Toxin from GM crops found in human blood reports India Today

[JohnyCanuck]

From India Today:

Till now, scientists and multinational corporations promoting GM crops have maintained that Bt toxin poses no danger to human health as the protein breaks down in the human gut. But the presence of this toxin in human blood shows that this does not happen.

Scientists from the University of Sherbrooke, Canada, have detected the insecticidal protein, Cry1Ab, circulating in the blood of pregnant as well as non-pregnant women.

They have also detected the toxin in fetal blood, implying it could pass on to the next generation. The research paper has been peer-reviewed and accepted for publication in the journal Reproductive Toxicology. The study covered 30 pregnant women and 39 women who had come for tubectomy at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Sherbrooke (CHUS) in Quebec.

None of them had worked or lived with a spouse working in contact with pesticides.

They were all consuming typical Canadian diet that included GM foods such as soybeans, corn and potatoes. Blood samples were taken before delivery for pregnant women and at tubal ligation for non-pregnant women. Umbilical cord blood sampling was done after birth.

Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/toxin-from-gm-crops-found-in-human-blood/1/137728.html

[Mojorabbit]

1. Glad to see documentation. nt

[Trillo]

2. It's blowing in the wind,

swimming in the water,
and the air you breathe.
It's in the food you eat.

It would never get in your blood!

[JohnyCanuck]

3. Bt toxin found in human blood is not harmless

NOTE: GM lobbyists are claiming it doesn't matter if the Bt toxin is turning up in people's blood because the Bt toxin is natural, known to be harmless to humans, and has been safely used for decades in agriculture in the form of natural insecticidal sprays, including in organic farming. In addition, they say, Bt crops have been tested and approved as safe.

But the Bt toxin produced in GM crops is not the same as the natural Bt toxin. The process of genetic engineering changes it (as is admitted even by the pro-GM website GMO Safety). And testing is not actually performed on the Bt toxin extracted from GM plants, which would be the scientific way, as it is claimed that it is too expensive to isolate. Instead, testing is done on Bt toxin isolated from E. coli bacteria (as is the norm for GM risk assessments). The protein would be different from that present in the actual GM crop.

GM Bt toxins are engineered into plants with promoters designed to keep the Bt toxin protein expressing in every cell of the plant. The Bt is ingested by animals and people who consume crop plants like Bt maize. The natural Bt used in agricultural sprays, by contrast, degrades rapidly in daylight and does not end up being eaten by people, so it is unlikely to ever end up in consumers' bodies.

This is fortunate because even natural Bt can cause harm when ingested. While the GM lobbying website, GMO Safety, claims, "the Bt protein is harmless to mammals and humans", in fact, studies show that natural Bt toxin has ill effects on laboratory animals, producing a potent immune response and enhancing the immune response to other substances:

http://www.gmwatch.org/component/content/article/13142

[proverbialwisdom]

4. This issue transcends politics. Both Laura Bush & Michelle Obama publicly chose organics (nonGMO).

GMOs weren't on my radar until I saw The World According to Monsanto in multiple parts pulled from youtube shortly after I began watching, causing me to search elsewhere online for the film. I found it here:

http://adventuresinautism.blogspot.com/2008/05/monsanto-gmos-world-according-to.html

May 2, 2008

Monsanto GMOs: The World According to Monsanto

“Monsanto should not have to vouchsafe for the safety of biotech food, our interest is in selling as much as possible. Assuring its safety is the FDA’s job.”

- Phil Angell, Director of Corporate Communication – Monsanto
New York Times, Oct. 25, 1998

"Monsanto came to Arthur Anderson to look at how they wanted to position themselves, and they asked them, 'where do you want to be with Monsanto in 20 or 30 years?' And the answer was, 'We want to control the global food supply".

- Kirk Azevedo, former Monsanto employee

If you eat food, you need to watch this documentary: VIDEO The World According to Monsanto (updated: found a working source for the film)

<...>

I've been reading the blog ever since. Here's one of the latest posts:

http://adventuresinautism.blogspot.com/2012/05/stop-what-you-are-doing-and-watch-this.html

May 30, 2012

Stop What You Are Doing And Watch This Video: Jeffrey Smith on GMOs and Autism

Four years ago I watched The World According to Monsanto, and was horrified to learn that I had been feeding my children poison. We had switched Chandler to a SCD diet the year before, and saw dramatic improvement in his behavior, language, happiness, relationships, and his puffy belly went flat. Check out my posts on his gains from the spring of 2007:

Chandler Does a New Thing
Webster's New Friend Chandler
"Five."
"March 11"

I wondered if his healing was not just because I had been giving him only simple sugars, but also because this diet was now organic, and he was not getting GMOs any more.

