While GMOs and the lack of mandatory GMO-labeling in the U.S. seem to be getting everyone’s attention these days, a bigger and more dangerous story may very well be the toxic chemicals that are sprayed on our crops.
The most widely used chemical of them all, glyphosate, which just happens to be the primary ingredient in Monsanto’s RoundUp, has been generating its own fair share of news lately.
And this news is very troubling, to say the least.
According to recent research by Dr. Charles Benbrook published in Environmental Sciences Europe, 250 million pounds of glyphosate was used in the U.S. in 2014 and 1.65 billion pounds was used worldwide in 2014.
Despite the fact that we know that glyphosate’s link to cancer is incredibly strong and that it is used in very high quantities around the globe, research coming out of Germany has made it all that more real.
In a study conducted by the Heinrich Böll Foundation and reported by EurActiv Germany, it was found that:
- Glyphosate residue was recorded in 99.6% of the 2,009 people monitored by the study.
- When glyphosate residue was analyzed in urine, 75% of the target group displayed levels that were five times higher than the legal limit of drinking water.
- 1/3rd of the population showed levels that were between 10 and 42 times higher than what is normally permissible.
- The most significant values were found in children (ages zero to 9) and adolescents (ages 10 to 19), particularly those raised on farms.
- Meat eaters had higher levels of glyphosate contamination than vegetarians or vegans. This is presumably because the GMO-feed fed to animals had been sprayed with glyphosate.
If Germany’s population is so contaminated with glyphosate, there is a very good chance that the data is the exact same for those of us in the U.S.
And given glyphosate’s link to cancer, is it any surprise that this disease is such an epidemic in our country?
When the most recent President’s Cancel Panel report said that 41% of Americans will get cancer and 21% of Americans will die from cancer, the report used data from 2008-2009. Since then, glyphosate’s usage has gone up dramatically, and one could safely assume that these cancer statistics would be much higher if we took into account today’s data.
I believe that once we get a national GMO-labeling standard in place, our focus must turn to the very serious issue of toxic chemicals in our environment.
This is far too big of a concern to not get our undivided attention. The stakes are too high.
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