Dr. Carolyn Dean Live

Summer may bring increased exposure to more than just the sun. Summer gives us longer days, BBQs, pool parties, campfires, more alcohol, and sweet beverages, road trips with the car windows and top-down, and home improvements. Harmless as they seem, these factors and more increase our exposure to multiple environmental toxins. One particular toxin that affects millions in the population is acetaldehyde. Acetaldehyde belongs to the larger chemical family of aldehydes, which are pervasive environmental toxins. The human body possesses enzymes that convert it to a less-harmful substance and therefore is protected from small exposures. However, acetaldehyde at toxic levels can make its way into the brain from sources such as alcohol consumption, breathing air contaminated with acetaldehyde from cigarette and other smoke, smog, vehicle and factory exhaust, synthetic fragrances and perhaps the most common of all, Candida sp. (yeast) overgrowth. Yes, for many women and their families, the exposure route to tox