Sadhguru: People are eating, thinking it will nourish their life;
it's not doing much to them except filling them up, nothing much.
If the nutrients do not have necessary iron, vitamin A, C, D,
B6, B12, folate, iron - all these things, you become far more susceptible.
In 1930s what 1 orange would give you, today you need to eat 8 oranges.
Okay, I will take more pills, more pills, more pills... it's not going to work like that.
The reason why this pandemic
is having the kind of toll that it's having upon us,
- there are medical issues, I'm not entering that -
one fundamental thing is, the soil nutrients are so low.
How low is it? The soil depletion - I'm only talking about United States.
The soil depletion in United States has led to
21% drop in vitamin A in all the fruits, vegetables, and everything else that you're eating;
30% drop in vitamin C, 37% drop in iron levels,
27% drop in calcium levels.
The things that today you all think is very healthy to eat – salads and stuff,
the spinach, the... what is your favorite leaf... the lettuce,
the lettuce, and tomatoes,
and other things which you normally use in your salad –
from the early 20th century, what level of nutrients they had,
and what they have today is only 10% left,
90% lower than what it was in early 20th century.
So you're largely eating water sacs without much nutrient in it.
If we had that level of nutrition, our ability to, not 100%,
but our ability to counter this would have been different.
We would be at a different level of immunity,
that it wouldn't be such a scare.
So many people need not die; I'm saying, over 6 million people have died in the world.
United States alone is nearly 900,000 now.
Just United States alone is nearing 900,000 number of deaths.
The nutrient studies across the world are showing
the nutrient depletion in the food across the world
is so significant, it's tragic that
we're eating something thinking it is food that nourishes us, but actually it has nothing.
The question is not even, I'm not even going to the place of fertilizers, anti... you know,
pesticides, herbicides, I'm not even going there - that is outright poisoning, all right?
I'm talking about depletion of food; that itself, is tragic.
People are eating, thinking it will nourish their life; it's not doing much to them, except filling them up.
Nothing much - and that is one reason why we have to fear the pandemics.
And... I've been listening to some of the top virologists in the world,
they're all saying that this may not be the end,
because the very nature and structure of the corona, the fundamental corona as such,
already you have seen 2, 3 variants.
Now we're talking about Mr. Omicron – he sounds like a guy, hm? (Laughter)
So, they are saying far more virulent and far more capable viruses
can easily develop with a small rejig in their basic structure.
And they're very much capable of doing that any moment.
So that is what every government fears, that is what every scientist fears,
and that should be the concern of every citizen.
But in all this, soil has a significant role.
Let's come to the food that we eat: if the nutrients do not have necessary iron,
vitamin A, D, C... C, D, B... B6, B12,
folate, iron, all these things, you become far more susceptible
to any kind of respiratory infection, is a well-established fact.
And right now, that is a serious condition,
because 90% of the Americans are deficient in vitamin E,
and that is why highest level of deaths in a given country
for the population has happened in this country.
For 350 million people, nearly a million people are dead.
This is the highest in the world!
There are countries like India and many other nations, far more densely populated.
Just the amount of space that you have, you should have been safe.
But lack of nutrients and irresponsible behavior has cost us so much.
We have to ensure that more people don't go in this direction.
So, soil is a very important part; 43% deficient in vitamin A!
Loss of integrity of skin in the mucous membrane happens
when there is not enough vitamin A, and that is one sure way
of having serious implications to any respiratory infections that we get.
And we must understand this COVID is essentially a respiratory tract infection,
and which can go into various kind of complexities later.
39% are deficient; 39% of the United States citizens are deficient in vitamin C.
And this is very vital for the antibody production, your vitamin C.
Okay, I will take more pills, more pills, more pills...
It's not going to work like that, the food should have it; they're saying...
in 1930s what 1 orange would give you,
today you need to eat 8 oranges.
Has anybody eaten 8 oranges in a day, anytime?
You... you ate? (Laughter) Okay.
They're working on an orange farm. (Laughter)
Okay. (Laughs) Eating 8 oranges a day is not a possibility for most human beings.
1 orange, what it would give you, today it takes 8.
So, considering all this, soil is an unfolding disaster for everybody.
I was talking to the WFP director, who is from United States.
He said last year we spent 9 billion dollars
distributing food in Africa to starved populations.
This year, our budget has to go up at least by 4 to 6 billion dollars,
otherwise we cannot fulfill this, because the number of famines we're expecting
in many parts of Africa is so high.
And he said, people thinking that this will only happen to Africa or Asia is unfortunately not true;
that, he's saying, by 2035 there could be severe famines in Chicago, in Illinois region,
because the soil conditions have depleted so badly, it can easily happen.
"Oh, we will transport all the food from here to there, there to here!"
No, when there is food shortage, no truck is going to reach its destination,
people are going to loot it on the way. Hello? Yes or no?
You orange-eaters tell me: will the Florida oranges, will you let it go to Canada?
You guys are eating 8 per day. (Laughter)
You will stop it on the way; I'm saying, the disruption.
They're saying by 2045, there could be major civil wars all across the world
simply because of soil depletion, and they're saying the only way,
that if people don't respond, if they don't do the necessary things, the only way is,
to go seriously into genetic engineered crops, the GMO crops,
other things that you're... everybody's become fashionable to talk against,
but that will become the only bridge which will see us across for 20, 25 years.
But after that when you crash, there is simply no recovery, unless you put the soil back.
Every year, on an average, there is a loss of 27,000
species of microbes are going extinct, per year.
So, if we let this go as it is for another 25 to 40 years,
after that, recovery will take anywhere between 150 to 200 years.
If we act now, if we change the policies now,
and begin to act in the next 10 to 15 years' time,
in 25 years' time, we can turn the situation around.
I feel this is a fundamental responsibility that we owe
to ourselves and to future generations on this planet. What do you think?