I wrote about it in post entitled, Monsanto GMOs: My Questions about Monsanto's GMOs and Autism ( http://adventuresinautism.blogspot.com/2008/05/monsanto-gmos-world-according-to.html ). I got a response from Árpád Pusztai, one of the worlds experts on Lectins who got Wakefielded when he discovered that gm foods caused autoimmunity, GI problems and acted as an adjuvant in lab rats. He said, yes, it was plausible that GMOs could be facilitating some of the damage we see in our kids with an "autism" diagnosis ( http://adventuresinautism.blogspot.com/2008/05/monsanto-gmos-arpad-pusztai-looks-at.html ).

Now THE master of the GMO fight, Jeffrey Smith is confirming that it is likely part of the assault on our kids is by Monsanto and her sister witches. He gave an amazing presentation at Autism One, and if there is only one speech you watch from that conference, it should be this one. This is the speech he gave there. And this is not just for those with autism. Everyone with a mouth should watch this.

Watch it!

VIDEO: http://player.vimeo.com/video/42733474

Read his full discussion on the topic here: http://responsibletechnology.org/autism

http://responsibletechnology.org/autism

Are Genetically Engineered Foods Promoting Autism?
by Jeffrey M Smith

“It appears there is a direct correlation between GMOs and autism.” --Arden Anderson, MD, PhD, MPH

PDF: http://issuu.com/arlyt/docs/autism_booklet/1


<...>

Pesticide-producing corn may be the culprit

When considering intestinal permeability, concern about the Bt-toxin in GMO crops looms large. This poison is designed to create holes (pores) in the digestive tract of insects. That is how it kills them.13

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which labels Bt corn and Bt cotton plants as registered pesticides, insists that Bt-toxin will have absolutely no influence on human or mammalian cells. But research published in the Journal of Applied Toxicology 14 this past February proves them wrong. Researchers “documented that modified Bt toxins [from GM plants] are not inert on human cells, but can exert toxicity.” In high concentrations (generally higher than that produced in average Bt corn), Bt-toxin disrupts the membrane in just 24 hours, causing certain fluid to leak through the cell walls. The authors specifically note, “This may be due to pore formation like in insect cells.” Thus, Bt-toxin may indeed create small holes in our intestines.

Dr. Gordon warns, “If [Bt-toxin] is causing an increased propensity for our intestine to become permeable or leaky and for foods to be presented to our bloodstream in a premature fashion, the havoc that it will cause will be across the entire spectrum of disease, from premature aging and Alzheimer’s to Parkinson’s to autism to cancer to asthma.”

Numerous professionals believe that Bt toxin produced in corn is already accelerating many diseases in the US. Arden Andersen, DO, PhD, MPH, believes Bt toxin is specifically implicated in the development of autism.

<...>

Living Pesticide Factories Inside Us

A more dangerous scenario would be if the Bt-gene produced in Monsanto’s corn were to transfer to our gut bacteria. If so, it might convert our intestinal flora into living pesticide factories. With the inside of our intestines continuously exposed, Bt-toxin might erode the integrity of our GI tract, leading to widespread gut permeability and dysfunction.

In addition, many studies implicate Bt-toxin as an allergen. In its natural state derived from soil bacteria, Bt-toxin has triggered immune responses in farm workers [20] and allergic- and flu-like symptoms in hundreds of exposed citizens.21 It also evoked immune responses 22 (and intestinal tissue damage) 23 in mice. Similarly, an Italian government study showed that mice fed Bt-corn had dramatic immune responses.24 And thousands of Indian farm workers who harvest Bt cotton are also experiencing allergic- and flu-like symptoms.25

Thus, Bt-toxin production within our intestines might simultaneously trigger immune responses, compromise our digestive tract, and expose the blood to undigested food (which may further trigger immune responses).

