The stories became far too frequent to ignore. Emails from folks with
allergic or digestive issues to wheat in the United States experienced
no symptoms whatsoever when they tried eating pasta on vacation in
Italy.
Confused parents wondering why wheat consumption sometimes triggered
autoimmune reactions in their children but not at other times.
In my own home, I’ve long pondered why my husband can eat the
wheat I prepare at home, but he experiences negative digestive effects eating even a single roll in a restaurant.
There is clearly something going on with wheat that is not well known
by the general public. It goes far and beyond organic versus
nonorganic, gluten or hybridization because even conventional wheat
triggers no symptoms for some who eat wheat in other parts of the world.
What indeed is going on with wheat?
For quite some time, I secretly harbored
the notion that wheat in the United States must, in fact, be
genetically modified. GMO wheat secretly invading the North American
food supply seemed the only thing that made sense and could account for
the varied experiences I was hearing about.
I reasoned that it couldn’t be the gluten or wheat hybridization.
Gluten and wheat hybrids have been consumed for thousands of years. It
just didn’t make sense that this could be the reason for so many people
suddenly having problems with wheat and gluten in general in the past
5-10 years.
Finally, the answer came over dinner a couple of months ago with a
friend who was well versed in the wheat production process. I started
researching the issue for myself, and was, quite frankly, horrified at
what I discovered.
The good news is that the reason wheat has become so toxic in the
United States is not because it is secretly GMO as I had feared (thank
goodness!).
The bad news is that the problem lies with the manner in which wheat is grown and harvested by conventional wheat farmers.
You’re going to want to sit down for this one. I’ve had some folks
burst into tears in horror when I passed along this information before.
Common wheat harvest protocol in
the United States is to drench the wheat fields with Roundup several
days before the combine harvesters work through the fields as the
practice allows for an earlier, easier and bigger harvest.
Pre-harvest application of the herbicide Roundup or other herbicides
containing the deadly active ingredient glyphosate to wheat and barley
as a desiccant was suggested as early as 1980. It has since become
routine over the past 15 years and is used as a drying agent 7-10 days
before harvest within the conventional farming community.

According to Dr. Stephanie Seneff of MIT who has
studied the issue in depth
and who I recently saw present on the subject at a nutritional
Conference in Indianapolis, desiccating non-organic wheat crops with
glyphosate just before harvest came into vogue late in the 1990’s with
the result that most of the non-organic wheat in the United States is
now contaminated with it. Seneff explains that
when you expose
wheat to a toxic chemical like glyphosate, it actually releases more
seeds resulting in a slightly greater yield: “It ‘goes to seed’ as it dies. At its last gasp, it releases the seed” says Dr. Seneff.
According to the US Department of Agriculture, as of 2012, 99% of
durum wheat, 97% of spring wheat, and 61% of winter wheat has been
treated with herbicides. This is an increase from 88% for durum wheat,
91% for spring wheat and 47% for winter wheat since 1998.
Here’s what
wheat farmer Keith Lewis has to say about the practice:
I have been a wheat farmer for 50 yrs and one wheat
production practice that is very common is applying the herbicide
Roundup (glyposate) just prior to harvest. Roundup is licensed for
preharvest weed control. Monsanto, the manufacturer of Roundup claims
that application to plants at over 30% kernel moisture result in roundup
uptake by the plant into the kernels. Farmers like this practice
because Roundup kills the wheat plant allowing an earlier harvest.
A wheat field often ripens unevenly, thus applying Roundup preharvest
evens up the greener parts of the field with the more mature. The
result is on the less mature areas Roundup is translocated into the
kernels and eventually harvested as such.
This practice is not licensed. Farmers mistakenly
call it “desiccation.” Consumers eating products made from wheat flour
are undoubtedly consuming minute amounts of Roundup. An interesting
aside, malt barley which is made into beer is not acceptable in the
marketplace if it has been sprayed with preharvest Roundup. Lentils and
peas are not accepted in the market place if it was sprayed with
preharvest roundup….. but wheat is ok.. This farming practice greatly
concerns me and it should further concern consumers of wheat products.
