Pesticides in kids’ cereals
Huge amounts of pesticides were found in popular oat-based cereals, oatmeal, granola, and snack bars your kids are likely eating. To learn that many popular oats products are high in pesticides is alarming! I buy organic, and the majority of those were low in pesticides, thank goodness! Please take a look at the data yourself (see table below).
Glyphosate Does Not Belong In Cereal, Or In Your Body
Pesticide residue in oats is so common that 43 of the 45 samples studied contained the pesticide glyphosate (the active ingredient in Roundup). Glyphosate is the most heavily used pesticide in America, and it’s linked to cancer and so many other terrible health conditions.
Almost three-fourths of the popular products tested in this study had glyphosate levels higher than what EWG scientists consider protective of children’s health (160 ppb). 31 of the 45 samples made with conventionally grown oats had more than 160 ppb of glyphosate per serving.
Don’t take glyphosate in your food lightly – it’s patented as a pesticide, antibiotic and chelating agent (binds minerals). On top of that, it’s one of many hormone disruptors, which mimics estrogen in your body. Glyphosate was originally developed as a cleaner to remove the calcium deposits off big machines, so no wonder it’s so detrimental to our body. Glyphosate isn’t the only harmful substance we’re exposed to just about every single day.
Levels of glyphosate in your body are cumulative because it stores in fatty tissues—fat cells. Your liver will detoxify it if your liver is healthy.
What Constitutes Dangerous Levels of Glyphosate?
Each year more than 250 million pounds of glyphosate are sprayed on American and Canadians crops, primarily on “Roundup-ready” corn and soybeans genetically engineered to withstand the herbicide.
https://www.cropscience.bayer.ca/croppage/cereal
The Environmental Working Group’s benchmark for daily exposure to glyphosate for protecting children’s health is 160 ppb. The Environmental Working Group calculated a one-in-a-million cancer risk would be posed by ingesting 0.01 milligrams of glyphosate per day. To reach this maximum dose, you would have to eat a single 60-gram serving of food with a glyphosate level of 160 parts per billion, or ppb.
Is Glyphosate In The Conventional Oats You Buy?
Take a look at this chart…the majority of samples of conventional oat products exceeded 160 ppb – Quaker Old-Fashioned Oats, Quaker Steel Cut Oats, Cheerios, Lucky Charms, Quaker granola – they all FAILED miserably.
If a child eats one product that exceeds 160 ppb per serving, or they eat two of these foods or a larger portion per day, they’re far exceeding what’s healthy. Those amounts add up very fast!
New EWG Tests Find Glyphosate in All Cheerios and Quaker Oats Cereals Sampled
Type of Food | Product Name | Glyphosate (ppb) | Lab | |
Sample 1 | Sample 2 | |||
Granola | Quaker Simply Granola Oats, Honey & Almonds | 625 | 862 | Anresco |
Instant oats
|
Quaker Instant Oatmeal Cinnamon & Spice | 128 | 45 | Anresco |
Instant oats
|
Quaker Instant Oatmeal Apples & Cinnamon | 543 | 248 | Anresco |
Instant oats | Quaker Real Medleys Super Grains Banana Walnut | 608 | Anresco | |
Overnight oats
|
Quaker Overnight Oats Raisin Walnut & Honey Heaven | 1029 | Anresco | |
Overnight oats
|
Quaker Overnight Oats Unsweetened with Chia Seeds | 1799 | Anresco | |
Oat breakfast cereal
|
Quaker Oatmeal Squares Brown Sugar | 2746 | Anresco | |
Oat breakfast cereal | Quaker Oatmeal Squares Honey Nut | 2837 | Anresco | |
Oat breakfast cereal | Apple Cinnamon Cheerios | 868 | Anresco | |
Oat breakfast cereal | Very Berry Cheerios | 810 | Anresco | |
Oat breakfast cereal
|
Chocolate Cheerios | 826 | Anresco | |
Oat breakfast cereal | Frosted Cheerios | 756 | 893 | Anresco |
Oat breakfast cereal | Fruity Cheerios | 618 | Anresco | |
Oat breakfast cereal | Honey Nut Cheerios | 833 | 894 | Anresco |
Oat breakfast cereal | Cheerios Oat Crunch Cinnamon | 1171 | 541 | Anresco |
Snack bar
|
Quaker Chewy S’mores | 260 | 572 | Anresco |
Snack bar
|
Quaker Chewy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip | 625 | 275 | Anresco |
Snack bar
|
Quaker Breakfast Squares Soft Baked Bars Peanut Butter | 1014 | 713 | Anresco |
Snack bar
|
Quaker Breakfast Flats Crispy Snack Bars Cranberry Almond | 894 | Anresco |
www.anresco.com/new-era-of-glyphosate-testing-in-food-2/
How Does Glyphosate Get Into Organic Food?
Glyphosate was detected at concentrations of 10 ppb to 30 ppb in five of 16 samples made with organic oats. This could be because glyphosate drifts from nearby fields of conventionally grown crops, or by cross-contamination during processing at a facility that also handles non-organic crops. Glyphosate is able to adhere to water and soil particles long enough to travel through the air or in a stream to nearby organic farms.
What Can Parents Do?
Parents shouldn’t have to wonder whether feeding their children oat-containing foods will also expose them to a pesticide that increase the risk of cancer.
- Definitely purchase only organic oats and organic cerealssince those did have lower glyphosate levels overall.
I always use one particular organic brand, so I emailed the company to ask questions about their oats, such as whether they’re tested for glyphosate, and if so, what were the results. It’s time-consuming, but definitely worth it!
- There are urine tests that can measure glyphosate levels in the body. An Organic Acid test has a glyphosate tox screen on it.
- Support your kiddo’s liver and gut microbiome through diet and kid-friendly supplements. Cruciferous vegetables promote normal detoxification, so serve those at least a couple times per week.
KH,DB