The problem is polluted food. The solution is to avoid the polluted food. But that isn’t enough. You must also get out into the sun and find  foods rich in sulfur.

Let’s start with the clean eating.

Monsanto has changed the DNA of soybeans, corn, cotton, canola, and alfalfa by putting the insecticide DDT into it.  Bugs bite into the plant and the DDT splits their abdomens open.  It should go without saying then that DDT is not safe for human consumption.  Unfortunately though, we unknowingly consume a lot of it in this country,  through this type of DDT infused crop. You can be sure, that if you are eating a processed food, it goes without saying that it is probably from a genetically modified crop with some sort of DDT insecticide. 

Although we do not immediately suffer the same fate as the bug, we apparently do pay a price as the number of gastrointestinal disorders has increased significantly over the past twenty years in the U.S. Once DDT gets into our gut, it appears to stay there for good.

Many of patients I treat for disordered eating are driven by a tendency to eat too much processed and/or polluted food in an effort to cut back on fat. This results in gastrointestinal problems that result, such as bloating, constipation, and weight gain.

According to the American Academy of Environmental Medicine regarding GE foods “…. it is clear that genetically engineered foods can pose serious risks to humans, domesticated animals, wildlife and the environment.” Although the role this problem plays in the field of eating disorders such as Anorexia, Bulimia and Binge Eating is not even on the radar of researchers, the impact that GE is having on the obesity epidemic is beginning to gain some traction.

Impact of GE Grains on Obesity and Other Eating Related Illnesses

Researcher and professor, Åshild Krogdahl, and her colleagues at the Norwegian Veterinary College, conducted a 10-year study to determine if eating genetically modified grain had any adverse effects on animals including rats, mice, fish and pigs. The work was a multi-national collaboration with researchers from Austria, Hungary, Ireland, Turkey and Australia. The results confirm the obvious:

• According to the findings, feeding rats, mice, pigs and salmon genetically engineered feed causes obesity, along with significant changes in the digestive system and major organs, including the liver, kidneys, pancreas, genitals and more.
• Animals fed genetically engineered Bt corn were less able to digest proteins due to alterations in the micro-structure of their intestines. This fact that “they were less able to digest proteins” has huge implications in that the biochemistry of amino acids is necessary for all life processes. It not only explains the rise in obesity, but may explain increases in many modern diseases that are currently on the rise and/or reaching epidemic proportions in the U.S. including diabetes, digestive disorders, inflammatory bowel disease, colitis, autism spectrum disorders, autoimmune diseases, sexual dysfunction, sterility, asthma, and many more.

• Perhaps the most important finding, from the perspective of what is and isn’t safe to eat, is the finding that the animals that ate fish that had been raised on GE grains also became obese and suffered the same gastrointestinal disturbances and immune disorders as those that were fed the grains directly.
• Finally, the project did not just focus on weight gain but looked at the effects on organ changes too. Researchers found distinct changes to the intestines of animals fed GMOs compared to those fed non-GMOs. This confirms observations by other U.S. researchers. Significant changes occurred in the digestive systems of the test animals’ major organs including the liver, kidneys, pancreas, genitals and more.

The animals in this study were fed a diet of GE corn and soy, which contained toxic proteins from the bacteria Bt or Bacillus thuriengensis. As mentioned previously, Bt is an insecticide that works by killing larval insect pests which damage corn, soy, cotton, canola and other crops. By inserting and gene-stacking various Bt toxins, along with herbicide resistant gene sequences, the plants DNA is altered or genetically engineered for the specific purpose of killing the offending pests.

In essence, “The entire plant is made into a pesticide factory which is also resistant to herbicides…..  Roundup, is such a product and is produced by  Monsanto…….It is the most popular herbicide used on herbicide tolerant  crops.” ^[1]

In view of what we do know from these animal studies, there is a shocking lack of data on the effects of GE food on humans. There are very few studies to begin with, and as the American Academy of Environmental Medicine states,  “Not a single human clinical trial on GEs has been published.” A 2007 review of all published scientific literature on the “potential toxic effects/health risks of GE plants” revealed “that experimental data are very scarce” in general. The author of the review concludes his paper by asking, “Where is the scientific evidence showing that GE plants/food are toxicologically safe, as ‘purported’ by the biotechnology companies?”  Famed Canadian geneticist David Suzuki answers, “The experiments simply haven’t been done and we now have become the guinea pigs.”