Here’s what wheat farmer Seth Woodland of
Woodland and Wheat in Idaho had to say about the practice of using herbicides for wheat dry down:
That practice is bad . I have fellow farmers around
me that do it and it is sad. Lucky for you not all of us farm that way.
Being the farmer and also the president of a business, we are proud to
say that we do not use round up on our wheat ever!
This practice is not just widespread in the United States either. The
Food Standards Agency in the United Kingdom reports that use of Roundup
as a wheat desiccant results in glyphosate residues
regularly showing
up in bread samples. Other European countries are waking up to to the
danger, however. In the Netherlands, use of Roundup is completely banned
with France likely soon to follow.
Using Roundup on wheat crops throughout the entire growing season and
even as a desiccant just prior to harvest may save the farmer money and
increase profits, but it is devastating to the health of the consumer
who ultimately consumes the glyphosate residue laden wheat kernels.
The chart below of skyrocketing applications of glyphosate to US
wheat crops since 1990 and the incidence of celiac disease is from a
December 2013
study published in the Journal
Interdisciplinary Toxicology
examining glyphosate pathways to autoimmune disease. Remember that
wheat is not currently GMO or “Roundup Ready” meaning it is not
resistant to its withering effects like GMO corn or GMO soy, so
application of glyphosate to wheat would actually kill it.

While the herbicide industry maintains that glyphosate is minimally toxic to humans,
research published in the Journal Entropy strongly argues otherwise by shedding light on exactly how glyphosate disrupts mammalian physiology.
Authored by Anthony Samsel and Stephanie Seneff of MIT, the paper
investigates glyphosate’s inhibition of cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes,
an overlooked component of lethal toxicity to mammals.
The currently accepted view is that ghyphosate is not harmful to
humans or any mammals. This flawed view is so pervasive in the
conventional farming community that Roundup salesmen have been known to
foolishly drink it during presentations!
However, just because Roundup doesn’t kill you immediately doesn’t
make it nontoxic. In fact, the active ingredient in Roundup lethally
disrupts the all important shikimate pathway found in beneficial gut
microbes which is responsible for synthesis of critical amino acids.
Friendly gut bacteria, also called probiotics, play a critical role
in human health. Gut bacteria aid digestion, prevent permeability of the
gastointestinal tract (which discourages the development of autoimmune
disease), synthesize vitamins and provide the foundation for robust
immunity. In essence:
Roundup significantly disrupts
the functioning of beneficial bacteria in the gut and contributes to
permeability of the intestinal wall and consequent expression of
autoimmune disease symptoms.
In synergy with disruption of the biosynthesis of important amino
acids via the shikimate pathway, glyphosate inhibits the cytochrome P450
(CYP) enzymes produced by the gut microbiome. CYP enzymes are critical
to human biology because they detoxify the multitude of foreign
chemical compounds, xenobiotics, that we are exposed to in our modern
environment today.
As a result, humans exposed to glyphosate through use of Roundup in
their community or through ingestion of its residues on industrialized
food products become even more vulnerable to the damaging effects of
other chemicals and environmental toxins they encounter!
What’s worse is that the negative impact of glyphosate exposure is
slow and insidious over months and years as inflammation gradually gains
a foothold in the cellular systems of the body.
The consequences of this systemic inflammation are most of the diseases and conditions associated with the Western lifestyle:
- Gastrointestinal disorders
- Obesity
- Diabetes
- Heart Disease
- Depression
- Autism
- Infertility
- Cancer
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Alzheimer’s disease
- And the list goes on and on and on …
In a nutshell, Dr. Seneff’s study
of Roundup’s ghastly glyphosate which the wheat crop in the United
States is doused with uncovers the manner in which this lethal toxin
harms the human body by decimating beneficial gut microbes with the
tragic end result of disease, degeneration, and widespread suffering.
Got the picture yet?
Even if you think you have no trouble digesting wheat, it is still
very wise to avoid conventional wheat as much as possible in your diet!
