Just How Many Chemicals ARE Acceptable? Creator Of The Documentary “Unacceptable Levels” – Ed Brown
A wishsummit.com interview
So, sodium hexametaphosphate, methol cellulose, magnesium stearate, propolyne glycol, potassium sorbate? Besides being nearly unpronounceable, the one commonality between these chemicals is that they are all on a US government approved list known as GRAS or G.R.A.S. – which stands for Generally Recognized As Safe. The use of any amount of these or other GRAS products in our food, water, and products is considered acceptable. Thousands of other chemicals including those with known hazards are also allowed to be used as long as the amount in a single serving or use does not exceed a predetermined acceptable level.
Well, what would happen if someone questioned these acceptable levels? Could one young father, on a personal mission, shed enough light on our stagnated regulatory system to rescue our chemically overburdened bodies from what seems like an inevitable fate?
Well today I am speaking with Ed Brown, the director of a new documentary film called “Unacceptable Levels”. This film examines the result of the chemical revolution of the 1940’s through the eyes of a father seeking to understand the world in which he and his wife are raising their children. To create this debut documentary one man and his camera traveled extensively to find and interview top minds in the fields of science, advocacy and law. Weaving their testimonies into a compelling narrative, Mr. Brown presents us with the story of how the chemical revolution brought us to where we are, and where, if we are not vigilant, it may take us.
Some key points from this interview:
- When you look around in your house today, what we’re seeing is probably 70 years of progress as far as chemical introduction has brought us…..just about everything we use today is only possible because of chemicals
- 60,00 chemicals were introduced between the 40’s and the 70’s
- Where we’re at today, is that most people aren’t thinking about our bodies as they are just as polluted today, if not more than back in the 50’s and 60’s
- We’re in a difficult situation, where every single human being alive on this planet is polluted with toxic chemicals
Listen to the call with Ed right here:
RIGHT-CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THIS CALL.
Ed Brown grew up in the small town of Altoona, PA. Ed graduated in 1994 from Altoona Area High School, and went on to study Electronic Media/Journalism and Applied Speech Communications at Shippensburg University, located in Shippensburg, PA. Ed had been one of the top students in his class prior to graduating as a double major and he graduated in 1998. Ed moved to New York City where his his first job was as a server and bartender at The Olive Garden in Times Square. At the same time, through a stroke of luck, a chance meeting led him to start work as a game-time “logger” at CBS Sports, where he worked his way up to becoming the Lead Highlight Writer for The NFL Today and NCAA College Football and Basketball. At the same time, he began working at a top flight (at that time) internet company called Sudden Industries, where he learned to produce videos. Eventually, Ed moved back to Shippensburg to start working on films. He mostly created small, independant comedy films. However, it was this experience that had taught Ed how to do every single aspect of film production, and he learned how to respect the craft and the people around it. So, while waiting tables, Ed had gotten a lot of ideas, but one in particular had stuck in his head. While waiting for work to begin one afternoon, Ed had been drinking a glass of water and wondered why it smelled like chemicals, chlorine in particular. He knew that they used it to kill bacteria in water, but why so much of it. You’re not supposed to drink pool water, but why would this be okay with everyone, was his thought. After doing some research, he kept coming across the same set of words associated with chemicals… They all had “acceptable levels” of dangerous chemicals. Ed began to wonder just how ‘acceptable these levels really were. Ed met his wife Lauren at the same restaurant, called “Rillo’s Restaurant” located in Carlisle, PA. Lauren had gotten pregnant relatively early into their relationship, and almost as quickly as they found out she was pregnant she had a miscarriage. It was difficult, but she had gotten pregnant again only a short time after, and their son Brayden had been born the next year. Almost one year after their son had been born, they tried to have another child. However, Lauren had a second miscarriage that required surgery, and it was enough to cause everyone to take inventory over what had happened. Ed and Lauren started looking more closely at what was going into their bodies, and that’s when Ed decided to spend money that they didn’t have on a HD camera, and he put his skills to work. From setting up interviews, to producing, to obtaining financing, to editing, to writing… You name it. Ed did everything on this film, and that’s how this compelling documentary “Unacceptable Levels” came to be.