Does this common herbicide harm your health?

As part of the commitment, “make America robust”, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. He said that he wanted to build “beyond ramps” from relying the country in insecticides and herbicides to grow food.

“Chemicals pollute our bodies in the same way as they pollute the soil,” Mr. Kennedy he said In 2024, this week, Mr. Kennedy, currently the Federal Secretary of Health, said that the commission appointed by President Trump in order to examine the indicators of chronic diseases would accept the exploit of pesticides, as well as childhood vaccines, micro -plastic and others.

Mr. Kennedy’s objection to herbicides, especially widely used chemicals called Glyphosat, gained support from some environment supporters, the so -called “Mah mothers” and influential people influencing wellness. But some claims that he and others, about glyphosate – including that he is potentially associated with cancer, gluten allergy and various other health problems – are based on science, which is still not resolved.

Outstanding organizations reached clearly different judgments of glyphosate after reviewing the research. In 2015, the International Agency for Cancer Research classified glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic for people.” Two years later, the Environmental Protection Agency He came to the conclusion that glyphosat “It would probably not be carcinogenic for people” and that it did not have “any other significant risk to human health when the product is used according to the label of pesticides.”

So should you try to avoid it? Here’s what science shows.

How is the glyphosate used?

Glyphosat, first sold by Monsanto in 1974 under the leg, kills weeds by inhibiting the enzyme, which is necessary for plants growth. He became the most commonly used weed throughout the country after Monsanto introduced genetically modified crops, which were resistant to Glyfosat effects, said Marty Williams, an ecologist from the research service of the United States Department of Agriculture.

Almost half Among all planted corn and soy acres in the United States, they are treated with glyphoste -based herbicides, like some crops, such as wood nuts and grapes. Glyphosate is also sometimes used to arid or kill wheat, barley, oats and beans so that farmers can collect them in advance – the process that the environmental groups claim is the reason in which the remains of herbicide end pasta, cereal and other processed foods.

Glyphosate is also more and more used To remove weeds in other places, such as railways, and is popular among home gardeners.

“There was such an explosion of exploit, so there are several areas in which research must catch up,” said Cynthia Curl, a scientist of the environment of the environment at the Boise State University in Idaho.

How much glyphosate are we exposed?

You can be exposed to glyphosat in many ways. You can exploit the herbicide that contains it; Touch plants that have recently been sprayed; Or eat (or smoking) after applying chemicals, but before washing your hands. You can also meet residue of glyphosate for food You buy in a grocery store.

EPA said that the glyphosate could be safely tolerated at a low level horizontal. Tests of randomly selected food have shown that about 96 percent of home food samples and 90 percent of imported samples have pesticide remains Below he considers EPA to be safe and sound.

There is relatively few exposure studies in the US general population compared to the data from farmers who work more precisely and regularly with glyphosate. One of the national surveys in which urine samples of over 2,000 people 81 percent He was recently exposed to glyphosat.

Other research suggests That people working on farms or live nearby encounter a particularly high level of exposure. One article stated that they had agricultural workers Ten times The amount of glyphosate in urine as an average person.

“There is quite convincing evidence that people are exposed only by life near these fields, and this is only about the seasons when people spray glyphosat,” said Dr. Curl, whose studies showed that exposure to glyphosat in pregnant women Increased, the closer they lived for sprayed fields.

Dr. Curl said that many studies on glyphosate measuring the level of urine, but the very presence of a chemical in someone’s urine does not mean that this will not necessarily cause harm.

Can it make you infirmed?

Scientists are still trying to set a level that glyphosat may be problematic. But collecting data on the effects of human health was tough because there are so many variables, said Loping Zhang, a toxicologist from the University of California in Berkeley.

For example, research in the laboratory shows that less than 2 percent glyphosate is absorbed by the skin and around 30 percent It is absorbed if it is consumed, which should mean that most chemicals cannot cause any problems in the body. But in fact, many other chemicals are mixed with glyphosate in herbicides. Experts do not agree whether these other chemicals can augment the toxicity of glyphosate or whether they themselves are the basis of any health effects.

In the laboratory research of human cells and research on animals, scientists have Evidence found that glyphosat can induce DNA damage and change the way gene expresses, among others. This in turn was related Higher level of inflammationand also liver damage AND Kidney tissues in animals.

Some epidemiological studies suggest that glyphosate is associated with increased risk Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma among farmers and agricultural workers; Various tests did not find a link.

Due to its potential for influence on intestinal bacteria, several researchers have hypothesized that glyphosat can be associated with celiac disease and gluten intolerance indicators, the idea that Kennedy repeated. However, some scientists have he criticized this claimWith one group arguing in the article that “he is not supported by available scientific evidence” and that he suggests that he “misleads society, the scientific community and regulatory bodies.”

Another reservation: Many research on glyphosate toxicity is based on data from animals or Human cells, often exposed at higher levels than most people, usually met. After saying, experts are becoming better and better in studying doses more significant for the average person, said Dr. Zhang.

Monsanto, which is currently part of the biotechnology company Bayer, maintained that glyphosat is safe and sound at the level at which most people are exposed. By denying that herbicides can cause cancer, Bayer spent about $ 11 billion on resolving processes, claiming that exposure to glyphosat caused cancer and paid millions of compensation to millions of reasons. These reasons include A man represented by Mr. Kennedy and his legal team.

Despite this, pressure from spokesman and community members forced legislators to ban or limit the exploit of glyphosat in parks and playgrounds in cities, including Modern York, Los Angeles AND Baltimore. And in 2023, Bayer announced that he would stop selling glyphosate for home gardeners.

What does this mean for you?

At this point, most experts agree that the risk for the general population is probably low.

Still, if you want to minimize the potential exhibition, there are several ways in which you can do it in the kitchen. Some experts suggested washing In the current water it can be a bit helpful in reducing pesticides. Peeling or boiling products reduce pesticides moreAlthough it can also affect the nutritional value of food. But Dr. Curl argued that there is not much evidence to demonstrate that these methods would facilitate in particular to reduce glyphosat residues.

The best way to reduce exposure to glyphosat and other chemicals can be by Switching to organic food If possible. Some tiny studies have shown that this may reduce the level of urinary pesticides. You can prioritize the priority consumption of ecological versions of food produced from the tags, wheat or beans, which are treated with glyphosat next to consumption.

Dr. Curl said that there are burning concerns about health hazards for people living or working on farms or nearby. But there are still many unanswered questions about what drives this risk, including regardless of whether they are exposed to blowing particles in the wind during spraying, or through exposure to the soil that ends in the dust of the household.

“We need more research to be sure before we start telling people what they can do,” said Dr. Curl.