which is banned in many other countries), an antibiotic commonly used as a pesticide, destroys a vital part of healthy soil. When it is ingested, it hinders our bodies’ development of essential amino acids. Increased global use of Glyphosate is correlated with an increase in diseases such as Parkinson’s, Alzeimer’s, auto-immune diseases, and Autism.
[See the excellent accompanying video for further info]
Our food system / planet is controlled by a few extremely wealthy, powerful corporations and their allies. This is the basis of gross economic inequality, the key driver of social / environmental / economic crisis, including war.
It’s beneficial in so many ways to avoid toxic, plastic-wrapped food and synthetic medications sold to us by corporations which seem to care more for profit and power than our collective health and well-being!
“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food”
- Hippocrates, Greek philosopher & physician - c.400 BC
Nature provides what is needed for good health. We’ve used plants as medicine for thousands of years before the advent of synthetic chemicals.
Nature’s Pharmacy’s herbs and flowers have various health benefits. It is organic / natural, no synthetic chemicals are used.
For example:
- Echinacea for cold and flu.
- Mint for indigestion and stomach ache.
- Sage for coughs and sore throat.
- Lavender as an antiseptic which is also used to calm.
- Thyme as a mouth wash used for gum disease.
- Oregano as a mosquito repellant, also used for asthma.
Please help yourself, enjoy, share, spread the word.
To our good health!
As with any projects that we do, a great deal of consideration goes into finding plastic-free, environmentally friendly options. It can be difficult and is sometimes not possible to find plastic-free options. There is a great deal of work that needs to be done to remove plastics from supply chains and to institute systems to reuse plastic.
Here are some of the considerations and concessions we made:
Acrylic paint is commonly used by artists. It's durable and can be used outside. However it can have many detrimental health impacts. Gouache is considered to be environmentally friendly and can now be sourced in aluminium tubes, which means that they can be easily recycled. However, it is water soluble so would need a sealant to protect both it and the wood. I could find no good options. Linseed paint ticks all the boxes but was sadly deemed too expensive. Making it would reduce the cost but is dangerous as linseed oil is exothermic when it evaporates making it highly flammable. So acrylic paint was used. I could only find it in the chain The Works in town, whose staff were most helpful. The packs of paint they sell come with further plastic packaging and a plastic pallet.
We support local independents and charities where possible because we recognise the value in doing so; it's beneficial for the local economy, our well-being, and the environment. We bought plants from Toomers and Twigs. Both of these provided plastic pots which are not reused. Possible solutions could be a return scheme for plastic pots or a ban on them. Both solutions would be problematic for plants not grown locally.
It seems to me, as much of modern life does, nuts that soil / compost is dug up from one place, put in a plastic bag and transported to a garden centre, then sold and transported again. So I went down to the canal 5 minutes walk away and dug up some soil from there for the plant pot which now contains mint. It was interesting experience because I found loads of plastic bottle top lids, an exposed needle (!), and other assorted plastic crap. I had to literally sieve through it. This is the toxic legacy of our continued plastic use!
Could we have done better? If so, please let us know.
Strong, effective legislation would help us reduce such single-use plastics / other synthetic chemicals. As that has not been forthcoming from successive governments, it continues to be our collective responsibility in what we chose to support. Do we buy the cheap, easy plastic options or try to do better? The latter encourages businesses to be more ethical, reduces our environmental footprints, and might eventually help us secure the protective legislation we so urgently need.
Thank you to everyone who has contributed to this project:
Caeris Clarke, Linda Kasmaty and South Swindon Parish Council, Diana Toogood, Titch and Phil from the Swindon Hub's Friday art group (12-2pm), Ruth Sumner, Karyse Day, Lucas Browne, Toni Osborne, Vince Ayris and his assistant Luke, Russian Peter (?), Anne Sutherland, Beth Bowden, Toomers, Twigs, and The Works. I hope I haven't missed anyone!
