Thank you so much for bringing attention to this issue. I wrote the original article that explains how I, a scientist and mom, approached putting glyphosate levels of 11 ppb in context. I did this by looking up the official safety guidelines in the US and Europe and seeing how many burgers it would take to get anywhere close to this. Somewhere between 5,000 and 25,000.
As I am relatively new to this arena (my PhD is in genetics and I am a self-taught nutrition nerd) I thanked SciMoms and Mommy PhD for some of their articles that helped me in my research.
I have stayed away from the GMO debate and the glyphosate because they are so charged. Yet, when I learned about Moms of America, and watched their video on “What is a GMO”, I couldn’t hold myself back. In the video, which opens with “I’m not a scientist, I’m not a physician, but I’ve read a lot of books (eg NYT bestsellers…) let me tell you about GMOs”. She concludes with a story about how her friend, a single mom, switched from conventional produce to organic produce, and her child’s autism disappeared. The unsaid, but totally clear, implication was that unless you put all your pennies into organic produce, you are potentially harming your children. This, to me, is an unacceptable message to be sending.
I’m not sure if they realize it, but those who proudly tell you that they only feed their families organic produce are essentially saying “sucks to be you” to those who can’t afford it. Our country is struggling enough as it is with meeting the recommended intakes of fruits and vegetables. Suggesting that the more affordably priced conventional ones are poisons is NOT helping.
It’s particularly ironic that that my reference to SciMoms was criticized because of their article on breastfeeding. These discussions have several common themes: mom guilt; a refusal to consider recognize that parents need to make tradeoffs; lack of perspective on magnitude of benefit / risk.
I highly recommend reading the SciMoms article and a similar article by economist and mom Emily Oster, author of Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom Is Wrong — and What You Really Need to Know.
https://scimoms.com/is-breast-really-best-and-is-formula-harmful/
These articles are not meant to discourage breastfeeding. They are intended to allow you to make an informed choice — and get over your guilt if you don’t have a choice.
That’s my mission, too.
See more of my perspectives here: https://fueledbyscience.com
