I had to read it twice. Since when is triclosan, an antibacterial that’s been linked to a host of environmental and health problems, turning up in toothpaste? I was even more aghast when I saw that the Academy of General Dentistry today released a press announcement saying that it supports the use of triclosan in toothpaste. That a recent study found that toothpaste with triclosan is better than regular toothpaste at killing bacteria found in the mouth. That must be a mistake, right? Give me a break. What about last week’s news out of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that recent studies raise “valid concerns” about the safety of triclosan? (Scariest part of all this: triclosan is in so many products that it is found in our urine. Three out of four of us are peeing triclosan on a daily basis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.)

I wrote a whole missive about triclosan back in September. About how the EPA classifies it as a pesticide! About how it’s creating antibiotic resistant bacteria. About how it never breaks down — even after going through a sewage treatment plant. (And after re-reading that post I realized that yes, I did know that it was in toothpaste. I guess it just never registered.) Wow. Sigh. Wow. That really sucks. How can manufacturers do that to us? We’re putting a pesticide, a dangerous-to-the-earth chemical in our mouths. It makes me sad.

I went to CVS last night. Believe it or not I needed toothpaste. I looked around. I read the back of tubes and boxes. I didn’t see anything mainstream that didn’t have any chemicals. (The kids use Toms of Maine. I usually do, too, but I didn’t have time to go to Trader Joe’s last night.) So I bought a lesser-of-all-evils brand — Colgate actually has an option that only scores a 3 out of 10 on the EWG’s Skin Deep database. I’ll buy my usual brand the next time I get to TJs or Whole Foods. And in the meantime: Shame on you, traditional manufacturers. Isn’t it about time you started doing more for our environment? And our bodies?

What’s in your toothpaste? Do you know? How about your contact lens solution, your moisturizer? Your lipstick? Maybe it’s time you found out? And as for the Academy of General Dentistry: I’ve got an email out to the organization. I want to hear their reasoning behind their silly suggestion.

His proof: a report by the Centers of Disease Control and prevention that says three-quarters of health care spending is on diseases and conditions that are preventable. Three-quarters. We’re fatter, we eat crappy food, and we don’t take care of ourselves, so we get sick. And the majority of the insurance companies and medical professionals don’t care. Big pharma, who creates medicines to cure things like diabetes and asthma certainly doesn’t. Insurance companies, Pollan points out, can just purge those who get sick, and don’t have to accept those who already are. Doctors love it. They get to see you, prescribe medicine, and charge the insurance companies for tests you probably didn’t need anyway.

Once health care reform goes through, however, and insurance companies have to pay for all those sick people, something will change. They will pay for people to take care of themselves. More importantly, they will go after the food manufacturers who are helping to make everyone sick in the first place.

My maternal grandmother died of pancreatic cancer. It was swift and evil and sad. While no one has figured out what causes pancreatic cancer, my mom will tell you that it was the tiny saccharine tablets she poured into her coffee every morning. Maybe it was. Or maybe it was just all the food additives, preservatives, and garbage that she — like all of us –was eating on a daily basis.

I don’t eat food dyes anymore; I try and avoid preservatives and chemicals in my food. To keep chemical-free I have to read a lot of labels, and avoid some of my favorite pre-packaged foods. If Pollan is correct, though, in a few years I won’t have to spend so much time policing my food because the insurance companies are going to do my job for me. They are going to start lobbying to get all the garbage out of our food supply. It’s just sad that it won’t happen until someone threatens their bottom line.