Green Cross

St. Lazarus Cross

Some nine hundred years ago, a green Greek Cross emblem was used by the Hospitallers of St. Lazarus. Since then, it has been associated with, among other things, health care. In particular, the green cross represents First Aid.

Red Cross emblem

The Red Cross of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is an emblem protected under the Geneva Conventions Act and cannot be used without permission. Contrary to popular belief, the Red Cross is not a public domain First Aid symbol.

ISO
First Aid

The International Standards Organisation¹ recommends that a white cross on green background is used as a First Aid symbol². (See also the emergency services' Star of Life.)

Alternative
First Aid

An alternative variation is a green cross on a white field³. Although this is not recommended by ISO, it is still widely recognised as a first aid symbol.

Midori Juji

Alternative
Midori Juji

In Japan a flag with a green cross (midori-juji⁴) on a white field is frequently flown on construction sites and factories to encourage workers to remember health and safety. It also appears on badges and arm bands for the same purpose and is occasionally seen as a cross-within-a-cross.

Ironically, a green cross was used to identify the contents of a deadly artillery gas shell during World War 1. These produced suffocating gasses like chloropircin, diphosgene, carbonyl chloride and chlorine, which irritate the soft mucous membranes of the respiratory tract and can lead to death. (See also white cross gas, yellow cross gas and blue cross gas. See also Other Medical Crosses)

Also ironically, green is one of the most toxic colours there is for dyeing fabrics, paper, plastics, and many other materials used for packing 'green' products. According to the German chemist Michael Braungart design book "Cradle to Cradle", it is impossible to dye such products without contaminating them. Composting or recycling such products will contaminate other material. Green is not very environmentally friendly.

The most common green shade used in plastic is Pigment Green 7; it is organic but contains chlorine and is linked to cancer and birth defects. Pigment Green 36 contains chlorine and bromide, and Pigment Green 50 contains cobalt, titanium nickel and zinc oxide. Older pigments used by artists contained arsenic. Indeed, such poison is believed to have caused the death of Napoleon.

Is this nature's way of saying to mankind that trying to replicate nature, even the colours of nature, can lead to doom?

Maybe. But don't let any of this stop you from reaching for the First Aid Box when you need to!