7 ms·

My pet theory is that people are sensitive to the glyphosate sprayed on most wheat, not the actual gluten.

by Danihan 9y ago

kevin_thibedeau 9y ago
BS. Glyphosate doesn't last long enough to persist in plants and nobody is spraying wheat right before harvest.
- DowsingSpoon 9y ago
  >nobody is spraying wheat right before harvest Glyphosate is sometimes used as a desiccant to alter the timing of wheat harvests, ensure even ripening, and to make harvesting easier. While it's not a widespread practice, it does happen in the US.
- forgotmypw 9y ago
  The typical Glyphosate mix includes many other chemicals that do persist.
- msandford 9y ago
  > Glyphosate doesn't last long enough to persist in plants and nobody is spraying wheat right before harvest. Citation needed! Snopes says that the underlying practice is real despite a lack of evidence that the glyphosate causes the ailments: https://www.snopes.com/food/tainted/roundupwheat.asp https://www.snopes.com/food/tainted/roundupwheat.asp This paper attempts to draw some kind of causual biochemical link between glyphosate and celiac through metabolic processes: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24678255 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24678255
- abainbridge 9y ago
  The EU have acceptable "Maximum Residue Levels" of Glyphosate in foods: http://ec.europa.eu/food/plant/pesticides/eu-pesticides-database/public/?event=pesticide.residue.CurrentMRL&language=EN&pestResidueId=120 http://ec.europa.eu/food/plant/pesticides/eu-pesticides-data... In wheat it is 10 mg/kg. (Page 5 from the above link). This UK report: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/627957/pesticide-residues-quarter4-2016-report.pdf https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachm... found pesiticide residues in 90 of 96 cereal crop samples tested. However, it concluded that "None of the residues detected by the laboratory would be expected to have an effect on health." A BBC TV programme covered this issue in 2014: http://www.countryfile.com/news/pesticides-found-over-60-uks-bread http://www.countryfile.com/news/pesticides-found-over-60-uks...
- sporkenfang 9y ago
  Actually, it's a relatively popular harvesting practice for non-organic crops -- kill them all at the same time so they're all ready to harvest. Differs by region, but afaik in the US foods labelled as organic can't be harvested in this way.
VLM 9y ago
Glyphosate is banned from organic wheat farming and organic wheat flour is cheaply and widely available for experimenting. "Bobs Red Mill" and numerous other brands, etc. Glyphosate is popular when growing non-wheat non-organic produce; if a glyphosate allergy existed, it would likely not appear like a gluten allergy because most products that once contacted it are not gluten-containing. You can buy glyphosate products at home depot for experimentation. It would appear to be a cheap and simple hypothesis to test.
- legulere 9y ago
  > Glyphosate is popular when growing non-wheat non-organic produce I only know of glyphosate resistant soy which ends up in cow food. You usually don’t spray glyphosate on stuff you want to eat because it kills it, which only in the case of wheat is what you want.
  - CodeWriter23 9y ago
    Actually, farmers desiccate wheat before harvest because dying plants yield more seed. Glyphosate is among various pesticides used for desiccation.
    - saalweachter 9y ago
      Just want to chime in for other confused people (I grew up on a Midwestern farm and had never heard of the practice of desiccating wheat, so I've been reading a lot about it on the internet today) -- this appears to be a northern latitude practice - every reference I can find to it is from Canada, the UK and North Dakota, so I'm guessing this has to do with growing wheat in a shorter growing season. So it's not nearly a universal practice, but on the other hand, North Dakota does account for 20% of the US wheat production. (And on the gripping hand, I don't know what wheat distribution in the US looks like; will ND wheat tend to be consumed in a particular region, or will secondary distribution through eg packaged foods tend to distribute it nation-wide?)
saalweachter 9y ago
People spray glyphosate on wheat? Glyphosate is typically used in conjunction with "Roundup Ready" crops, or before/during planting in "no-till" crops. While Monsanto developed a Roundup Ready line of wheat, it never actually made it to market, AFAIK, so why would you be spraying glyphosate on wheat? (Serious question; while I have some background in agriculture, I'm not familiar with all of even the common practices.) ETA: Reading the Snopes link, looks like it's mainly practiced in North Dakota, which explains why I've never heard of it.
- seanot 9y ago
  It's not practiced in ND out anywhere else. The export market won't accept it and it's not deliverable against spring wheat futures so it's not marketable and never has been.
- baq 9y ago
  It makes the wheat ready for harvest all at the same time.
pdabbadabba 9y ago
But then why only gluten/wheat products, and not other crops treated with glyphosate?
- abainbridge 9y ago
  The EU limit for the residual amount of glyphosate allowed in wheat is higher than many other crops, so maybe that's why. But barley and soya beans, for example, are even higher.
kaitai 9y ago
A piece of evidence to add to the puzzle: new study just came out in JAMA looking at urine levels of glyphosate in older adults in California. It's increased a lot over the last few decades. Humans are definitely getting a lot of it. https://media.jamanetwork.com/news-item/study-finds-increase-herbicide-older-adults/ https://media.jamanetwork.com/news-item/study-finds-increase...
lj3 9y ago
I'll see your pet theory and raise you mine: most people are sensitive to the additives added to fortified wheat sold in the States, especially Vitamin B[0] and Iron[1]. [0]: https://freetheanimal.com/2016/05/enrichment-promotes-everything.html https://freetheanimal.com/2016/05/enrichment-promotes-everyt... [1]: https://freetheanimal.com/2015/06/enrichment-theory-everything.html https://freetheanimal.com/2015/06/enrichment-theory-everythi...
- lsniddy 9y ago
  also related https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1600/0*pBs90R1LfdGOfpTS.png https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1600/0*pBs90R1LfdGOfpTS....
- Danihan 9y ago
  This makes even more sense. I was constantly trying to figure out why people with gluten sensitivities don't have reactions in most European countries. The enrichment theory seems pretty persuasive.