Another researcher, Dr. David Schubert^[2] agrees, “If there are problems, we will probably never know because the cause will not be traceable as many diseases take a very long time to develop.”  He postulates further,  “If GE foods caused immediate and acute symptoms, with a ‘unique signature’ perhaps then we might have a chance to trace the cause.”

However, that is what happened during a US epidemic in the late 1980s with a genetically engineered brand of a food supplement, L-tryptophan. The disease was fast acting, deadly, and caused a unique and measurable change in the blood.  It still took more than four years to identify that an epidemic was occurring and what the source was. By then it had killed about 100 Americans and caused 5,000-10,000 people to fall sick or become permanently disabled.

No Data Is Data

As discussed earlier, there is almost no research being done for the express purpose of scientifically establishing the links between GE foods and the dramatic increase in the specific health problems that US citizens are experiencing in comparison to citizens in other countries where GE crops are regulated or prohibited. But what we do have to go on is the unprecedented downturn in the health of one of the wealthiest developed nations in the world and what we can predict for the future based upon studies on the effects of GE on animals. If, as the biotech and food industries would have us believe, GE is safe, why are there no studies showing this?

The Link Lack of Sun Exposure and Obesity

Our skin produces huge amounts of cholesterol sulfate, which is also water soluble and provides a healthy barrier against bacteria and other potentially disease-causing pathogens that might otherwise enter the body through the skin. Cholesterol sulfate can enter both fat cells and muscle cells with equal ease. Dr. Stephanie Seneff proposes that, because of this, cholesterol sulfate may be able to protect fat and muscle cells from glucose and oxygen damage, which is known as glycation or more commonly inflammation.

She also argues that when you’re deficient in cholesterol sulfate, your muscle and fat cells become more prone to damage, which subsequently can lead to glucose intolerance; a condition where your muscles cannot process glucose as a fuel. As a result, your fat cells have to store more fat in order to supply your muscles. The more damage, the more fat that accumulates.

Sulfur also plays an important role in glucose metabolism. She hypothesizes that if sufficient amounts of sulfur is available, it will act as a decoy to glucose, effectively diverting it to reduce the sulfur rather than glycating and causing damage. This would have the beneficial effect of reducing inflammation, as sugar (glucose) is highly inflammatory and wreaks havoc in your body.

What to Do

Dietary Sources of Sulfur

1. Sulfur is derived almost exclusively from dietary protein, so eat fresh caught fish and organic grass-fed beef, and poultry
   1. Meat and fish are considered “complete” as they contain all the sulfur-containing amino acids you need to produce new protein. Needless to say, those who abstain from animal protein are placing themselves at far greater risk of sulfur deficiency.
2. Coconut oil and olive oil also contain sulfur (and are ideal sources of healthful saturated fats too).
3. Other dietary sources that contain small amounts of sulfur IF the food was grown in soil that contains adequate amounts of sulfur, include:
   1. Organic Pastured Eggs, Legumes, Garlic Onion, Brussel Sprouts, Asparagus, Kale, Wheat Germ

4. Another reason that we gain weight is that any diet high in grains and processed foods is likely to be deficient in sulfur. It turns out that once whole foods are processed, sulfur is lost.
5. Eating organic helps to insure that the soil is richer. Additionally, soils around the world are becoming increasingly sulfur-depleted, resulting in less sulfur-rich foods overall.
6. Drink water, such as Fiji water, that has minerals still in it. Soft water is easier to use for cleaning, but Hard water also tends to contain more sulfur than soft water, which, according to Dr. Seneff, may be why people who drink soft water are at greater risk of developing heart disease.

In addition to making sure you’re getting high amounts of sulfur-rich foods in your diet, Dr. Seneff recommends soaking your body in magnesium sulfate (Epsom salt) baths to compensate and counteract sulfur deficiency. She uses about ¼ cup in a tub of water, twice a week. It’s particularly useful if you have joint problems or arthritis.

^[1]The Cornucopia Institute Obesity, Corn, GMOs July 24th, 2012 Brattleboro.com
Anthony Samsel.

^[2] Dr. Schubert