2014-12-19

Whereas, within the last 20 years there has been an alarming increase in serious illnesses in the US, along with a marked decrease in life expectancy (Bezruchka, 2012); and

Whereas, the onset of serious illness is appearing in increasingly younger populations: neurological disease (Pritchard et al., 2013); obesity, asthma, behavior & learning problems and chronic disease in children and young adults (Van Cleave et al., 2010); type II diabetes in youth (Rosenbloom et al., 1999); and

Whereas, the rate of chronic disease in the entire US population has been dramatically increasing with an estimated 25% of the US population suffering from multiple chronic diseases (Autoimmunity Research Foundation, 2012); and

Whereas, during this same time period, there has been an exponential increase in the adoption of Genetically Modified Food (GMO) crops with associated applications of glyphosate to food crops (Benbrook, 2012); and

Whereas, over 90% of corn, soy, sugar beets and canola are GMO, modified to withstand direct application of herbicides; and

Whereas, it has become routine for pre-harvest ripening to spray grain, legumes and sugar cane with glyphosate; and

Whereas, Glyphosate and its degradation product, aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) have been detected in air (Majewski et al., 2014, Chang et al., 2011), rain (Scribner et al., 2007; Majewski, 2014), groundwater (Scribner, 2007), surface water (Chang, 2011; Scribner, 2007; Coupe et al., 2012), soil (Scribner, 2007) and sea water (Mercurio et al.,2014), showing that glyphosate and AMPA persist in the soil and water and the amounts detected are increasing over time with increasing agricultural use; and

Whereas, glyphosate & AMPA residues are high in our food (residues as high as 15 parts per million have been detected in GM soybeans with no residues detected in organic or conventionally grown soy Bohn et al., 2014); and

Whereas, glyphosate bioaccumulates in organs and tissue (Kruger et al., 2014); and

Whereas, the biological pathways between glyphosate and chronic disease have been outlined (Samsel & Seneff, 2013a); and

Whereas, time trends of the rise in chronic diseases along with the rise of glyphosate use and the adoption of GM crops show very high correlations with very strong statistical significance (Swanson, 2013); and

Whereas, glyphosate has been shown to be toxic to the liver and kidneys (Cattani et al., 2014; Jayasumana et al., 2014; Lushchak et al., 2009; El-Shenawy, 2009; de Liz Oliveira Cavalli et al., 2013; Séralini et al., 2011); and

Whereas, glyphosate is a patented chelating agent (U.S. patent number 3160632 A) causing mineral deficiencies; and

Whereas, glyphosate is a patented anti-microbial & biocide (U.S. patent number 20040077608 A1 & U.S. patent number 7771736 B2) that preferentially kills beneficial bacteria in our intestines leading to nutrient deficiency, chronic intestinal diseases, inflammation, and autoimmune diseases (Samsel & Seneff, 2013b; Kruger, 2013; Shehata et al., 2012; Carman et al., 2013); and

Whereas, it is illegal to administer a drug (antibiotic and biocide) in our food without a medical license to do so; and

Whereas, glyphosate leads to teratogenicity and reproductive toxicity in vertebrates (Antoniou et al., 2012); and

Whereas, glyphosate is an endocrine disruptor (Gasnier et al., 2009; Paganelli et al., 2010; Antoniou et al., 2012; Thongprakaisang et al., 2013); and

Whereas, there are no “safe” levels of endocrine disruptors (Vandenberg et al., 2012; Bergman et al., 2013); and

Whereas, imbalances and malfunctions of the endocrine system can lead to diabetes, hypertension, obesity, kidney disease, cancers of the breast, prostate, liver, brain, thyroid, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (Marc et al., 2004; Thongprakaisang et al., 2013), osteoporosis, Cushing’s syndrome, hypo- and hyperthyroidism, infertility, birth defects, erectile dysfunction, (Soto & Sonnenschein, 2010), sexual development problems and neurological disorders such as: learning disabilities, attention deficit disorder (de Cock et al., 2012), autism (Schulkin, 2007), dementia (Ghosh, 2010), Alzheimer’s (Merlo et al., 2010), Parkinson’s and schizophrenia (MacSweeney et al., 1978); and

Whereas, endocrine disruptors are especially damaging to organisms undergoing hormonal changes: fetuses, babies, children, adolescents and the elderly (Bergman et al., 2013);

Whereas, the use of glyphosate as an herbicide for numerous decades in the USA and now as a component compound in GMO foods has adversely impacted its human exposure factor to implode within the standard of medical surveillance and care; and

Whereas, a chronically ill patient suffering from long-term, systemic poisoning will not respond to traditional treatment; and

Whereas, most medical personnel are trained only in acute poisoning and not in systemic poisoning; and

Whereas, you have sworn an oath “to apply, for the benefit of the sick, all measures which are required,” and to “prevent disease whenever I can, for prevention is preferable to cure”; and

Whereas, the liability will be on the professional who did not recognize glyphosate poisoning in his/her patients;

We, the undersigned, implore you to take the following actions:

Order toxicology tests for your chronically ill patients, in particular screening for glyphosate and its degradation product AMPA.

