An overwhelming majority of what we eat is made from plants and animals. This means that composition of our almost entire food is chemicals from the realm of organic chemistry (carbon-based large molecules). Water and salt are two prominent examples of non-organic foodstuffs - which come from the realm of inorganic chemistry. Beside some medicines is there any more non-organic foods? Can we eat rocks, salts, metals, oxides… and I just don’t know that?

  • fiat_lux@kbin.social
    22·
    1 year ago

    Can we eat rocks, salts, metals, oxides… and I just don’t know that?

    You’ll die without Iron, Calcium, Potassium, Magnesium, Zinc etc. in your diet. Your body relies on a lot of metals and salts to function.

    You can see an example of a food’s breakdown here to see all the metals and salts involved in foods: Nutrition data for rice (make sure you scroll to the “Detailed Nutrition Data” section and expand the categories like “Minerals”)

    Fun fact, calcium supplements are Calcium Carbonate (CaCO3) - literally chalk. But for metals which are deliberately added to food, check out the Lucky Iron Fish developed to address anaemia in Cambodia.

    • pjhenry1216@kbin.social
      31·
      1 year ago

      I mean… it seemed like a good idea and all, but it didn’t help Cambodia. It’s like only a couple paragraphs down in your link. It only addresses iron-deficiency based anemia which was not the main cause of anemia in Cambodia.

      • fiat_lux@kbin.social
        5·
        1 year ago

        Sure, but it still works for actual iron deficiencies, even if that wasn’t the anaemia cause Cambodians were dealing with.

        I’m actually considering buying one for myself, I mostly eat vegetarian foods.

    • NumbersCanBeFun@kbin.social
      2·
      1 year ago

      The lucky iron fish is such a simple solution I was a bit shocked it was only invented in 2008. It really goes to show you that we really haven’t thought of everything yet and there is a lot left to contribute to knowledge and science.

      • fiat_lux@kbin.social
        1·
        1 year ago

        I know, right? I was blown away by the same when I learnt about it. Medical science is so young though, we haven’t really had much of an understanding about the chemistry of our bodies until this past century. God knows what ailments I’ve got that someone in 100 years will be all like “just dip this rock in your lunch, it’s that easy to cure”.