Overwhelmed. Afraid. Confused. A wet spot on your shirt from holding a baby whose diaper needs to be changed…
Have you ever felt any of those? There’s a good chance if you’re a parent doing the hard or what we affectionately call the “heart” work of raising and feeding children, then you’ve probably treaded the waters with these feelings, if not felt at times like you’re drowning in them! We certainly have.
But even more troubling than a pee-soaked shirt is all the “noise” on social and conventional media around feeding your child. One minute you’re feeling like you’re winning at parenting because you check the label and discover that Cheerios are low in sugar and high in iron. But the next minute you’re feeling like the worst parent ever because you see a story about how Cheerios are glyphosate-covered toxins in a box, then another story about the necessity of shopping the elusive clean15 list to avoid pesticides, and then another from a random influencer (with zero credentials) telling you that you’ll turn into an alien if you eat food that has been genetically modified.
All that to say, we get it. Times are…confusing to say the least.
In this article we’re going to help you through these concerns and ease your mind. We’re talking about glyphosate (aka Roundup) because it matters.
You deserve to understand what it is, why it’s used, and whether its use in growing the foods you eat is harmful.
So, let’s get into it.
Table of Contents
What is glyphosate and how is it used?
Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, is a herbicide that targets unwanted plants, like weeds, in agricultural settings, forestry, residential, and commercial environments.
It works by inhibiting a specific enzyme pathway (the shikimic acid pathway if you want to get really technical) that’s crucial for the growth of certain plants and microbes but does not exist in animals or humans. This makes it effective for weed control without directly impacting animals or people.
Farmers use glyphosate selectively, applying it only when necessary to manage weeds that would otherwise compete with crops for precious resources like sunlight, water, and nutrients. Without tools like glyphosate, farmers could face nearly double the crop losses due to weeds, insects, and other pests.
What would this mean for the rest of us? A negative impact on the availability and affordability of food for families.
One of the benefits of using glyphosate, in conjunction with herbicide-tolerant crops, is that it allows for “no-till” or conservation tillage practices. This means that the soil isn’t being mechanically tilled and disturbed as often, which protects the soil by reducing erosion, maintaining soil health, and lowering carbon emissions since less machinery (remember, machines need fuel) is needed to turn the soil over.
Earlier, we used the term tools. This is an important term to keep in mind because chemical pest protection is ONE tool farmers lean on to support their farms. There are lots of other neat tools like genetic engineering, gene editing, crop rotation, and precision agriculture using GPS technology and more.
Is glyphosate found in breakfast cereals?
The short answer is: no, not in amounts that are anywhere near harmful to human health.
But you probably don’t want the short answer. So let’s get into all of it.
Health Canada’s Pesticide Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) sets strict limits on the amount of pesticide residue allowed to remain on crops, known as Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs). These limits ensure that pesticides are used safely and are set far, like really far, at least 100 times below the amount that could cause harm, even if consumed daily.
These safety thresholds are based on thorough scientific research and consider vulnerable groups like infants, children, and pregnant women. Notably, these limits apply to all foods sold in Canada, whether grown locally or imported.
We know that very little (if any) glyphosate residues remain on the food we eat. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s testing showed that 100% of oats contain residues below the maximum safety limits (MRLs) and 99.7% of oats tested contained NO detectable trace whatsoever.
Is glyphosate toxic?
Have you ever heard the expression ‘the dose makes the poison?’
There are a few factors to consider whether a substance is labeled ‘toxic’ or not.
- exposure: meaning how much of the substance is ingested or enters the bloodstream
- whether the exposure is acute (within a short timespan) or chronic (over a long timespan
- and, very importantly, how the substance behaves while inside the body.
Let’s analyze glyphosate through these lenses.
How much of the substance is ingested or enters the bloodstream
Again, we know that very little (if any) glyphosate residue remains on the food we eat. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s testing showed that 100% of oats contain residues below the maximum residue limits (MRL) and 99.7% of oats tested contained NO detectable trace whatsoever. Those figures are 99.1% and 85% respectively for wheat.
Remember, MRLs are set at levels far below (at least 100x below) the level we know has no negative impact on health. So, even when residues test above MRLs, the would not be at a level that would impact health.
Whether the exposure is acute or chronic
The risk assessments by the EPA (US Environmental Protection Agency) and Health Canada look at the chronic exposure. But what about acute exposure? Even then, glyphosate poses very little risk. There are several commonplace items that are MORE acutely toxic.
