*Really* good question!?

Question

Since everything broken down to it's *simplest* form is just matter, then how can eating certain things kill or harm you? Since everything is the same stuff, how can this happen?

Answer 1

Because things aren't always broken down to their simplest forms.

Sometimes they only get broken down to diseases or wolverines.

Answer 2

Everything is matter and/or ENERGY.

Some configurations of matter and energy are described as alive.  Most are not.

It is relatively easy to change from a living configuration to a non-living configuration.  Its pretty difficult to go the other way.

Answer 3

Selentic   even if things were broken down to atoms they can still kill you. its not just molecules and wolverines. ever heard of arsenic? attomic # 33 it binds to enzymes and acts as a allosteric inhibition rendering those enzymes useless so your body cant process what you eat and you die

Answer 4

the construction of the matter made it so that it reacts to other differently constructed matter. Its like you can build big structures out of iron, but it is also in your food (like in spinach) its the same thing yet they fulfill different needs.