New Study Links Roundup Weed Killer Ingredient With ‘Lasting Damage’ to Brain
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A new study has uncovered a possible link between neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s-like symptoms, and a popular weed killer ingredient.
The research, which was conducted by a team at Arizona State University and published this week in the Journal of Neuroinflammation, found that exposure to glyphosate can result in brain inflammation, heightening the risk of developing a neurodegenerative disease.
Glyphosate, which is the active ingredient in Roundup, may cause these potentially serious health effects even after brief exposure.
“Taken together, our results are the first to demonstrate that despite an extended recovery period, exposure to glyphosate elicits long-lasting pathological consequences,” the study states.
This is not the first time that serious health concerns have been tied to glyphosate, the most common herbicide used in the United States. There are currently thousands of pending Roundup lawsuits centered on claims that exposure to the weed killer resulted in the development of non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies glyphosate as “possibly carcinogenic to humans.”
A 2022 study had also determined that glyphosate can infiltrate the brain and may have poor health effects.
But the newly released research may expand the scope of who experiences health risks from glyphosate exposure. The previous concerns were centered on those who had directly used or worked around pesticides, but the impacts may also impact everyday consumers.
“The new findings suggest that ingestion of glyphosate residues on foods sprayed with the herbicide potentially poses a health hazard,’ an Arizona State release said. “Most people living in the U.S. have been exposed to glyphosate during their lifetime.”
Study Shows Glyphosate Impacts on Brain Last Long After Exposure
The study set out to uncover more data about glyphosate’s impact on the brain, as its presence in agriculture has grown in recent years.
“Glyphosate use in the United States (US) has increased each year since the introduction of glyphosate-tolerant crops in 1996,” the study stated. “Yet little is known about its effects on the brain.”
Researchers used mice as test subjects, exposing some to a high dose of glyphosate similar to what has been used in past research, while exposing others to a lower dose.
According to Arizona State, the results of those tests showed that even the lower dose had harmful effects, sometimes months after the initial exposure.
The study’s conclusion noted that the exposure to glyphosate not only resulted in neuroinflammation after months of recovery, but also in anxiety-like behaviors and premature death.
With the use of glyphosate increasing, the study stressed the need for additional research to learn more about how the herbicide impacts the brain.
Roundup Lawsuits Claim Weed Killer Is Tied to Cancer
The findings of this week’s study are the latest revelation in yearslong concerns over glyphosate and its health impacts.
Monsanto, which was acquired by Bayer in 2018, still faces thousands of lawsuits over claims that it failed to warn of the potential risk of developing non-Hodgkin lymphoma from exposure to the weed killer.
Bayer has continued to fiercely defend the safety of Roundup and glyphosate.
“Glyphosate-based herbicides are among the most extensively tested products, with more than 1,500 studies and 50 years of research,” the company says on its website. “After reviewing the volume of scientific research and evaluations by regulatory agencies over the years, experts and regulators worldwide have concluded that glyphosate-based products can be used safely as directed.”
But juries have not always agreed with this determination. In October, a Philadelphia jury awarded $78 million to a man who had developed cancer after using Roundup for decades. A Pennsylvania man was awarded a $2.25 billion verdict – which was later reduced to $400 million — in a similar trial in January.
Trial results have been mixed depending on the case, with Bayer saying that it has won 15 of the most recent 22 trials.