EP. 20: Glyphosates
Glyphosates are the most common pesticides in agriculture. Developed in 1950 and commercialized in 1974, glyphosates were patented in 1964 to bind to minerals and clear them out of pipes…
Thanks to Round-up, glyphosates are now present in more than 90% of soybeans, corn, cotton, and sugar beets. Additionally, according to the National Library of Medicine's 2022 published study, residues were found in the urine of 60–80% of the general population in the United States.
We are each continually exposed to varying levels of glyphosates via run-off in our water, through our skin from what's in the air around us, and through the food we eat.
So, what can we do? As you know, I feel there's always a way to enforce good-better-best practices in our daily lives that can help prevent some of the side effects of this harmful chemical or continually detox after exposure. I'm glad to share some ways I've helped protect my patients, my family, and myself from glyphosates in this episode.
Show Notes
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0:00:00
Hey everyone, hope that you're doing well. So on today's podcast we are talking about probably the biggest condiment that you're consuming and you might not know that you're consuming it. Can you guess what it is? I'll give you a few seconds. All right, it's glyphosate, aka Roundup. Right? We know it's in the food supply. So I just wanted to talk to you about the health effects because it's more than just killing weeds, it's affecting us and then what do we do about it? We can't live in a bubble, again
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0:00:40
there's that good, better, and best, so how do we navigate these waters with all On my shop page at drheatherhack.com, there is a glyphosate kit that you can order and check your levels to see where you're at. And so it's always nice, at least for me as a practitioner, and my patients love it as well,
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0:01:02
let's test and see where you're at, toxin-wise. Let's do some diet changes, some supplements, some detox protocols, and then let's retest you in three to six months and see how you've progressed, see what's working and maybe what needs tweaked. So make sure that you check that out.
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0:01:22
So a little bit about the history. When I always start to talk about something, I love talking about the history. My minor's in history, I'm a big history nerd, I watch Discovery and Travel Channel and all that all the time,
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so let's talk about the history of Roundup. So it is the most common pesticide in agriculture and if you look back to commercials from the 50s and the 70s you'll see those cheesy commercials about, you know, now is the time to consider all the ways Roundup fits in your weed control program. It was the thing to do for weeds. And of course it was developed by Monsanto. So it was actually developed in 1950,
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0:02:05
but it wasn't commercialized until 1974. It was first patented, this is really interesting, it was first patented in 1964 as a metal chelator because, and this is how it affects us, it binds to minerals like zinc, manganese, cobalt, calcium to clear them out of pipes and boilers. Good for pipes, not for
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0:02:30
humans. And then after that patent, they filed a second patent in 1974 to use it as an herbicide. And the way it works, and I'll just mention it, I don't want to bore you guys with the biochemistry, the way it works is it disrupts a pathway shikumit pathway. And then in 2010, they got smart and they did a third patent on glen phosphate as antibiotics because it kills the bacteria in the gut. It kills bugs. We have bugs in our gut. It does the same thing. So that pathway that it affects, this pathway is involved in creating
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0:03:19
something called aromatic amino acids. You've probably heard these before. Phenylalanine, tyrosine, tryptophan, right? Tryptophan from turkey at Thanksgiving makes you sleepy, makes you feel really good. The reason it's used so much is because it was effective at killing weeds, and now we're getting weed resistant or Roundup resistant weeds, and it was considered safe for animals because we don't have that shikimate pathway. But again, our gut does.
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0:03:50
So indirectly it affects human health. And the problem with this is if we affect that gut microbiome, that can create a lot of disease and issues. So we know that glyphosates are present in more than 90% of soybean, corn, cotton, sugar beets, and it's approved for alfalfa, canola, we don't like canola oil, papaya, and summer squash. And the interesting thing of that is too there's something called epigenetics. So I'm pregnant, we all know I'm pregnant. What I eat not only affects this little guy in my belly,
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but his children. So it's crazy to think about how diet and lifestyle influence the future generations. And that can affect the endocrine system and the immune system. So what can happen,
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I mentioned that it used to be used as a chelator, right? We need minerals. Deficiencies in essential minerals like manganese and iron can contribute to diabetes, dementia, anemia, dysfunction in the gut can lead to chronic disease. We know this, no surprise there. It also can affect detox pathways, so something called methylation, there's a pathway called the cytochrome P450, and this, if we're not
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0:05:10
cleaning our system out, that can lead to autoimmune cancer, and of course toxin overload. And then I did mention that it affects tryptophan and some other amino acids. It can affect neurotransmitter production, which can lead to depression, anxiety, and cognitive decline. How many people do you know are on antidepressants? Right? So we know the gut microbiome is important for good neurological health, good immune system. Of course it can affect the gut-brain access and there's really good research that's coming out that substantiates this. Liver toxicity can be a result of
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0:05:51
glyphosate, again detox pathways. We've talked about endocrine disruptors, you know how that can affect breast cancer and cancers and hormones, especially in young kids, and thyroid. It inhibits the pituitary to release TSH, thyroid stimulating hormone, and that can lead to hypothyroidism. Again, how many people do you know are on Synthroid or Levothyroxine for an underactive thyroid? Or how many of us have Hashimoto's like myself, right?
