Is Everything Unhealthy?

Is Everything Unhealthy? In a sense, yes. Everything we do has a risk.

Over many years as a physician, I have been asked this question hundreds of times. Few patients ask if smoking is unhealthy because everyone knows smoking cigarettes carries substantial risks of cancer, heart disease, and stroke. What about electronic cigarettes and oral nicotine pouches, such as Zyn? Any form of nicotine can cause headaches, nausea, anxiety, and a rapid heart rate, but it is the tobacco, especially burning tobacco, that causes the greatest harm. Some people, even most physicians, believe that the main harm of cigarettes is in the nicotine. Not true. 

The biggest risk is tobacco, which contains chemicals far more dangerous than nicotine. I tell people that for their health, avoiding all tobacco and nicotine is the best, but if they can’t give up nicotine, do it with the least risk, which would be oral nicotine pouches. However, it’s up to them to decide if the benefits of smoking outweigh the negatives to their health. Who am I to say?

Why do government groups and politicians regulate certain foods and products and not others? I don’t know of any product, food or otherwise, that doesn’t have a risk. We have all seen warning labels on cigarette boxes. Fine, cigarettes kill millions. There are age limits to e-cigarettes and chewing tobacco. Chewing tobacco causes cancer, but the risks of e-cigarettes are small.

If e-cigarettes have warning labels, why aren’t there warning labels on Coke and Mountain Dew? It’s well-known that drinking sugar-sweetened beverages increases the chance of obesity—people who drink a soda a day gain an average of a quarter of a pound per year. Politicians say that oral nicotine pouches and vaping may lead to cigarette use. Maybe. But we know sodas lead to diabetes, and yet there is no restriction on selling sodas to minors.

Oral nicotine pouches have not been shown to cause serious harm, yet they have warning labels and can’t be sold to minors. The labels say that nicotine is addictive and scientists say nicotine can affect brain development in adolescents. Caffeine also is addictive and affects brain development in adolescents. Why are there no regulations on energy drinks and caffeine when the harms are well known? One-third of teens use energy drinks, which cause significant neurological and behavioral problems. Why aren’t they banned or even regulated?

Alcohol ads are everywhere, and 140,000 Americans die from alcohol yearly. Should kids be exposed to that? Should parents be allowed to drink in front of their kids? Juul was punished for marketing e-cigs to minors and not proving that their products are safe. So what? Beer commercials during football games are marketing to minors. What about Coke and other soda companies? Why aren’t they punished? Maybe cookie ads should be banned.

I’ve pointed out large inconsistencies in regulations, but that isn’t the point. Everyone knows the government and its rules are inconsistent.

So, is everything unhealthy?

It depends how you define unhealthy. Virtually everything has a risk. Over 40,000 Americans die in a year in motor vehicle accidents; grapes are a leading cause of choking in small children; and hundreds of people die in bicycle accidents a year. Exercise can lead to injuries; you can slip and fall in church; you can catch a cold visiting your grandkids and die from pneumonia.

It is up to each of us to live our lives. I take the risk of driving a car and riding a bike because I believe the benefits outweigh the risks. I don’t ride a motorcycle or ski. I would rather my son use Zyn once in a while than drink two Mountain Dews with sugar every day. Everything has a risk.And we all have different ideas of which risks are worth it. 

Animals in the wild assess their risks all the time. Should they drink water from a pond when there are predators lurking? How is that different from eating a food that may cause heart disease? Yes, everything has a risk. The government picks and chooses what they feel is too much of a risk for us. They make us wear seatbelts, yet we can ride motorcycles. We can drink soda at 12 but not use nicotine at 20. Just remember, everything we do has upsides and downsides.

Decide for yourself.