My pet theory is that people are sensitive to the glyphosate sprayed on most wheat, not the actual gluten.

kevin_thibedeau 9y ago

BS. Glyphosate doesn't last long enough to persist in plants and nobody is spraying wheat right before harvest.

DowsingSpoon 9y ago
>nobody is spraying wheat right before harvest Glyphosate is sometimes used as a desiccant to alter the timing of wheat harvests, ensure even ripening, and to make harvesting easier. While it's not a widespread practice, it does happen in the US.
forgotmypw 9y ago
The typical Glyphosate mix includes many other chemicals that do persist.
msandford 9y ago
> Glyphosate doesn't last long enough to persist in plants and nobody is spraying wheat right before harvest. Citation needed! Snopes says that the underlying practice is real despite a lack of evidence that the glyphosate causes the ailments: https://www.snopes.com/food/tainted/roundupwheat.asp https://www.snopes.com/food/tainted/roundupwheat.asp This paper attempts to draw some kind of causual biochemical link between glyphosate and celiac through metabolic processes: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24678255 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24678255
abainbridge 9y ago
The EU have acceptable "Maximum Residue Levels" of Glyphosate in foods: http://ec.europa.eu/food/plant/pesticides/eu-pesticides-database/public/?event=pesticide.residue.CurrentMRL&language=EN&pestResidueId=120 http://ec.europa.eu/food/plant/pesticides/eu-pesticides-data... In wheat it is 10 mg/kg. (Page 5 from the above link). This UK report: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/627957/pesticide-residues-quarter4-2016-report.pdf https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachm... found pesiticide residues in 90 of 96 cereal crop samples tested. However, it concluded that "None of the residues detected by the laboratory would be expected to have an effect on health." A BBC TV programme covered this issue in 2014: http://www.countryfile.com/news/pesticides-found-over-60-uks-bread http://www.countryfile.com/news/pesticides-found-over-60-uks...
sporkenfang 9y ago
Actually, it's a relatively popular harvesting practice for non-organic crops -- kill them all at the same time so they're all ready to harvest. Differs by region, but afaik in the US foods labelled as organic can't be harvested in this way.