And now the bad news: a 2011 Canadian study conducted at Sherbrooke Hospital discovered that 93% of the pregnant women they tested had Bt-toxin from Monsanto’s corn in their blood. And so did 80% of their unborn fetuses.26

The toxin is likely to wash out of our blood fairly quickly. If that is the case, how can we explain why more than 9 out of 10 women had it circulating? It must be that the intake of Bt-toxin must be very frequent. But Canadians don’t eat that many corn chips and tortillas. They do eat lots of corn derivatives like corn syrup, but these highly processed foods no longer have the Bt-toxin present.

The authors of the study speculate that the source of the Bt-toxin in the blood must have been the meat and dairy of animals fed Bt corn. This assumes that the Bt-toxin protein remains intact through the animals’ entire digestive process and then again through the humans’ digestive process after they eat the meat or dairy.

A more plausible explanation may be that Bt-toxin genes transfer from corn chips or tortillas into our gut bacteria. The active genes then produce the poison on a continuous basis inside the intestinal tract, which then gets into our blood. And for pregnant mothers, the toxin then travels through the placenta into their fetuses.

<...>

Precaution

There are numerous theories about autism. Many blame vaccines, others say it’s genetic. The theories are not necessarily mutually exclusive as autism may be caused by several factors.

The link between autism and GMO consumption is by no means verified. Numerous studies would be required to confirm or disprove such a connection. But those won’t happen anytime soon.

Scientists who discover adverse health dangers are routinely attacked and often gagged or fired. The journal Nature describes these “strikes . . . launched from within the scientific community” as sometimes “emotional and personal,” and which can even “accuse scientists of misconduct.”27 And according to insiders around the world, they successfully suppress the much needed research.

But that hasn’t stopped numerous healthcare professionals from prescribing non-GMO diets to their patients. Indeed, the American Academy of Environmental Medicine urges all doctors to do so. And they also recommend that practitioners distribute educational materials that describe the risks and suggest ways to avoid GMOs.28

The LIA (Lyme Induced Autism) Foundation, which looks at Lyme disease and autism, has similarly urged the elimination of 100% of all GMOs from the diets of those suffering from these diseases.29 Numerous autism education programs also caution against GMOs.

Whether or not GMOs are ultimately linked to autism, animal feeding studies already implicate them in numerous other disorders. Under the sway of the biotech industry, most governments ignore these findings. And no government yet monitors the health impacts of GMO consumption on the health of their citizens.

<...>

References

1. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorders — Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, 14 Sites, United States, 2008, March 30, 2012 / 61(SS03);1-19

2. Hogendoorn H. Genetically Modified Corn (Zea mays) and Soya (Glycine soja) or Their Natural Varieties - Do Mice Have a Preference? http://www.talk2000.nl/mice/talk-Extended.htm

3. Ermakova IV. Diet with the Soya Modified by Gene EPSPS CP4 Leads to Anxiety and Aggression in Rats. 14th European Congress of Psychiatry. Nice, France, March 4-8, 2006. http://www.talk2000.nl/mice/talk-Extended.htm

4. Ermakova IV. Genetically modified soy leads to the decrease of weight and high mortality of rat pups of the first generation. Preliminary studies. Ecosinform. 2006;1:4–9.

5. http://www.autismbiomed.com/gut-diet.html

6. Buie T et al. Evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of gastrointestinal disorders in individuals with ASDs: a consensus report. Pediatrics. 2010 Jan;125 Suppl 1:S1-18.

7. Buie T, Winter H, Kushak R. Preliminary findings in gastrointestinal investigation of autistic patients. 2002. Summary: Harvard University and Mass General Hospital

8. Valicenti-McDermott M, McVicar K, Rapin I, Wershil BK, Cohen H, Shinnar S. Frequency of gastrointestinal symptoms in children with autism spectrum disorders and association with family history of autoimmune disease. J Dev Behav Pediatr. 2006 Apr;27(2 Suppl):S128-36.

9. Wasilewska J, Jarocka-Cyrta E, Kaczmarski M. [Gastrointestinal abnormalities in children with autism] [Article in Polish]. Pol Merkur Lekarski. 2009 Jul;27(157):40-3.

10. de Magistris L, Familiari V, Pascotto A, Sapone A, Frolli A, Iardino P, Carteni M, De Rosa M, Francavilla R, Riegler G, Militerni R, Bravaccio C. Alterations of the Intestinal Barrier in Patients With Autism Spectrum Disorders and in Their First-degree Relatives. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2010 Oct;51(4):418-24.