You Must Avoid Toxic Wheat No Matter What
The bottom line is that avoidance of conventional wheat in the United
States is absolutely imperative even if you don’t currently have a
gluten allergy or wheat sensitivity. The increase in the amount of
glyphosate applied to wheat closely correlates with the rise of celiac
disease and gluten intolerance. Dr. Seneff points out that the increases
in these diseases are not just genetic in nature, but also have an
environmental cause as not all patient symptoms are alleviated by
eliminating gluten from the diet.
The effects of deadly glyphosate on your biology are so insidious that lack of symptoms today means literally nothing.
If you don’t have problems with wheat now, you will in the future if you keep eating conventionally produced, toxic wheat!
How to Eat Wheat Safely
Obviously, if you’ve already developed a sensitivity or allergy to wheat, you must avoid it. Period.
But, if you aren’t celiac or gluten sensitive and would like to
consume this ancestral food safely, you can do what we do in our home.
We source organic, naturally low in gluten,
unhybridized Einkorn wheat for breadmaking, pancakes, cookies etc. Please note that einkorn is not to be confused with the more general term
farro,
which includes emmer and spelt, which are both hybridized. You can
learn more about the scientific research on the “good” gluten in einkorn
in
this article.
When we eat out or are purchasing food from the store, conventional
wheat products are rejected without exception. This despite the fact
that we have no gluten allergies whatsoever in our home – yet.
I am firmly convinced that if we did nothing, our entire family at
some point would develop sensitivity to wheat or autoimmune disease in
some form due to the toxic manner in which it is processed and the
glyphosate residues that are contained in conventional wheat products.
What Are You Going to Do About Toxic Wheat?
How did you react to the news that US wheat farmers are using
Roundup, not just to kill weeds, but to dry out the wheat plants to
allow for an earlier, easier and bigger harvest and that such a practice
causes absorption of toxic glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup
and other herbicides, right into the wheat kernels themselves?
Did you feel outraged and violated like I did? How will you implement
a conventional wheat-avoidance strategy going forward even if you
haven’t yet developed a problem with gluten or wheat sensitivity?
What about other crops where Roundup is used as a pre-harvest
dessicant such as barley, sugar cane, rice, seeds, dried beans and peas,
sugar cane, sweet potatoes, and sugar beets? Will you only be buying
these crops in organic form from now on to avoid this modern, man-made
scourge?
UPDATE: The
Soil Association
in July 2015 called for an immediate ban on the use of glyphosate for
wheat ripening and desiccation purposes. The nonprofit reports that
glyphosate residues are widely found in nonorganic wheat samples and the
use of the herbicide on wheat crops has increased 400% in the past two
decades.
Dr. Robin Mesnage of the Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics
at Kings College in London, revealed new data analysis showing Roundup,
the most common brand of Glyphosate based herbicides, is 1,000 times
more toxic than genotoxic glyphosate alone due to the inclusion of other
toxic chemicals in its mix.
Peter Melchett, Soil Association policy director said;
“If
Glyphosate ends up in bread it’s impossible for people to avoid it,
unless they are eating organic. On the other hand, farmers could easily
choose not to use Glyphosate as a spray on wheat crops – just before
they are harvested. This is why the Soil Association is calling for the
immediate ending of the use of Glyphosate sprays on wheat destined for
use in bread.”
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist
Sources and More Information
Roundup: Quick Death for Weeds, Slow and Painful Death for You
Glyphosate now commonly found in human urine
Study: Glyphosate, Celiac and Gluten Intolerance
The Glyphosate, Celiac Disease Connection
Hybrid Wheat is Not the Same as GMO Wheat
The Dutch Ban Roundup, France and Brazil to Follow
Is it the Gluten or is it the Glyphosate?
How to Mix and Use Gluten Free Flour
Can Celiacs Eat Sourdough Bread?
Pre-harvest Application of Glyphosate to Wheat
The Dirty Little Secret About Gluten Free
Yield and quality of wheat seeds as a function of desiccation stages and herbicides
Wheat farmer weighs in on the use of Roundup as a wheat desiccant
The Healthy Home Economist
holds a Master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania. Mother to 3
healthy children, blogger, and best-selling author, she writes about
the practical application of Traditional Diet and evidence-based
wellness within the modern household. Her work has been featured by USA
Today, The New York Times, ABC, NBC, and many others.