Study: Bayer Herbicide Causes Autism, Even at Trace Levels

herbicide glyphosate kills

How convenient that Bayer produces both food which create neurological impairments, and drugs which ‘treat’ neurological impairments.  It’s not surprising that the results of this study are being ignored.

Researchers in a 2014 study have found a direct link between Bayer’s LibertyLink GMO crops, designed to withstand glufosinate ammonium (GLA) herbicide, directly to autism-like symptoms, even in low doses.

The study was published in Frontiers of Behavioral Neuroscience in November 2014, and it reveals that autism-like symptoms were discovered in mice, both before and after birth, when exposed to GLA.

Researchers cites previous research into the positive association between herbicides and autism, and other neurological issues like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.  The study explains that the basic structure of the brain is weakened from exposure to pesticides and herbicides.

In the current study, investigators exposed female mice to low doses of GLA both before and after birth, and then analyzed developmental and behavioral changes during infancy and adulthood using a host of tests.

Here’s a quote from the study of their findings:

“. . .significant effects of GLA maternal exposure on early reflex development, pup communication, affiliative behaviors, and preference for social olfactory cues, but emotional reactivity and emotional memory remained unaltered. These behavioral alterations showed a striking resemblance to changes seen in animal models of Autistic Spectrum Disorders. At the brain level, GLA maternal exposure caused some increase in relative brain weight of the offspring. In addition, reduced expression of Pten and Peg3 – two genes implicated in autism-like deficits – was observed in the brain of GLA-exposed pups at postnatal day 15.

Our work thus provides new data on the link between pre- and postnatal exposure to the herbicide GLA and the onset of autism-like symptoms later in life. It also raises fundamental concerns about the ability of current safety testing to assess risks of pesticide exposure during critical developmental periods.”

GLA herbicide is currently in use on thousands of acres of crops across the United States and in Canada, as Bayer Crop Science discloses on their website.

The Institute for Responsible Technology, which is the most comprehensive source of GMO health risk information on the web, has said:

“Twice the number of chickens died when fed Liberty Link corn. The death rate for chickens fed Chardon LL GM corn for 42 days was 7%, compared to 3.5% for controls. GM-fed chickens also had more erratic body weight and food intake, and less weight gain overall. But these results were dismissed without follow-up.”

How convenient that Bayer produces both food which creates neurological impairments, and drugs which ‘treat’ neurological impairments.  Additionally, a newly appointed board member of the pharmaceutical giant Titan is a former Bayer executive, and Titan is now making drugs to treat Parkinson’s disease.

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are usually the first and most commonly prescribed antidepressants for children with autism, and of course Bayer also makes these types of ‘antidepressants’.

Source