7 reasons to avoid Roundup at all costs and go organic

Monsanto's Roundup, carrying the active ingredient, glyphosate, has been under fire for years.  It's introduction and obsessive use within our food supply has been linked to a bevy of illnesses.  Though Monsanto has hired scientists to refute many of the claims, global scientific research continues to arise linking the herbicide and the destruction of your gut bacteria.  There is no better time to go organic.

Here are seven reasons you should skip genetically modified food and go organic immediately

1. Roundup has been found in "Excessive" levels in GM soy

The heavily dosed crops are absorbing huge amounts of the systemic chemical, meaning it takes up residence inside the organism that consumes it, whether that's the plant that's sprayed with it or the animal that eats the plant.  Norwegian scientists have found "excessive" levels of glyphosate studying U.S. soy.  Even if you don't eat soy, it is often used and hidden within a variety of names in processed foods.

2. Roundup can double your risk of lymphoma

A review of 44 scientific studies found that glyphosate exposure doubles farmers' risk of developing non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

3. It gets into the rain

Because of the excessive levels of Roundup added to crops by non-organic farmers every year, it has made its way into the air and rain.   Additionally,  pesticide-exposure scientist Warren Porter, PhD, professor of environmental toxicology and zoology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, studied data collected by the United States Geological Survey and found that exposure to Roundup could potentially alter your hormones, leading to obesity, heart problems, and diabetes.

4. Roundup destroying the Monarch Butterfly

Researchers at Iowa State University found that the heavy use of glyphosate has resulted in an 81 percent decrease in the monarch butterfly population.  Normally, the butterflies use the milkweed plant to reproduce and survive as a species; Roundup has been annihilating the plant and, therefore, the butterflies.

5. Roundup destroys human cells

In a 2009 French research paper in the journal Chemical Research in Toxicology, it was shown that low levels of four types of glyphosate (all found in Roundup), kill human umbilical, embryonic and placental cells within 24 hours of contact.

6. Roundup is ripping your gut apart

Because glyphosate is also antimicrobial, it destroys pathogenic organisms.  Unfortunately, it doesn't destroy all of them and pathogens like Clostridium botulinum, Salmonella, and E. coli can survive in your gut if it's present.  It does destroy many of the helpful micro-organisms found in your gut, though, like bacillus and lactobacillus.  The destruction of these organisms can lead to horrible problems with your system, including leaky gut, where the walls of your stomach are broken down and harmful bacteria can escape into your blood stream.

7. Roundup isn't working as planned

Over time, just like overuse of antibiotics can produce resistant bacteria, the overuse of Roundup has caused weeds to appear that are resistant to it.  It has upended the entire argument that an herbicide is a permanent solution.

Originally, the concept was that genetically engineering food for would lessen the global need for chemicals to be sprayed on our food.  Professor Chuck Benbrook, PhD, a research professor at Washington State University, found that between 1996 and 2011, GMO technology increased herbicide use by 527 million pounds, constituting an 11 percent increase.  Another fail.

 

So how do you fight the power?  People are doing it all over the world.  Don't allow the license for glyphosate to continue; ban the product and, in the meanwhile, purchase only organic foods.  Your dollars send a serious, tangible signal to farmers everywhere and they will switch to go where the money is.