Monday, April 7, 2014

Organic Consumers Association Comments on New Study Showing Glyphosate Found in Mothers' Breast Milk

Organic Consumers Association Comments on New Study Showing Glyphosate Found in Mothers' Breast Milk:



The Organic Consumers Association (OCA) today called on U.S. regulatory agencies, including the Food & Drug Administration (FDA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to ban the use of glyphosate based on a new pilot study showing that the toxic herbicide was found in the breast milk of American women. This finding contradicts industry claims that glyphosate is does not accumulate in human tissue.



“For years Monsanto has claimed that glyphosate, the key active ingredient in its Roundup-brand herbicide is ‘safe’ because the human body excretes it,” said Ronnie Cummins, national director of the OCA. “This pilot study is the first of its kind to prove that Monsanto is wrong. In fact, this preliminary study shows that glyphosate accumulates in our bodies, and mothers are now passing the toxin on to their infants via breast milk.”



Results of the pilot study, conducted by Moms Across America and Sustainable Pulse, with support from Environmental Arts & Research, were released today. While the numbers are small, they are alarming. The study  revealed that the levels found in the breast milk of American women were found to be 760 to 1600 times higher than the European Drinking Water Directive allows for individual pesticides (Glyphosate is both a pesticide and herbicide), but less than the 700 ug/l maximum contaminant level (MCL) for glyphosate in the U.S.



The EPA, arguing that glyphosate is not bio-accumulative, recently raised the limits for the amount of glyphosate residue allowed on human food.



The study also analysed 35 urine samples and 21 drinking water samples from across the U.S. and found levels in urine that were over 10 times higher than those found in a similar survey done in the EU by Friends of the Earth Europe in 2013. 

No comments:

Post a Comment