Small Bite of some Scary Truth…

            Lets get serious just for a moment.  Our Food system is in trouble.  It was about five years ago that I began researching our food system, and how it works, when the realization hit me: I was looking at the tip of an iceberg.  Here’s a small summary of some of the information that has changed my food habits.

            Researchers agree that environmental factors are responsible for the rise in the number of cases of Celiac disease/gluten intolerance and other food allergies.  While better techniques have led to some increase in diagnosis, the consistent and continuous finding of new cases affirms that there are environmental triggers causing these immunological responses. 

The increase in food allergy cases is not alone.

Incidences of some Cancers are also on the rise; Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, Kidney and Renal Cancer, and Cancer of the Small Intestine just to name a few.

Correlations have been made between these illnesses and increasing use of pesticides and herbicides.  Since the introduction of Genetically Modified crops in 1996, the pesticide and herbicide use has skyrocketed (additional note: there is no long-term research to conclusively prove that Genetically Modified Organisms are safe for human consumption- we are part of a huge science experiment folks!).  The herbicide use alone has increased by hundreds of millions of pounds.  There are now more than two dozen recorded herbicide resistant weeds.  Pesticides are losing their effectiveness against their targets, and are harming some beneficial insects in the process.  Pesticide use is suspected to be a cause of Colony Collapse Disorder, which is currently a big problem for honeybee-keepers (and a problem for everyone else too: no bees = no pollination = no food).  These chemicals are also ending up in streams and rivers and are polluting our water supply.  

This is an un-sustainable toxic system.   We need to take back our food supply.

Sources:

The American Journal of Gastroenterology,(19 March 2013) | doi:10.1038/ajg.2013.60

http://www.nature.com/ajg/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/ajg201360a.html

Reuters Health

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/29/us-celiac-study-idUSBRE92S0F920130329

Fox News

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/03/29/celiac-diagnoses-rose-during-2000s-study-finds/?intcmp=HPBucket#ixzz2P2ueiHzC

National Cancer Institute, Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results 

1992-2009 Incidence Data.  http://seer.cancer.gov/

Just Label It Campaign

http://justlabelit.org/about-ge-foods/environmental-impact/

Environmental Protection Agency

http://www.epa.gov/opp00001/about/intheworks/honeybee.htm