Fatal Conveniences: Book Review
To put it simply, this book changed my life. It revolutionized my approach to health and how I navigate consumer culture. In my quest for the best way to live and the products that support it, this book became my guide. It taught me how to assess everyday items, understand what better options we need, and, most importantly, how to find them.
You might recognize Daren Olien from the Netflix series "Down to Earth," which he co-hosts with Zac Efron. Olien has dedicated his life to exploring superfoods and the keys to health. In his book, he reveals our society’s “fatal conveniences”—those everyday items we think are safe but are actually toxic. From deodorant and makeup to tea bags and cell phones, these products are more harmful than we realize, contributing to serious health problems like endocrine and autoimmune disorders, obesity, and cancers.
A Highlight:
Olien doesn't just point out problems; he offers practical advice to help us take control of our health. One standout lesson? The hidden dangers in tap water. Coming from Washington State, I always thought our tap water was pure. But Olien explains it’s often full of harmful substances such as Atrazine, a weedkiller that disrupts hormones. The government’s regulation of these toxins is deeply political, and agrochemical companies like Syngenta, which produces Atrazine, have a strong influence.
Tyrone Hayes, a biologist at the University of California, Berkeley, was hired by Syngenta to conduct studies on atrazine and found it to impede on the sexual development of frogs. After voicing this to the company, they didn’t see eye to eye and he left to conduct his own research on the chemical at Berkeley. Eventually, he found that even low levels of exposure (30 times less than what the E.P.A. permits in our tap water) caused male frogs to develop ovaries or deformed testes. He went on to find that the chemical was responsible for some birth defects and a host of other hormone-related issues.
Imagine what effects exposure to this contaminant in combination with the host of toxins in our drinking water might have on our hormones after being ingested every day. Drinking water from a plastic bottle may not be much better as these contain billions of microplastics and are often stripped of electrolytes.
Olien recommends a few alternative options, one being using a reverse osmosis water filter and adding trace minerals or Celtic salt with lemon. While we can't be perfect all the time, it's important to stay informed and decide what we think is worth investing in.
Daren Olien Podcast Clip on Tap Water
The Bottom Line:
Olien presents compelling evidence that challenges our everyday assumptions about convenience. But beyond merely pointing out the problems, Olien empowers readers with advice to reclaim control over their lives and health. Here are three main takeaways I had from the book:
Small Choices Add Up
We often underestimate the cumulative impact of our daily habits. That extra plastic water bottle, the chemical-laden cleaning spray, or the processed snack—all of these seemingly minor choices add up. Olien’s book reminds us that being mindful of what we use and consume matters for both the environment and our bodies.
Slow Down
In our fast-paced world, slowing down seems counterintuitive and occasionally outright inconvenient. Yet, Olien argues that taking the time to make conscious choices pays off in more ways than you think. Consider the chain reaction of benefits when growing our own tomatoes for example. First, we have a reason to get outside, touch dirt, and connect with nature. We are nurturing something and watching it grow. This is not only satisfying and borderline spiritual, but it also has been proven to benefit our nervous system and mental well-being. Additionally, we might begin to pay attention to the seasonality of produce and how it tastes better when eaten in alignment with nature’s rhythms. Have you ever bitten into a tasteless strawberry? Perhaps it was a product of off-season farming, laden with pesticides. Contrast that with an organically grown strawberry at its peak—soft and sweet, nature’s candy. With an appreciation for the time it takes to harvest and the brief availability window, maybe we savor our tomatoes more. We might eat slower and more consciously which benefits our digestive system. Also, the more we all grow small amounts of produce independently, the less pressure on our agriculture system to use harmful pesticides to mass produce crops. Increasing the variety of plants in our soil also increases its nutrient density. The list goes on.
Be Your Own Advocate
The truth is, here in the US, neither the government nor big corporations are prioritizing our well-being. We must advocate for ourselves and recognize that we don’t need most of the chemical concoctions sold to us. Consider that we’ve evolved beautifully as humans without vanilla cupcake deodorant and parmesan cheese-its. —Use a non-toxic deodorant, rub lemon in there, or even try a pink Himalayan salt rock. Make homemade cheese crackers if you’re able, they’re amazing and take little time.
When we are purchasing products, we shouldn’t blindly trust labels that claim to be “healthy” or “natural.” Instead, we need to read ingredients, make informed choices, and vote with our dollar whenever we can. At the end of the day, if it doesn’t come directly from the Earth, proceed with caution, because while our bodies are resilient, we aren’t made to break down artificial substances and neither is the planet.