There are many reasons we personally eat organic, but one of the main ones is glyphosate.
I’m sure you are all well of what glyphosate is and what it means for us, but if not, that’s what this article is for 🙂 we also obviously don’t know everything, so I’m sure there is much more to learn about it.
Everything in this article is supported by reliable sources. If anything is merely my opinion, I will state so clearly.
Lastly, none of this is meant to invoke fear, but to bring awareness and start discussions. Not 100% of you will agree with 100% of how I feel on this page and that’s okay! The point of articles and info here is to make reliable sources available in one spot and we can each decide what I’d best for ourselves.
It took me a long time to decide to go organic. I didn’t fully understand and it’s really hard to see two healthy foods organic and non, and knowingly choose the more expensive option (organic). But after a lot of research and seeing how it made me feel, I now buy almost everything organic and here’s why…
I’m sure you all heard about the roundup lawsuits, but if not, here’s a quick summary…
Bayer is a pharmaceutical company. Monsanto is an herbicide company. Bayer acquired Monsanto and according to a 2018 Reuter’s article, Bayer had 8,000 lawsuits against them for glyphosate (source) Now, they have more than 13,000 lawsuits against them according to Fortune (source). In that Fortune article, it mentions they are working on alternatives, which is great (depending on the ingredients), but it still leaves us with where we’re at now. Glyphosate everywhere.
Here are just a couple cases against them:
One, according to CBS a jury awarded a couple “$2 billion in punitive damages after concluding that sustained exposure to … Roundup led to their cancer diagnoses.” An attorney for the couple said, “The jury saw for themselves internal company documents demonstrating that, from day one, Monsanto has never had any interest in finding out whether Roundup is safe…Instead of investing in sound science, they invested millions in attacking science that threatened their business agenda.” (Source)
Second, according to Time magazine, Dewayne Anthony Lee Johnson won $289 million (judge then slashed to $78 million) after “alleging he developed a deadly form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma after being drenched with the company’s herbicides which he sprayed as part of his job…” In summary, he was always extremely careful, but one day, his sprayer broke and he was drenched. He washed up as well as possible, changed clothes and took a long shower. He developed a rash which led to lesions which led to a cancer diagnosis. There’s a good chance he don’t live to see the money awarded to him. “Evidence revealed in the trial included internal Monsanto records that included discussions of ‘ghostwriting’ scientific papers that asserted the safety of its products and plans to discredit an international agency that declared the main ingredient… glyphosate to be a probable human carcinogen”. Remainder of the article here.
It makes me upset that even though it’s been linked to cancer, they are still permitted to sell it and drench our food in it. I feel like this is because of greed and convenience. Companies are so desperate to mass produce that we trade health for convenience and we do it all the time at home whether it’s using roundup in our yards so we don’t have to weed so much or not investing in our health now because it’s inconvenient (but that’s an article for another day!).
Branch Basics, as non-toxic cleaning company, wrote an awesome article on how to replace pesticides around our home and why they don’t belong anywhere near us. Pesticides are endocrine disrupters and have been linked to cancer, Parkinson’s, ALS, behavior and mood issues, and other neurological issues.” “Eating non-organic food and exposure to pesticides can disrupt and kill healthy bowel flora.” (Source). To see BB’s sources, scroll down to the bottom of the article.
According to the CDC, pesticides are a universal sensitizer, meaning it’s “a chemical that can make a person sensitive to all harmful chemicals if there’s big enough exposure…Pesticides are classified as both VOCs (volatile organic compounds) and SVOCs (semi volatile [organic] compounds. They can cause damage via ingestion through non-organic foods, via inhalation of vapors (VOCs) and through exposure to contaminated dust (SVOCs) after use.” You can also be exposed to low levels of the VOCs through the containers, which is why it’s critical to not even have them at the house. (Source)
Glyphosate has literally been found everywhere. In our water, dust in non-agricultural homes, breastmilk, urine, etc. (source, source, source , source, sourhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6322310/ce)
If you would like to read more on glyphosate, you can read this from CNN, this from Bloomberg, and this from Business Insider, this from EWG, and another from CNN.
Just a few of the foods it has been found in Cheerios (the highest level of anything) (in many different flavors), Nature Valley Granola Bars (in many different flavors), Fiber One Cookies, Trader Joe’s oat cereal (similar to Cheerios), Bob’s Red Mill Oats, Simple Truth Organic Oats, many different kinds of grains, Whole Foods Oats, cereals, Kind Bars corn, soy, beans, etc etc. (source)
We are exposed to it everywhere we go: the park, neighbor’s houses and yards, water, food, etc. etc. Again, this is not meant to scare, but to educate and empower.
How do we limit our exposure (since we can’t completely eliminate it)?
Eating organic can limit, but even organic doesn’t mean it’s completely free of it (look at the example of above of all the organic foods it was found in). I personally feel the safest way is buying organic, grass fed/finished meat, buying local products from farmer’s markets. This way you can ask if they use herbicides and pesticides and be sure to specifically ask about Roundup. This also eliminates risk of contamination in transport and is cheaper! Win, win win!
But farmer’s markets are not available to everyone, so what do we do?
- I think buying organic is the first step. We spend more money on food than others, but we take it from other places (we don’t drink, we don’t drink coffee, we don’t go out to movies, we spend very little on entertainment). If you truly cannot afford organic, use these lists for dirty dozen and clean fifteen. Also, think outside the box! This company, imperfect produce sells “ugly produce” that’s just as great for much cheaper! Unfortunately they don’t yet do it where I live, but hopefully soon!
- Contact companies directly and inquire about their practices
- Make sure you’re doing what you can to detox your body: lots of fruits and veggies (especially dark, leafy greens), exercise, sweat!! (Not using antiperspirants but using deodorant), lots of water
- Ensure not only are you not using these products in your home, but you are not even storing them in your home
- Support legislation and companies that don’t use these products and reach out to those who do and voice your discontent (nicely! :))
Lastly, another reason we eat organic is that it typically doesn’t have nearly as many foreign chemicals. An article from CNN recently came out that said, “Yet you may protect yourself from cancer by avoiding ultraprocessed foods and instead choosing organic foods, research has shown.” Article here. NY Times also has an awesome article on this.
Past that, don’t stress! This is just my opinion, but I think if we are doing all we can to detox, ensuring our digestion is functioning properly, eating the best we can, I personally feel/hope our bodies can detox those chemicals enough.
Cauliflower Walnut Taco Meat