The Need to Stay Away from Herbicides and Pesticides

Eating organic gets easier as the grocery aisles are full of options.  We know it’s important to eat healthy and eating organic is part of a healthy lifestyle.  We also know it’s more expensive but we are investing in our health.  Other than herbicides and pesticides being harmful chemicals that are sprayed on crops most people don’t know more than that.  Let me explain the real dangers of not eating organic.  

Starting in the 1990s America’s farms started using glyphosate (the active ingredient in the heavily-used herbicide, Roundup) on grains just before maturity in order to facilitate an easier harvest. The reason is simple: when dried (or "desiccated") with glyphosate, the grains become uniformly ready for harvest at the same time. Further, drying delivers more control and a picture-perfect harvest.  Glyphosate is used as a desiccant on wheat, beans, peanuts, coconut, soy, and sugarcane. And while using glyphosate as a drying agent is incredibly enticing operationally and economically, it comes at an unjustifiable cost.

The cost includes depleting our soils of nutrients that we need and causing so much damage to the body I don’t even know where to begin.  I guess let's start with the gut. Glyphosate, which Monsanto patented as an antimicrobial in 2010, has been shown to damage our beneficial gut bacteria more than our pathogenic bacteria leading to a whole host of imbalances in our microbiome. Dysbiosis is the name given to an imbalance in our in the gut flora also known as microbiome.  Dysbiosis is a precursor to countless chronic issues, many of which go far beyond digestion. And it doesn't stop with the microbes for glyphosate can cause leaky gut. Leaky gut is a condition in which the tight junctions (cellular seals) in our gut lining become damaged, allowing toxins and other foreign particles to seep into the bloodstream, which in turn can ignite a cascade of chronic inflammation. Glyphosate has been shown to damage the gut lining.

But that's just the start. Glyphosate has been flagged by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a "probable carcinogen" with other research indicating that Roundup is a carcinogen, as well as a cause of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease. Further, studies also show that glyphosate consumption can damage sperm , cross the placenta to a fetus , and lead to preterm birth.

These studies are even more alarming when paired with recent laboratory findings of high levels of glyphosate in a wide range of foods including cereal like Cheerios, breads, and hummus. Unfortunately I promise you that toxic glyphosate food is sitting in your kitchen right now.  To figure out exactly what foods contain glyphosate go to this website: https://detoxproject.org/the-poison-in-our-daily-bread-glyphosate-contamination-widespread-in-essential-foods/.

So, why spray our food with such a harmful chemical?

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is tasked with reviewing toxicological research and determining safe levels of chemical exposure. While other government agencies (including the USDA, FDA, and state regulators) do play a part in helping to enforce and monitor safe levels of pesticide use, Americans depend on the EPA at the front end to keep the population safe from harmful chemicals.

However, the EPA is under immense pressure from agricultural chemical companies to approve their products, regardless of what scientific analyses unveil. In the case of many potentially harmful herbicides and pesticides, the EPA has repeatedly approved them despite worrisome evidence of harm to human, animal or pollinator health. Often, their evaluations are based on research provided by the manufacturers, who stand to financially benefit from regulatory approval. When evaluating the carcinogenicity of glyphosate, the EPA even relied upon purportedly independent studies that were ghostwritten by Monsanto scientists . Despite the substantial evidence of large-scale, multi-system harm to the body from glyphosate, the EPA concluded in 2020 that glyphosate poses no risk to human health.

What can we do?

While many suffering from chronic inflammatory, digestive, and neurological symptoms find relief through eating a gluten-free diet, research has shown us repeatedly that glyphosate and other toxic chemicals cannot be ignored as agents of chronic health problems. We are here to help you detox.  Detox foot baths, the right supplements and ozone saunas can all play a part on helping your body detox glyphosate poison. 

The other good news is that consumer pressure is an enormous motivator for change. Due to increased awareness of glyphosate over the last few years, some grain buyers, including General Mills, are providing contracts to farmers for glyphosate-free grains. Kellogg's also notably announced their intention to phase out the use of glyphosate as a desiccant by 2025. Furthermore, as recently as last month, both the US Supreme Court and the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit dealt significant blows to the future of glyphosate. SCOTUS rejected Bayer's appeal to dismiss the legal claims of thousands who assert that exposure to glyphosate caused their cancer. And less than a week prior, the Court of Appeals ordered the EPA to redo their human health and endangered species risk assessments, finding their previous assessments insufficient.

We can continue to vote with our dollar by supporting USDA certified organic and/or glyphosate-residue free products, local organic farms, and organizations like Farmer's Footprint working hard to bring soils (and the food grown in it) back to a place of health. We can also sign this petition to help ban the use of glyphosate for pre-harvest desiccation of crops, a move which would dramatically reduce our dietary exposure to this damaging chemical.