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0:06:21
So we know it's being sprayed on foods, so we get it mainly through foods. We get it through our skin, so if it's in the air, if you're living in the country, and then runoff, contaminated water, which is why it's so important to filter your water. So the tricky thing with glyphosates is that they're stored in the body. It tricks your body into being stored because it's very similar to an amino acid called glycine.
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So it's tricky. In Europe, and I jokingly say move to Europe, that's the solution, the acceptable daily intake for glyphosate is 0.3 milligrams a day. Guess what it is in the US? 1.75 milligrams.
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0:07:16
So the FDA has actually increased the minimum exposure 20-fold over the last two years, right? And remember, they just filed their third patent in 2010. So that's why I have a lot of patients that go to Europe and they say, hey, Dr. Heather, you know, I drank wine, I ate bread, I felt great, it wasn't hungover,
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my gut felt great. Glyphosates, big, big difference. That and how the food's produced. So we know that of course can affect the reproductive system as well. And I've mentioned having multiple effects
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in future generations. There's a connection with glyphosates and celiac disease and gluten intolerance, no surprise there. And thyroid cancer. Interesting enough, thyroid cancer has skyrocketed since the introduction of glyphosates. And again, remember, I mentioned it affects
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the brain with the thyroid stimulating hormone. So besides thyroid, death from Parkinson's has gone up. And this is near and dear to my heart, because my dad died of Parkinson's two years ago. And he was a farmer and he had bees, he had orchards. And I remember as a little girl, he would go out and spray everything.
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He had a mask on, like a see-through mask. And I remember being eight or nine or 10 and thinking, that's not really doing much, right? Or those chemicals aren't really good for you because he would smell when he came in the house. And here, you know, he had Parkinson's for about 12
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years and then passed away. Though there's one that he used primarily and that there's a lawsuit that we know for sure caused Parkinson's. So we know these toxins can cause a lot of neurological issues. So just something to be aware of. So again, it's an air, food, water, what do we do? How do we address this? With glyphosate, we want to make sure that we are,
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0:09:24
of course, filtering our water, no surprise there, eating organic. So following that Dirty Dozen Clean 15 from the environmental working groups helpful. In all honesty, good, better, and best, if you can do all organic, even better.
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0:09:40
Still wash everything. Boost your antioxidants, your flavonoids. Increase your fiber. So if you use one of those diet trackers, we need anywhere from 25 to 35 grams of fiber a day. Most of us aren't getting enough.
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We should get most of our fiber through fruits and veggies, and then supplement with whole grains like oats and quinoa. Probiotic foods, so you know those kimchi, natto, sauerkraut, pickled things, things that our ancestors did that we don't do anymore, eat them. They're good for you. It's good for the gut flora, it strengthens your immune system. And then the other one which we've heard before with estrogen metabolism is increase your sulfur-rich cruciferous veggies
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So broccoli cauliflower cabbage kale Those will metabolize bad estrogen To good get rid of the toxins so that can all impact your diet Exercise sweating get those toxins out exercise, and then the other one I love, sauna. Sweating, right? Supplement wise, let's talk about supplements a little bit. So there's quite a bit that we can do. Probiotics, no-brainer. Let's address the gut flora.
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Liver support. The liver is already overtaxed. Let's do some milk thistle, maybe some dandelion tea. There's always, you know, good, better, and best with liver support. Ginkgo biloba. There's really good research that ginkgo will help glyphosates exit the system. Citrus pectin. Kelp. Sea vegetables are fantastic for getting rid of toxins. So kelp, chlorella, glutathione is one of my favorite antioxidants. It's a powerhouse, glycine, and then there's something called humic slash fulvic acid that will help metabolize glyphosate out. And then
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there's just some really good studies with showing how diet will impact glyphosates. So there's one that came out recently that showed the Mediterranean diet, which you've heard me preach about before, is actually a shield against male infertility and cancer risk induced by environmental pollutants and really good better best. So diet, lifestyle, exercise, sauna, supplements as you need to and then again I always like to have a baseline with a test, know where you're starting, do your intervention and then retest and then kind of go from there. So if you
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have any questions I certainly welcome them. Hopefully this shed a little bit of light on glyphosates for you and the importance of again eating as clean as you can and taking care of your health and wellness because you're not only doing it for you but you're doing it for future generations. So I hope you guys doing it for you but you're doing it for future generations. So I hope you guys
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take care.
Transcribed with Cockatoo