Here’s how much of a substance you’d need to reach a lethal dose:
42mg/kg of Vitamin D
192mg/kg of caffeine
3000mg/kg of table salt
4900mg/kg of glyphosate
In other words, things that are essential to life (coffee is essential, right??), are more toxic than glyphosate. Just for the sake of context, that cup of coffee you love has 95 mg caffeine per cup. If an adult weighs 65 kg, the lethal dose would be 12,480 mg of caffeine aka 131 cups…you get the point.
Oh, and by the way, rotenone and the highly controversial copper sulfate, two pesticides used readily in organic food production, are also more acutely toxic than glyphosate.
How the substance behaves while inside the body
This is essentially the reason why glyphosate is considered practically non-toxic. When glyphosate enters the bloodstream, it doesn’t do anything- it simply gets excreted in the urine.
Reports of glyphosate residue in urine have been surfacing in the media, and can seem pretty alarming! But this simply means that the body is just doing a good job of eliminating what it doesn’t need! Additionally, detection technology is so advanced now that we can detect parts per billion -think one droplet of water in an Olympic-sized pool. Essentially, if we go looking for trace amounts of any substance, we can find it; not because there’s more of it, but because technology allows us to.
In short, we know that we’re being exposed to very tiny amounts of glyphosate that the body can easily handle without any toxic effects.
Does glyphosate cause cancer?
Alright, we’ve established that glyphosate is virtually non-toxic. So why are people claiming it causes cancer?
This is likely due to the way the International Agency for Research on Cancer, aka IARC (an arm of the World Health Organization) classifies substances.
This organization categorizes substances as either carcinogenic, probably carcinogenic, possibly carcinogenic, or not classifiable.
The IARC classifies glyphosate in the probably carcinogenic category, along with frying food at high temperatures, hot beverages, and working night shifts. The data they’ve reviewed demonstrate that there’s limited or no evidence that it causes cancer in humans but when test animals are exposed at extremely high doses (that would never translate to real life situations), they find evidence for carcinogenicity.
However, it’s extremely important to keep in mind that they don’t take real-life exposure into account.
Unlike every other major regulatory and research agency globally, the information the IARC uses to calculate risk is based on hazard, meaning they evaluate the potential to cause cancer without considering exposure.
Let’s look at some of these terms we’re using! A hazard in anything that could potentially cause harm. Driving in a car is a hazard to your safety because it could potentially crash. Exposure would be how often you drive a car. A risk is how likely a hazard may cause harm. In the driving example, the risk to your safety increases the more often you drive.
Meanwhile regulatory agencies like Health Canada evaluate risk by looking at hazard and exposure. In the case of glyphosate, its low level of toxicity coupled with the low levels at which consumers are exposed to it means it can be safely used by farmers to help grow food.
To further put things into perspective, here are a few things that are in the higher risk category where there is sufficient evidence for cancer in humans: processed meat, alcohol, and smoking tobacco.
When taking risk into account, all these major organizations have all concluded that glyphosate is not likely to be a carcinogen at the level we are exposed to it.
Why are parents/social media influencers concerned?
You might be wondering, well then why are people telling me to worry about glyphosate?
The first thing you need to know is that a lot of this information is actually misinformation. Unfortunately, misinformation spreads far, wide and fast.
Much of the fear surrounding glyphosate stems from media reports and lawsuits that suggest links between glyphosate exposure and health issues like cancer. Although regulatory agencies such as Health Canada, The European Food Safety Authority and the US Food and Drug Administration have reviewed glyphosate’s safety and deemed it low-risk when used properly, the sensationalist headlines are often enough to spark worry, especially for parents.
This concern is amplified by social media influencers, many of whom lack scientific credentials but hold significant sway with parents. These influencers tend to share simplified, and sometimes exaggerated messages about “toxins”, glyphosate included. But honestly, we’ve even come across influencers bad mouthing fruit and oats recently, so none of it is making sense for us anymore, people!
Fear-based content generates attention and engagement, which can lead to a rise in “fear mongering,” where risks are overstated or presented without context. For example, terms like “toxic” and “carcinogen” are often used without explaining the actual level of risk or exposure necessary to cause harm, creating an atmosphere of panic.
At its core, this fear is understandable—parents want to make the safest choices for their children. Unfortunately, the loudest voices are not always the most informed, which leaves parents feeling overwhelmed and unsure about what’s safe to feed their families.
Does glyphosate make food less nutritious?
Glyphosate doesn’t change the nutritional quality of the crops it’s used on. Whether it’s glyphosate or other pest control tools that are used, the food itself is not changed.
