Roundup herbicide (glyphosate)-related products are widely used. These chemicals can cause liver damage. They stay in the soil, water and genetically modified (GM) plants, which don’t die because they are resistant to Roundup. The chemicals are consumed by humans when they eat GM plants that have been sprayed with Roundup. The residues, stable in rivers and soils, become part of the food chain and are found in the urine of farm workers.
The glyphosate formulations are concentrated and detoxified in the liver. This study is to evaluate herbal extracts in protecting the liver from those toxic chemicals. The extracts are found in a product called Dig1, which contains the herbs dandelion (Taraxacum officinalis), burdock (Arctium lappa) and barberry (Berberis vulgaris).
Four different forms of Roundup cause liver cell death through cytotoxicity and apoptosis. The other constituents of the Roundup forms are proprietary information and not made available to the public. One Roundup product was effective in killing liver cells at a dose of 1/400th of that used in agriculture. The herbal combination in Dig1 is able to prevent Roundup cell death in liver cells by 89% within 48 hours.
CONCLUSION: Roundup formulations can cause hepatic (liver) cell death, but Dig1 containing dandelion, burdock and barberry extracts can prevent that cell death in 89% of the liver cells.
NOTE: Genetically modified plants are being produced to supply food today. They are modified to resist death by glyphosate herbicides, while all other plants are killed to avoid removing weeds by non-chemical means. These plants contain the products of the breakdown of glyphosate, which can be toxic to the livers of people who eat them.
Read about the importance of labeling GMOs. Read about removal from the body of acute glyphosate poisoning.
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Summary #513.
PMID: 20979644.