I'm reminded that back in the 1940s, an estimated 16% of adults carried trichinellosis. Grandma had worms, but she didn't eat natural products derived from seaweed!

My grandmother would not touch Indian or Chinese food. She would never buy or cook with hot peppers, that's for sure. And she lived to be an old age. So I think that's all you need to know to adopt a bland diet right now (before it is too late).

I jest, of course, but some people today do in all seriousness rally against pasteurization. Just because people used to do it one way back in the age of short lifespans doesn't mean you'll live longer doing the same today. As we learn more, it makes sense to update the way we live, but we need to follow the science. It shouldn't be based on quippy proverbs and unnecessary reverence for the old ways.