Educate yourselves on how to deal with systemic poisoning and detoxification.

Open the conversation with your patients, family and colleagues.

Establish a procedure for surveillance and tracking.

The medical surveillance programs for any hazardous material, such as glyphosate, are designed to systematically collect and analyze health information on exposed individuals to toxic substances. The components involved in a comprehensive medical surveillance program and how these components interrelate should include the following:

Biological Monitoring;

Protocols for testing and treating;

Determination of health hazards, exposures, and job-related risks;

Tracking systems;

Specific history of what the patient was exposed to or doing prior to their symptoms;

Exposure Monitoring System for environment, food, humans and domestic/food animals.

The biological monitoring component for glyphosate and its degradation and metabolic metabolites is a key component which is designed to anticipate disease by sampling and analyzing solid tissues, secretions or excretions. The end results of this monitoring are used to take both preventive and ongoing action for individuals exposed to environmental, workplace and food exposures.

Due to its interference with detoxifying enzymes in the liver, glyphosate enhances toxicity of other chemical exposures. Once a human exposure standard is supported that establishes a baseline of zero tolerance, one will have to address the effect of setting general examination requirements for the chemical glyphosate as well as the requirements for all other chemical exposures.

The proposed generic requirements would have a broader scope and may consist of the following:

Require initial exposure monitoring for individuals.

Specify the frequency of follow-up monitoring and increase the frequency, dependent upon the determination of systemic toxicological symptoms.

Implement specific air sampling techniques in terms of personal and/or environmental monitoring.

Develop procedures for individuals’ observance of ambient sampling.

Require medical surveillance for all individuals pre and post exposure to one half the exposure limits (to be established as a true “zero” level).

Assess pre- and post environmental health and toxicology of route of exposure and its origins for glyphosate.

Establish a standard of result of the medical exam and tests conducted, as well as any conditions that require follow-up.

Adopt biologic exposure indices for glyphosate, its metabolites and degradation.

[Update 6/20/2014] One week total: 35 medical professionals, 17 scientists and 103 concerned citizens. An e-mail account was set up to collect signatures and was instantly hacked. Signatures sent in the first 24 hours were lost.

This letter is available here for download. Print and take to your physician.

Collection of signatures is ongoing. You may sign here.

Signed,

Medical Professionals

Dr. Hildegarde Staninger, Industrial Toxicologist/IH & Doctor of Integrative Medicine; Chairperson, NREP SCADA Special Task Force Committee

Dr. Janet Starr Hull, Ph.D., CN (environmental toxicologist, author), Director of The Hullistic Network

Dr. Shiv Chopra, DVM, Ph.D. (microbiology), Fellow, World Health Organization, President, Canadian Council on Food Sovereignty & Health

Dr. Ben Colodzin, Ph.D., Psychology

Dr. Acacia Alcivar-Warren, DVM., Ph.D., Director, IMSEGI [International Marine Shrimp Environmental Genomics Initiative]

Kiki Corbin, CTN, ACSGC, Certified Traditional Naturopath

Dr. Rosemary Mason, MB ChB, FRCA. Physician/Anaesthetist, South Wales UK

Dr. Judy A. Mikovits, Ph.D., (Biochemistry and Molecular Biology), MAR Consulting Inc.

Tom A Malterre, MS, CN, President of Whole Life Nutrition

Dr. Dan Purser, MD

Dr.Tom Tang, MD, CTO of Guangxi Bestway Pharmaceutical Company, China

Sally Fallon Morell, President, The Weston A. Price Foundation

Dr. Terry Wahls, MD, Author, The Wahls Protocol

Dr. Kelly Brogan, MD

Dr. Ruth Dankanich Daumer

Dr. Michelle Perro, MD, Pediatrics, Integrative Medicine, Institute for Health and Healing

Dr. Christopher S. Rubel, MD, retired

Dr. Arpita M. Guha, D.O.

Dr. Karl Robinson, M.D.

Dr. George Guess, MD

Dr. Irene Sebastian, MD, PhD, Dht, Family Medicine

Dr. Richard Hiltner, MD, member, Board of Directors, California Homeopathic Medical Society

Lori B. Taylor, MA/MS, RD, CD, CNSC, Clinical Dietitian

Arden Andersen, D.O., M.S.P.H., Ph.D., Physician, author and agricultural scientist

Dr. Monika Kruger, University of Leipzig, Faculty of veterinary medicine

Dr. Michelle Blake, M.D.

