Safe Cutting Boards

Most cutting boards are made of 1 to 1.5 inches strips of wood glued together, including bamboo. Many of them use formaldehyde-based glues. Cutting anything on those boards results in cutting the boards a tiny bit each time. Each time, tiny particles of wood and glue are released into your food. Wood is relatively indigestible but glues and the polymers that harden them dissolve in our digestive tracts, enter our body's systems and poison us a little bit each time.

Ninety-five percent of all diseases are caused by gradually accumulating toxins until they cause enough damage, then symptoms of disease result. All glues are toxic even if they are glued with food-grade glues. "Food-grade glue" is a misnomer and fraud. here are no food-grade glues that are completely non-toxic. No one in their health-conscious mind would purposely add food-grade glue to meals.

Plastic cutting boards are made of many toxic compounds especially carcinogenic PCBs and dioxins. In the development of plastics, before plastics became useable as a household staple instead of metals and wood, plastics became moldy within 3-12 months. Plastics were then unstable.

Industry created many carcinogenic chemicals to prevent molds from permeating and destabilizing plastics, and introduced known carcinogenic compounds into plastic to prevent molds. Plastics have created more pollution per weight and volume than any other widely used product, polluting our air, water, land and food. Cutting anything on those boards releases those toxins into food and poisons our bodies.

Safe cutting boards would be boards made of one piece of hard wood. Such pre-made boards are available for grilling and flavoring while cooking. However, when used on raw food for cutting and preparing, they do not flavor food. It takes heating the wood to very high temperatures to release wood oils to flavor food. Such boards are usually no larger than 8 x 12 inches. The chain stores Sur la Table sell such grilling boards that are smooth on one side and rough on the other. Cutting should be done on the smooth side to prevent splinters from entering our food.

Another option would be to visit a hardwood or lumber store and obtain a board that is at least 12 x 18 inches on which to cut small and large foods. Often, hardwood and lumber yards will have scrap wood that will work wonderfully. Be certain that you get a hardwood, otherwise your cutting-board will dry and split and sometimes splinters will be a feature of your cuisine.

Cutting boards should be oiled every 2-3 months with safe eatable oil, an oil that has not been heated over 96° F, preventing them from cracking and eventual breaking. I use coconut oil on mine. However, olive oil is safe to use. It is best to give your board several coats of oil and one day to absorb the oil before using it.