The George Washington University (GWU) just released the findings of a new study showing that about 33 percent of the United States population is contaminated with 2,4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid), one of the most widely used weed killers in modern American agriculture.
An analysis of 14,395 participants that began back in 2001 revealed that nearly one in three people now has detectable levels of 2,4-D in his or her urine – up from 17 percent at the beginning of the study.
Today, nearly 40 percent of people, we are told, have 2,4-D hiding in their systems, the long-term health effects of which are not fully understood. Notably, children aged 6-11 have more than twice the risk of exposure to the chemical, as do women of childbearing age.
2,4-D was first developed by The Dow Chemical Company (now known just as Dow) back in the 1940s to treat lawns, gardens, and commercial agriculture. (Related: In more recent years, 2,4-D was presented by Monsanto and Dow as the “solution” to superweeds.)
Since the 1940s, a whole lot more has been revealed about the toxicity of 2,4-D, which is linked to birth defects, immunosuppression, certain types of cancer, and various other health conditions.
2,4-D was also a key ingredient in the infamous Agent Orange defoliant that was sprayed during the Vietnam War, killing many and leaving many others with lifelong chronic diseases.
EPA says 2,4-D is perfectly “safe and effective” – just like vaccines and every other chemical drug promoted by Big Industry
The world has come a long way since the days of Agent Orange – but not in the right way.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which governs chemical use in the U.S. at the federal level, has declared that 2,4-D is perfectly safe and that the dioxins that often accompany it in weed killer formulas are “no longer found at detectable levels.”
The claim, in other words, is that in current formulations, 2,4-D is “safe and effective,” and that the general public should not worry about exposure to it.
Meanwhile, independent researchers continue to warn that 2,4-D exposure is linked to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and soft tissue sarcoma. The International Agency for Research on Cancer also declared back in 2015 that 2,4-D is a “possible human carcinogen” based on evidence showing that it damages human cells.