Sign Petition https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/sign-the-petition-regulate-monsanto-pesticides-they-are-literally-killing-us

Mercury Toxicity and Fish

Sam was detoxing from aluminum, mercury and lead at the same time.  That’s three heavy metals and especially detoxing mercury can be intense at times.  On the third week of detoxing his chest became bright red and hot.  Three days later, his skin started to peel.  It was like a sunburn coming from the inside because too much heavy metal was coming up and out at once and the liver couldn’t process it enough so it was coming out through the skin.  The skin itself is a detox organ.  We sweat out so many toxins a day, even when we do not workout.  Drinking tons of water and helping him through the detox did the trick.  His chest healed as if nothing ever happened and he was able to finish the detox without issues.  

When patients need to do a mercury detox at Healing Arts most of them are aware that mercury is contained in some of the fish we eat and from metallic dental fillings. Mercury is also contained in some of the products we use at home and in schools. And when exposed, mercury at high levels can harm the brain, heart, kidneys, lungs, and immune system. When affecting the brain, symptoms may include impairment of vision; disturbances in sensations ("pins and needles" feelings); lack of coordination; impairment of speech, hearing, walking; and muscle weakness. When it is breathed in as a vapor where it is absorbed through the lungs symptoms include tremors, emotional changes, insomnia, weakness, muscle atrophy, twitching, headaches, disturbances in sensations, changes in nerve responses, and performance deficits on tests of cognitive function. All studies that look for mercury toxicity in humans seem to find measurable mercury in most of participants and that both blood and urine mercury levels tend to increase with age.  Scientists have decided that if a mercury blood level is less than 85 micrograms per liter (µg/L) then it is safe but I feel to be truly healthy that the body should have zero mercury in it.

When coal is burned, mercury is released into the environment. Coal-burning power plants are the largest human-caused source of mercury emissions to the air in the United States, accounting for over 40 percent of all domestic human-caused mercury emissions. Burning hazardous wastes, producing chlorine, breaking mercury products, and spilling mercury, as well as the improper treatment and disposal of products or wastes containing mercury, can also release it into the environment. Recycling of mercury-containing products is one of the best ways to help prevent mercury releases to the environment by keeping these products out of landfills and incinerators. We can also contribute by not buying mercury containing products. For a complete list of products that contain mercury you can go to this link https://www.epa.gov/mercury/mercury-consumer-products#list of the EPA.

Mercury in the air eventually settles into water or onto land where it can be washed into water. Once deposited, certain microorganisms can change it into methylmercury, a highly toxic form that builds up in fish, shellfish and animals that eat fish. Fish and shellfish are the main sources of methylmercury exposure to humans. Methylmercury builds up more in some types of fish and shellfish than others. The levels of methylmercury in fish and shellfish depend on what they eat, how long they live and how high they are in the food chain.

Fish can be extremely toxic depending on the oceans that they come from and the way they are farmed. While it is a good idea to try and stay educated on which fish are okay to eat, as it tends to change somewhat frequently, this is a list of fish that you should almost always avoid.

Imported Catfish -  It almost always comes from Vietnam, where they use a large quantity of antibiotics that have been banned in the US. Instead, seek out domestic, farm-raised catfish.

Caviar – The high demand is causing a threat to the species that caviar comes from.

Atlantic Cod – It is nearly endangered due to chronic mismanagement by the National Marine Fisheries Service. Choose Pacific cod instead.

American Eel – It is highly contaminated with mercury and PCBs. Be careful of it in sushi dishes! Atlantic or Pacific caught squid have a similar taste and are a much better option.

Imported Shrimp – 90% of the shrimp sold in the US is imported, and it is full of contaminants including e.coli, antibiotics, mouse hair, rat hair, and pieces of insects. EW! If you can find domestic shrimp or pink shrimp for Oregon, they are much safer choices.

Atlantic Flatfish – This includes flounder, sole, and halibut from the Atlantic coast. They are all heavily contaminated and highly overfished, meaning that they are not sustainable. Instead, try domestically farmed tilapia or catfish.

Atlantic Salmon, Wild AND Farmed – Currently, all fish called “Atlantic salmon” comes from fish farms, which are highly polluted. Additionally, the US Food and Drug Administration has approving GMO salmon to be sold without labeling it. Instead, choose wild Alaskan salmon.  To learn more about farm raised vs. wild caught salmon: https://healingartsnyc.blogspot.com/2021/01/farmed-vs-wild-caught-salmon-what-is.html

Imported King Crab – It comes from Russia, where they do not strongly enforce limits on fish harvesting. It is often mislabeled Alaskan King Crab, which is actually a separate animal. If you can verify that what you are buying actually came from Alaska, it is okay to eat.

Shark – Shark is dangerous to humans because of its high mercury content, but it is very dangerous to ocean ecosystems as well. Without sharks, the species they are supposed to eat survive and go on to deplete other fish like scallops, placing on economic strain on communities that depend on them.

 Orange Roughey – It has high levels of mercury and is extremely overfished. Yellow snapper will provide a similar texture for recipes.

To learn more about mercury detox: https://healingartsnyc.blogspot.com/2014/11/mercury-toxicity.html

To help detox all heavy metals from the body we highly suggest a series of ionic detox foot baths that help pull heavy metal out of your body.  For more information, click here

For our Heavy Metal Podcast Episode: https://healingarts.buzzsprout.com/894679/3022864-heavy-metal-detox