Sonia Fullenwilder

Elizabeth Cox CMA, AAMA (American Association of Medical Assistants)

Philip Incao, MD

Dr. Lorrin Pang, MD, MPH, as private citizen, Consultant to World Health Organization 1985-2005, Current Adviser to US Congress Medical Research Program

Dr. Les Berenson MD, FACP

M. Kelly Sutton, MD, Primary care physician

Kathy Kerkof, retired PT

Dr. Angela May, MD, Pediatrician

Dr. Lindy Woodard MD, Pediatric Alternatives

Scientists

Dr. Nancy L. Swanson, Ph.D. (physics), President, Abacus Enterprises

Dr. Evaggelos Vallianatos, Ph.D., former EPA analyst

Dr. John Balatinecz, Ph.D., Emeritus Professor, University of Toronto

Dr. Stephanie Seneff, Ph.D., Senior Research Scientist, MIT

Dr. Mae Wan Ho, Ph.D., Biochemistry, Prigogine Medalist, Director, Institute of Science in Society

Dr. Peter T. Saunders, Ph.D., Theoretical Astrophysics, Emeritus Professor, King’s College, London

Dr. Don M. Huber, Plant Pathology, Professor Emeritus, Purdue University

Judy A. Hoy, Administrator of the Bitterroot Wildlife Rehabilitation Center and Independent Wildlife Researcher

Chen I-wan, adviser, Committee of Disaster Study to China Disaster Prevention Association

William Sanjour, (physics), former EPA branch chief and policy analyst

Anthony Samsel, consultant

Pamela Hallock Muller, Ph.D., Professor of Marine Science

Prof. Dr. Tony Pereira, UCLA ME Ph.D., Fulbright Scholar

Dr. Thierry Vrain, former Head of Biotechnology at Agriculture Canada

Dr. David Schubert, Ph.D. Professor, Salk Institute for Biological Studies

Dr. Warren Porter, Prof. of Zoology, Prof. of Env. Toxicology, U. of Wisconsin, Madison

Dr. Kent Blacklidge, Ph.D. (genetics), MS (aquatic toxicology), former newspaper publisher

Concerned Citizens

Carol Waldon

Don Waldon

Shoshanna Allison, Media & Networker

Cynthia Follrich

Jack Olmsted, WWGF News

Doolie Brown

David Lawrence Dewey, Author/Columnist

Alan Hetterly

Heather Arvensis, massage therapist

Howard Vlieger, crop and livestock nutrition advisor since 1992

Claire Dwoskin, President, Children’s Medical Safety Research Institute

Laurie A. Olson, Moms Across America Western Regional Organizer

Rhonda Watts-Hettinger

Ronnie Cummins, Director, Organic Consumers Association

F. William Engdahl, journalist & economist

Dr. Toni Clark, Ph.D., retired professor

Dr. Beverly Goldie, Ed.D.

T. Matthew Phillips, Attorney-at-Law

Andre Leu B.A. Com.,Grad Dip Ed., President, International Federation ofOrganic Agricultural Movements

Cynthia Zoltek

Ken Lewis

Karen Malecki

Thomas M. Morris

Allan Rydberg

Nathan Morgan

Kapil Agrawal

Jennifer Christi

Kristine Heffner

Linda Heffner

Gloria Heffner

Barbara Horn

Don Horn

Jody Heffner

Danielle Heffner

Keith Hittle

Tasha Hittle

Tara Hittle

Ave Maria Romine

Jenna Hendricks

Cheslea Lucas

Tristan Heffner

Tony Mitra

Dr. Philip H. King, Ph.D. (social scientist)

Donna Y. Adams, RPT

Fred C. Adams

Mary Stanton

Paddy McAlister, Energy Medicine Association

Christine Robitaille, Leader of the International Coalition for Food Safety (ICFS)

Sheryl McCumsey

Isabel Rawlings Cohen, Artist/Environmental Activist, Member of International Coalition for Food Safety

Dr. Adrienne Samuels, Ph.D., psychology

Helen Driscoll, Wellness Coach

Eileen Dannemann, Director, National Coalition of Organized Women

Mark von Wodtke, FASLA, Professor Emeritus of Landscape Architecture

Patrice Anita

Jayme Domejka

David Starr

Suzanne Montalalou

M. Letourneau, New York

Mrs. Betty Kegley

Vicky Carlson

Zen Honeycutt, Founder and Director, Moms Across America

Jon Abrahamson

Rebecca D. Muzychka

Diane Lalomia, President and co-leader, NoGMO4Michigan.org

Velma Manulani Wagatsuma

Shonda Adams

Tracei Cagle

Daniel Heasley

Amina yasmine eid

Tosha Knight

Petra Simone

Nick Simone

Catherine Simone

Laura McCollum

Tracy L. Breeden

Lisa Robertson

Sandy Kinter

Virginia McBride, teacher, mother of DNP, daughter of physician

Pamm Larry, Initial Instigator Prop 37, Northern California Director, LabelGMOs.org

Deb Millikan

Kalpana Mehta

Margaret Elaine McCoy

Sarah Baird, an informed mother

Laura Lee Mistycah, Author

Leslie A. Lash White, fervent environmental/health/social activist

Carla M. Saldana

Sikhumbuzo Rondo Mzobe

Henry Rowlands, Coordinator, Global GMO Free Coailtion

Jerry Carlson, Editor Emeritus, Professional Farmers of America

Cindy Black

Randolph Smith

Dr. Kun Chen, Ph.D.

Tanya Quarterman

Charles Mish

Goldie Caughlan

Winifred Adams

Robert Gamble

Rosemary Bonda- mother of 5

Robert Shrewsbury, Manti, Utah

H. Scott Allison, MS CAC

Niki Thane

David Ludden

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