11. Wasilewska J, Jarocka-Cyrta E, Kaczmarski M. [Gastrointestinal abnormalities in children with autism] [Article in Polish]. Pol Merkur Lekarski. 2009 Jul;27(157):40-3.

12. Ewen SW, Pusztai A. Effects of diets containing genetically modified potatoes expressing Galanthus nivalis lectin on rat small intestine. Lancet, 1999;354:1353-1354.

13. http://www.bt.ucsd.edu/how_bt_work.html

14. Mesnage R, Clair E, Gress S, Then C, Székács A, Séralini, GE. (2012). Cytotoxicity on human cells of Cry1Ab and Cry1Ac Bt insecticidal toxins alone or with a glyphosate-based herbicide. J. Appl. Toxicol. doi: 10.1002/jat.2712

15. Krüger M, Große-Herrenthey A, Schrödl W, Gerlach A, Rodloff A. Visceral botulism at dairy farms in Schleswig Holstein, Germany e Prevalence of Clostridium botulinum in feces of cows, in animal feeds, in feces of the farmers, and in house dust. Anaerobe, in press.

16. Böhnel H, Behrens S, Loch P, Lube K, Gessler F. Is there a link between infant botulism and sudden infant death? Bacteriological results obtained in central Germany. Eur J Pediatr. 2001 Oct;160(10):623-8. Arnon SS, Midura TF, Damus K, Wood RM, Chin J. Intestinal infection and toxin production by Clostridium botulinum as one cause of sudden infant death syndrome. Lancet. 1978 Jun 17;1(8077):1273-7.

17. See for example, Mortality in Sheep Flocks after Grazing on Bt Cotton Fields—Warangal District, Andhra Pradesh. Report of thePreliminary Assessment, April 2006. http://www.gmfreecymru.org/pivotal_papers/mortality.htm .

18. Broderick NA et al.. Midgut bacteria required for Bacillus thuringiensis insecticidal activity. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2006, 103:15196-15199. Broderick NA et al. Contributions of gut bacteria to Bacillus thuringiensis-induced mortality vary across a range of Lepidoptera. BMC Biology 2009;7:11. http://www.biomedcentral.com/1741-7007/7/11 . Mason KL, Stepien TA, Blum JE, et al. 2011. From Commensal to Pathogen: Translocation of Enterococcus faecalis from the Midgut to the Hemocoel of Manduca sexta. mBio 2(3): doi:10.1128/mBio.00065-11.

19. Netherwood T et al. Assessing the survival of transgenic plant DNA in the human gastrointestinal tract. Nat Biotech. 2004;22:204-209.

20. Bernstein IL et al. Immune responses in farm workers after exposure to Bacillus thuringiensis pesticides. Environmental Health Perspectives. 1999;107(7):575–582.

21. Green M et al. Public health implications of the microbial pesticide Bacillus thuringiensis: An epidemiological study, Oregon, 1985-86, Amer J Public Health. 1990;80(7):848–852. Noble MA, Riben PD, and Cook GJ. Microbiological and epidemiological surveillance program to monitor the health effects of Foray 48B BTK spray (Vancouver, BC: Ministry of Forests, Province of British Columbi, Sep. 30, 1992)

22. Vazquez et al. Intragastric and intraperitoneal administration of Cry1Ac protoxin from Bacillus thuringiensis induces systemic and mucosal antibody responses in mice. 1897–1912. Vazquez et al. Characterization of the mucosal and systemic immune response induced by Cry1Ac protein from Bacillus thuringiensis HD 73 in mice. Brazilian Journal of Medical and Biological Research. 2000;33:147–155. Vazquez et al. Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1Ac protoxin is a potent systemic and mucosal adjuvant. Scandanavian Journal of Immunology. 1999;49:578–584. See also Vazquez-Padron et al. 147 (2000b).

23. Fares NH, El-Sayed AK. Fine Structural Changes in the Ileum of Mice Fed on Endotoxin Treated Potatoes and Transgenic Potatoes. Natural Toxins. 1998;6:219–233.

24. Finamore A et al. Intestinal and Peripheral Immune Response to MON810 Maize Ingestion in Weaning and Old Mice. J Agric Food Chem. 2008;56:11533-11539.

