Fears As 93% Of Americans Tested Positive For Glyphosate And Children Found To Have The Highest Levels

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In a new (2015-2016) study on the public conducted by the University of San Francisco, and organized by The Detox Project, 93% of urine samples from the American public were found to be contaminated with glyphosate residues. The most alarming part of the test result is that children were found to have the highest levels of glyphosate residues. ^[1] This news comes right after glyphosate’s new classification as a “probable human carcinogen” from the IARC.

We don’t know how this is affecting us, because (according to Organic Consumers Association) “Glyphosate has never been studied by regulators or the chemical industry at levels that the human population in the U.S. is being exposed to.” ^[1] This is a glaring oversight on the part of the regulators and urgently needs to be addressed.

Glyphosate is a non-selective herbicide that kills broadleaf weeds and other grasses by blocking proteins essential to plant growth. It was the most used herbicide in the United States agricultural sector, according to a market estimate by the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) in 2007 ^[2] and is widely used on GMO crops. Monsanto discovered glyphosate as an herbicide in 1970 and made it available to the market in 1974 under the trade name ‘Roundup’. ^[3] Glyphosate-containing products are also released under other trademarks.

Urine and Water Testing Results

In an in-lab validated liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), glyphosate was found in 93% of the 131 urine samples, with the highest levels found in samples taken from the West and Midwest regions (major agricultural areas).

There were no glyphosate residues found in tap water samples, which may well be because of phosphorus removal during water treatment. ^[1]

“These results show that both the U.S. regulators have let down consumers in America. … The safe level of glyphosate ingestion is simply unknown despite what the EPA and Monsanto would have everyone believe,” says The Detox Project director Henry Rowlands. ^[1]

What Does Glyphosate Do To the Body?

Glyphosate does not pass easily pass through the skin, and so glyphosate-containing products which are ingested or absorbed will exit the body through urine or feces. ^[4]

What most consumers and farm owners have been told is a “safe” herbicide has been linked to various dangerous health effects even through low exposures over an extended period of time. There is evidence suggesting that even low levels of glyphosate can cause hormone disruption – chemicals which interfere with the endocrine system and can cause cancerous tumors, birth defects, and developmental disorders. ^[5]

In March 2015 ^[6] the IARC’s declaration about glyphosate being a “probable human carcinogen” was based on reviews that they made of 1000 studies on humans, animals, and cells. These studies found glyphosate in farmworkers’ urine, increased risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, tumor formation, and chromosomal damage. ^[6][7]

Although the EPA is yet to release the approved uses for glyphosate, many countries have already taken a step to prevent health risks from the said herbicide. Sri Lanka has banned the use of glyphosate due to suspected links to kidney disease. Other nations that have banned it include Mexico and Netherlands. ^[7]