This article is an excerpt from the Shortform summary of "The Plant Paradox" by Steven R. Gundry. Shortform has the world's best summaries of books you should be reading.
Like this article? Sign up for a free trial here .
What are the dangers of Roundup Weed Killer? Is Roundup dangerous to use?
Agriculture uses many products to increase crop yield. Roundup weed killer is commonly used on products, but may expose you to dangerous chemicals.
See what the dangers of Roundup Weed Killer are and if it is safe for humans.
The Dangers of Roundup Weed Killer
The common weed killer Roundup is widely used on crops that we eat and that become animal feed, so we’re constantly exposed to its chemicals and their harmful health effects.
Normally, your gut bacteria produce three important amino acids: tryptophan, tyrosine, and phenylalanine. However, chemicals in Roundup prevent your gut bacteria from being able to make those essential amino acids, which help make serotonin (the “feel good” hormone) and contribute to thyroid hormone production.
Additionally, there are other dangers of Roundup Weed Killer:
- Roundup kills many of your good microbes, including those that digest gluten; as a result, you can become gluten-sensitive.
- Roundup can bond with gluten to make it antigenic, meaning it induces an immune response. This can cause a negative reaction to gluten even if you aren’t otherwise gluten-sensitive.
- Roundup paralyzes liver enzymes that turn vitamin D into a form that helps your body recycle cholesterol; without these enzymes, your cholesterol levels rise.
- Roundup contains glyphosate, a chemical that has been linked to cancer, kidney and liver failure, birth defects, digestive issues, infertility, higher risk of allergies, and other chronic illnesses.
Is Roundup dangerous to use? Yes and you can avoid using it. If you use Roundup and other weedkillers in your own garden, instead mix a cup of salt, a gallon of white vinegar, and a tablespoon of liquid dish soap and spray on weeds. You can also substitute Epsom salt for the salt and lemon juice for the white vinegar.
Genetically Modified Foods
With the rise of Roundup, farmers needed crops that could withstand the powerful weed killer. But there are many dangers of Roundup Weed Killer.
Genetically modified (GMO) foods were created by injecting plants with foreign genes to make the plant more resistant to insects (by producing more lectins) and more resistant to Roundup, so that farmers could easily spray a whole field with Roundup and the crops would be unharmed.
However, farmers also commonly spray non-GMO crops with Roundup as a desiccant, in order to dry them out and make them easier to harvest—and the chemicals are never removed from the plants at any point between the field and your dinner table.
The Roundup-sprayed crops either end up in your grocery store or in corn and grain feed for livestock, meaning you’re ingesting Roundup from both GMO and non-GMO crops as well as the milk and meat you consume.
In addition, besides producing higher amounts of lectins to ward off insects, GMO plants produce new proteins that your body isn’t familiar with, so your immune system doesn’t know how to read the barcodes and attacks, causing inflammation.
———End of Preview———
Like what you just read? Read the rest of the world's best summary of Steven R. Gundry's "The Plant Paradox" at Shortform .
Here's what you'll find in our full The Plant Paradox summary :
- Why eating more vegetables isn't enough, and why some vegetables are toxic to your body
- The science behind lectins and how they tear apart your body, making you fat and sick
- The 6-week program to get your body back on healthy grack