25. Gupta A et al. Impact of Bt Cotton on Farmers’ Health (in Barwani and Dhar District of Madhya Pradesh). Investigation Report, Oct–Dec 2005. Also, "Bt cotton causing allergic reaction in MP; cattle dead," Bhopal, Nov. 23, 2005.

26. Aris A, Leblanc S. Maternal and fetal exposure to pesticides associated to genetically modified foods in Eastern Townships of Quebec, Canada. Reprod Toxicol. 2011 May;31(4):528-33. Epub 2011 Feb 18.

27. Biotech proponents aggressively attack independent research papers: GM crops: Battlefield. Waltz, E., Nature 461, 2009, 27–32; see also Under wraps – Are the crop industry’s strong-arm tactics and close-fisted attitude to sharing seeds holding back independent research and undermining public acceptance of transgenic crops? Waltz, E., Nature Biotechnology, Vol. 27, No. 10, October 2009.

28. http://www.aaemonline.org/gmopost.html

29. http://www.lymeinducedautism.com/gmopositionpaper.html

[lovuian]

5. so when does India bann it America Ban it and Canada I think

has already banned it
Socialized medicine discovered it over our fantastic medical community

Fascinating!!!

[JohnyCanuck]

6. Corporation faces criminal charges for concealing study in which cows died after eating its GM corn

Dr Eva Sirinathsinghji

Biotech giant Syngenta has been criminally charged with denying knowledge that its genetically modified (GM) Bt corn kills livestock during a civil court case that ended in 2007 [1].

Syngenta’s Bt 176 corn variety expresses an insecticidal Bt toxin (Cry1Ab) derived from the bacterium, Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) and a gene conferring resistance to glufosinate herbicides. EU cultivation of Bt 176 was discontinued in 2007. Similar varieties however, including Bt 11 sweet corn are currently cultivated for human and animal consumption in the EU.

The charges follow a long struggle for justice by a German farmer whose dairy cattle suffered mysterious illnesses and deaths after eating Bt 176. They were grown on his farm as part of authorised field tests during 1997 to 2002. By 2000, his cows were fed exclusively on Bt 176, and soon illnesses started to emerge. He was paid 40 000 euros by Syngenta as partial compensation for 5 dead cows, decreased milk yields, and vet costs (see [2] Cows ate GM Maize and Died, SiS 21). During a civil lawsuit brought against the company by the farmer however, Syngenta refused to admit that its GM corn was the cause, claiming no knowledge of harm. The case was dismissed and Gloeckner remained thousands of euros in debt.

snip

But in 2009, the farmer learned of a feeding study allegedly commissioned by Syngenta in 1996 that resulted in four cows dying in two days. The trial was abruptly terminated. Now Gloeckner, along with a German group called Bündnis Aktion Gen-Klage and another farmer turned activist Urs Hans, have brought Syngenta to the criminal court to face charges of withholding knowledge of the US trial, which makes the company liable for the destruction of the farmer’s 65 cows. Syngenta is also charged with the deaths of cattle in the US trial and on Gloeckner’s farm, which should have been registered as “unexpected occurrences”. Most seriously, the German head of Syngenta Hans-Theo Jahmann, is charged for withholding knowledge of the US study from the judge and from Gloecker in the original civil court case.

snip

There is still no explanation provided by the authorities as to the cause of death of Gloeckner’s cows. The biotech industry claims that Bt toxins are quickly digested in the stomach and are only effective in insect target species. However, a recent study has found the toxin in the blood of over 80 % of women and their unborn children tested in Canada [5]. Because naturally existing Bt toxins from the soil bacterium have been used for a long time, long-term toxicology and health risk assessments on Bt proteins in GM crops were not done. However, there are important differences between the naturally produced toxins that can be washed off the crops, as opposed to genetically modified toxins that are part and parcel of the GM crop. Independent studies have shown that basing health assessments on flawed scientific assumptions is not only arrogant, but foolish. (emphasis added /JC)

http://farmwars.info/?p=8630

[proverbialwisdom]

7. Senator Bernie Sanders speaks truth to power, introduces GMO labeling amendment to Farm Bill.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/101734849

Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) introduces a GMO Labeling amendment to the Farm Bill
Posted: June 14th, 2012

Video from: http://www.democraticunderground.com/101734849