A new study published in
the Journal of Organic Systems has linked glyphosate, the
primary ingredient in Monsanto’s best-selling herbicide, Roundup, to an
enormous increase in chronic diseases. The study proved – once
again – that glyphosate and Round-up are lethal, even in small amounts.
More than 650,000 metric tons of
glyphosate products were used over five years ago, with the amount
being used increasing each year. This increase is contributing to the
development of diseases such as diabetes, obesity, lipoprotein
metabolism disorder, Alzheimer’s, senile dementia, Parkinson’s, multiple
sclerosis, autism, and cancer.
The
report details how there is a direct correlation
between the incidence of these diseases and glyphosate use. It isn’t as if
the toxicity levels of glyphosate are not already known by its makers. Monsanto
was refusing to release to the public lab tests conducted in St. Louis,,
which gave them authority to use glyphosate in China.
The poison developed by the
Monsanto Company has been allowed on the US market since the 1970s. It isn’t
just Monsanto who sells glyphosate at retqai8ol. There are over 100 different
manufacturers of the product throughout the world. You can find it in other
products with names such as Killzall, Clearout 41 and Honcho.
Although glyphosate is used
primarily in agricultural settings, it is also sprayed by public authorities on
roads and pavements. Even home gardeners still use
the toxic chemicals to control weeds, although alternatives exist.
According to the new study:
“Within the last 20 years there has been an alarming increase in
serious illnesses in the US, along with a marked decrease in life expectancy
(Bezruchka, 2012). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
estimates that the cost of diabetes and diabetes-related treatment
was approximately $116 billion dollars in 2007.
Estimated costs related to obesity were $147 billion in 2008 and
cardiovascular diseases and stroke were $475.3 billion in 2009. Health care
expenditures in the US totaled 2.2 trillion dollars in 2007 (CDC, 2013a). The
onset of serious illness is appearing in increasingly younger cohorts. The US
leads the world in the increase in deaths due to neurological diseases between
1979-81 and 2004-06 for the 55-65 age group (Pritchard et al., 2013).”
The study points out that, “these
findings suggest environmental triggers rather than genetic or age-related
causes,” especially since chronic diseases are showing up in younger and
younger individuals.
“During this same time period, there has been an exponential
increase in the amount of glyphosate applied to food crops and in the
percentage of GE food crops planted (Benbrook, 2012). We undertook a study to
see if correlations existed between the rise of GE crops, the
associated glyphosate use and the rise in chronic disease in the US.”
My advice; Read the label on any herbicide or insecticide you’re thinking of
buying. Make sure it can’t harm pets,
children, birds etc. besides killing weeds or bugs.
OWEN YOST, in addition to being a
blogger, is a licensed Landscape Architect emeritus who has lived and worked in
north Texas for over 30 years. He is the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement
Award of the Native Plant Society of Texas, and is a member of the American
Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), International Federation of Landscape
Architects, National Wildlife Federation and the Audubon Society. His office is
at Yost87@charter.net in Denton.
