Natural or Man-made Chemicals? Adapted from a presentation by Penny Le Couteur, The Fraser Institute, Vancouver, Canada

“All substances are poisonous, there is none which is not a poison; the right dose differentiates a poison from a remedy.” Paracelsus circa 1538

The great myth “Natural is good; man-made is bad”

It may be natural but you’ll be just as dead!

The seven most deadly chemical compounds LD 50 / mg/kg Botulinum toxin A3 x Tetanus toxin A5 x Diphtheria toxin3 x Dioxin *3 x Muscarine2 x Bufotoxin4 x Sarin *4 x LD 50 = The lethal dose of a compound for 50% of animals exposed * Synthetic

Viktor Yushchenko President of the Ukraine July 2004 December 2004

Muscarine - from mushrooms

Bufotoxin – from the common toad