The Glyphosate Factor in Celiac Disease
By Stephanie Seneff, B.S., M.S., E.E., Ph.D.
Celiac disease (CD) is an autoimmune disease characterized by a sensitivity to gluten, a protein found in wheat, rye, and barley. There can be no question that CD is an epidemic in the United States today, and, increasingly, worldwide. The ever-expanding gluten-free sections of grocery stores are testimony to this epidemic. It is estimated that CD now affects about 1% of the US population, and a similar rate exists in Europe and Australia. In addition to the 1% of the population that suffer from Celiac disease, there is a larger number of people who are intolerant to wheat-based foods but don’t test positive for the antibodies that provide an official diagnosis of Celiac.
A cleverly designed study by Rubio-Tapia et al, published in 2009, examined sera from frozen samples collected between 1948 and 1954 for celiac antibodies, and found that the prevalence of CD has increased four-fold since that time [1]. Based on mortality data for this cohort, they found that undiagnosed CD increased mortality rate by a factor of 3.9. Thus, the epidemic today in CD does not bode well for future mortality statistics.
One hypothesis for the increase is that the modern strains of wheat may be more allergenic than ancient grains. However, several studies have shown that the most allergenic peptides in gluten are not less prevalent in ancient grains [2]. In fact, the trend is towards greater prevalence in the past. Rubio-Tapia et al. wrote: “This finding further supports our theory that an unidentified environmental factor or factors are responsible for the changing prevalence of CD in the United States over time.” [1] I propose that this unidentified environmental factor is glyphosate.
Glyphosate is the active ingredient in the pervasive herbicide Roundup, which being the most used herbicide on the planet, is a widespread contaminant in our food supply today. Although wheat is not a genetically engineered Roundup-Ready crop, glyphosate is increasingly being used on wheat as a desiccant just before harvest. Glyphosate is taken up into the seeds, and some of the highest levels of contamination are found in wheat germ, which is otherwise a very healthy food. Glyphosate is also present in many wheat-based products, such as cookies, crackers, and bread.
I co-authored a paper published in 2013, which first introduced the idea that glyphosate might be responsible for the epidemic we are seeing today in gluten intolerance [3]. Figure 1 from that paper, reproduced here, shows a strong correlation between the rise in glyphosate usage on wheat and the rise in the prevalence of CD in the United States.