VLM 9y ago

Glyphosate is banned from organic wheat farming and organic wheat flour is cheaply and widely available for experimenting. "Bobs Red Mill" and numerous other brands, etc. Glyphosate is popular when growing non-wheat non-organic produce; if a glyphosate allergy existed, it would likely not appear like a gluten allergy because most products that once contacted it are not gluten-containing. You can buy glyphosate products at home depot for experimentation. It would appear to be a cheap and simple hypothesis to test.

legulere 9y ago
> Glyphosate is popular when growing non-wheat non-organic produce I only know of glyphosate resistant soy which ends up in cow food. You usually don’t spray glyphosate on stuff you want to eat because it kills it, which only in the case of wheat is what you want.
- CodeWriter23 9y ago
  Actually, farmers desiccate wheat before harvest because dying plants yield more seed. Glyphosate is among various pesticides used for desiccation.
  - saalweachter 9y ago
    Just want to chime in for other confused people (I grew up on a Midwestern farm and had never heard of the practice of desiccating wheat, so I've been reading a lot about it on the internet today) -- this appears to be a northern latitude practice - every reference I can find to it is from Canada, the UK and North Dakota, so I'm guessing this has to do with growing wheat in a shorter growing season. So it's not nearly a universal practice, but on the other hand, North Dakota does account for 20% of the US wheat production. (And on the gripping hand, I don't know what wheat distribution in the US looks like; will ND wheat tend to be consumed in a particular region, or will secondary distribution through eg packaged foods tend to distribute it nation-wide?)

saalweachter 9y ago

People spray glyphosate on wheat? Glyphosate is typically used in conjunction with "Roundup Ready" crops, or before/during planting in "no-till" crops. While Monsanto developed a Roundup Ready line of wheat, it never actually made it to market, AFAIK, so why would you be spraying glyphosate on wheat? (Serious question; while I have some background in agriculture, I'm not familiar with all of even the common practices.) ETA: Reading the Snopes link, looks like it's mainly practiced in North Dakota, which explains why I've never heard of it.

seanot 9y ago
It's not practiced in ND out anywhere else. The export market won't accept it and it's not deliverable against spring wheat futures so it's not marketable and never has been.
baq 9y ago
It makes the wheat ready for harvest all at the same time.

pdabbadabba 9y ago

But then why only gluten/wheat products, and not other crops treated with glyphosate?

abainbridge 9y ago
The EU limit for the residual amount of glyphosate allowed in wheat is higher than many other crops, so maybe that's why. But barley and soya beans, for example, are even higher.

kaitai 9y ago

A piece of evidence to add to the puzzle: new study just came out in JAMA looking at urine levels of glyphosate in older adults in California. It's increased a lot over the last few decades. Humans are definitely getting a lot of it. https://media.jamanetwork.com/news-item/study-finds-increase-herbicide-older-adults/ https://media.jamanetwork.com/news-item/study-finds-increase...

lj3 9y ago

I'll see your pet theory and raise you mine: most people are sensitive to the additives added to fortified wheat sold in the States, especially Vitamin B[0] and Iron[1]. [0]: https://freetheanimal.com/2016/05/enrichment-promotes-everything.html https://freetheanimal.com/2016/05/enrichment-promotes-everyt... [1]: https://freetheanimal.com/2015/06/enrichment-theory-everything.html https://freetheanimal.com/2015/06/enrichment-theory-everythi...

lsniddy 9y ago
also related https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1600/0*pBs90R1LfdGOfpTS.png https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1600/0*pBs90R1LfdGOfpTS....
Danihan 9y ago
This makes even more sense. I was constantly trying to figure out why people with gluten sensitivities don't have reactions in most European countries. The enrichment theory seems pretty persuasive.