Environment

Are You Getting Antibiotics In Your Lettuce? Probably

by Barbara McPherson | February 16, 2009 at 06:54 pm

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Disturbing news has been released by Environmental Health News that cites research done at the University of Minnesota that shows that plants grown on soil containing antibiotics will take up and contain antibiotics. The two that they tested for were chlortetracycline and Sulfamethazine.

This is disturbing news because health providers are seeing more and more bacteria resistant to available antibiotics. There are periodic campaigns that urge people to use fewer antibiotics to slow down this phenomenon. While these campaigns may help somewhat, the vast majority of antibiotics are used in the factory farming businesses. Antibiotics are used to prevent disease when animals are kept in dirty and overcrowded conditions. Antibiotics also seem to accelerate normal growth in animals so they may be brought to market sooner. It is well known that about 90% of antibiotics given to animals(and humans too) are excreted. If you buy meat, milk or eggs from these industrial producers, you should expect that you will get tiny doses of antibiotics with every mouthful. That's really old news.

The new information is that plants grown on farms where antibiotic laced manure is used can take it up and store it. The researchers at the Uninvesity of Minnesota only grew lettuce and cabbage for six weeks before harvesting and testing them. They found that 0.1% of available antibiotics were absorbed in a month and a half.

Vegetables of concern are lettuce, corn, and of particular concern are the tuber and root crops - potatoes, carrots and radishes.

Some antibiotics will break down if exposed to high temperatures. Composting the manure at high temperatures did not break down the antibiotic Sulfamethazine.

It would seem that even vegetarians are all part of the grand experiment being foisted on us by factory farming. There is so much tinkering with our food supply, it behooves everyone who eats to take an active interest.

More farming info at Livestock Farming One of the Main Menaces for the Environment

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Maireid Sullivan

at 23:55 on February 16th, 2009

I agree with your conclusion, Barbara.
This is precisely why many of us eat only organic or bio-dynamic vegetables - and don't touch processed foods. Everyone thinks they are invincible. ...but, isn't the cancer statistic 1 in 3 at the present time?

tikun

at 00:10 on February 17th, 2009

Good article. We have an easier time eating organic in this tiny country since transportation and delivery is a matter of hours instead of days and farmers are into growing organic and bio-dynamically

I do suggest that raising birds (turkeys and chickens), commercially does take some skill, effort and luck. All of them regardless if they are "free range" are susceptible to disease and do need to be treated if they are to be safe for eating. also, the antibiotics do pass through the system in a matter of time before they can be sent to slaughter.

It is my understanding that antiboitics have been showing up in the drinking water in the States because of the heavy use by the population.

Barbara McPherson

at 09:47 on February 17th, 2009

Thanks for your thoughtful comments. Antibiotics do need to be used occasionally. What we have here(Canada) are huge meat and egg factories -- 100 000 chickens in one place in battery cages. They routinely are dosed with antibiotics to make them grow faster and to keep the disease at a minimum. The massive feed lots and swine operations are just as bad.

You are right. Antibiotics and hormones(contraceptives) are creeping into the streams and rivers as well. Some is from humans and some from agricultural run off.

Paschen

at 05:38 on February 17th, 2009

That has been an issue addressed many times and yet it is still going on. Mainly due to CAFO.

Jarrett Martineau

at 14:48 on February 17th, 2009

One hopes that organic food would be immune to these effects - but you can never be sure. Thanks for this great post!

Amy Judd

at 14:55 on February 17th, 2009

Shocking - it's like birth control found in the ocean is affecting fish being able to reproduce - I never would have thought of this in vegetables though!

car1edb

at 15:01 on February 17th, 2009

"We know the air is unfit to breathe and our food is unfit to eat, and we sit watching our TV's while some local newscaster tells us that today we had fifteen homicides and sixty-three violent crimes, as if that's the way it's supposed to be. We know things are bad - worse than bad."