Dr. Axe:Hey, guys.
Dr. Josh Axe here, along with our special guest, Jeffrey Smith from the Institute of
Responsible Technology.
Today we're going to be talking about the non-GMO diet.
And Dr. Jeffrey is the pioneer when it comes to helping people live GMO-free.
So we're going to be talking about that here in a minute.
Also, hey, we'd love to hear from you right now.
Help us spread this message to stop GMOs.
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this message.
So, Jeff, really glad you're here.
We're going to talk about GMOs.
And you really are the pioneer, one of the big pioneers, of this movement in stopping
GMOs.
Before we jump in and talk about this, why are GMOs so damaging to the environment and
our bodies?
Dr. Jeffrey:Well, for the bodies, I've been focusing on that for 21 years.
You have the process of genetic engineering itself, which causes massive damage in the
DNA of plants.
You can increase allergens and toxins and new diseases.
. .
Dr. Axe:Wow.
Dr. Jeffrey:. . . and nutritional problems.
There was a study that just came out that showed that Monsanto's RoundUp Ready Corn,
the corn itself, has higher levels of putrescine and cadaverine, which are the proteins that
make decaying, dead bodies smell.
Dr. Axe:Wow.
Dr. Jeffrey:And it's in larger quantities in the genetically-engineered corn.
And it's linked to allergies and cancer.
So this is the side effect of the process of genetic engineering, which involves inserting
artificially foreign genes into things like corn and soy.
So that's the process itself.
Then you have the corn and the cotton plants that produce their own toxic insecticide poking
holes in the cell walls of the guts of the insects to kill them.
It turns out a 2012 study in a journal showed that it pokes holes in human cells, as well.
Dr. Axe:Wow.
Dr. Jeffrey:Then you have the RoundUp Ready crops that are sprayed with RoundUp, which
are drenched in there.
It gets into it.
You can't wash it off.
RoundUp was marketed by Monsanto as a safe herbicide.
It turns out, it's a Class 2A carcinogen.
It's an endocrine disrupter.
It's an antibiotic.
It's got all sorts of issues, a mitochondrial toxin.
And you don't want to put that in your body.
And it's being drenched in the GMOs that we're eating.
Dr. Axe:So as Jeff is talking about, GMO foods, they're toxic to your body.
It's plain and simple.
And, Jeff, I love this quote.
I'm going to take it from you for a second, but Jeffrey's the first person I ever heard
say this.
He coined this term.
GMO stands for "God, Move Over."
I mean, it is changing our environment.
It's changing our bodies.
And, Jeff, I wrote a book called Eat Dirt where I talk about GMOs contributing to leaky
gut, intestinal permeability, autoimmune disease today, and a number of diseases.
So let's jump in though and talk about this non-GMO diet.
If somebody is going to go GMO-free, some of the biggest foods they want to stay away
from are corn, canola and soy.
Now these three products, what percentage . . . If somebody goes to the store, what
percentage of these products today in the United States are currently genetically modified?
Dr. Jeffrey:Well, in the corn field, there's 93%, 94% of all of the corn planted.
Dr. Axe:Wow.
Dr. Jeffrey:A smaller percentage of corn on the cob but, nonetheless, there is corn on
the cob.
Ninety-five percent of canola, 93% of soy.
So it's if it is a product that comes from lots of soy or lots of canola like soybean
oil or corn oil or high fructose corn syrup or soy lecithin, if it doesn't say non-GMO
or organic, you can assume that it is genetically engineered.
Dr. Axe:Wow.
That's huge.
And so any time you're out there buying or shopping, you know, at any, even health food
stores sometimes, I mean, it's crazy to me sometimes.
It's a lot better now but especially even five years ago, you would buy a product with
corn in some health food stores.
You need to look for that non-GMO label or certified organic label that's on something
but, again, when you're reading on even products that call themselves natural, if you're shopping
at your store and you're buying these granola-type bars, people need to look and see if there
is corn.
If you have canola, if you have a soybean oil, any of those products in there, 99.9%
of the time, it's genetically modified, if it doesn't say non-GMO certified organic on
the label.
So these are some big ones to stay away from.
Let's talk about this buy foods labeled GMO-free.
Now when did this start, Jeff, because I know you're a big part of really pioneering this,
of actually people putting that on the label?
And I don't want to get too off-track, but I'd also like for you to mention, you know,
today people don't have to put that it's GMO on the label.
Why is that?
Dr. Jeffrey:Yeah.
Sixty-four other countries require labeling, if a product is genetically engineered.
Dr. Axe:How many?
Dr. Jeffrey:Sixty-four.
Dr. Axe:Sixty-four other countries.
And the U.S. isn't one.
Dr. Jeffrey:Not one, no.
It's because the U.S. government is promoting GMOs.
In fact, the White House under the first Bush administration told the FDA, "Promote GMOs."
So they created a new position for Michael Taylor, Monsanto's former attorney – Monsanto's
the big GMO company – to be in charge of policy at the FDA.
And when Michael Taylor was in charge of the GMO policy he said, "We don't see a difference
between GMOs and non-GMOs worth worrying about.
No safety testing is needed.
No mandatory review by the FDA needed.
No labeling needed."
Monsanto, who told us that Agent Orange and PCBs and DDT were safe and got that wrong,
they can determine if their GMOs are safe.
Put it on the market without even telling the FDA or consumers.
Dr. Axe:Wow.
Dr. Jeffrey:And so that pro-GMO attitude is why we have GMOs on our plate.
And it turns out seven years after that policy came out, a lawsuit forced the FDA to turn
over its internal memos on GMOs.
And the whole thing was based on a lie.
Not only were they aware that GMOs and non-GMOs were different, it was the overwhelming consensus
among their own scientists that they were different and dangerous and that studies were
needed.
And so the entire policy was not based on science, but on industry manipulation and
political collusion, unfortunately.
And that's why it's on our plates.
Dr. Axe:You know, Jeff, it is crazy to think the government and some of these other people,
they're making money from this.
I mean, that's what it all stems from.
When you look at the food industry or the agricultural industry and the pharmaceutical
industry, I mean, these groups are making money, profiting, unfortunately, off of making
other people sick, cutting corners in nature.
You know, it's really upsetting.
I know this is why you're one of the most passionate people I know and out there on
a mission.
We would ask you, hey, be on the mission with us.
If you are like myself and Jeff and you believe that GMOs should be banned or at least labeled
on the foods so we know what we're eating, take a minute right now.
Help us share this video.
Punch that share button.
Click that like button, as well.
So buying foods labeled GMO-free is important.
The next one here, shop for organic foods.
You know, Jeff, how much has organic-grown?
And why do you think it's growing so much today?
Dr. Jeffrey:One of the reasons why organic is growing so much is that people are trying
to avoid GMOs.
And they know that organic foods don't allow GMOs.
Now I want to contrast a non-GMO label with an organic label.
Organic is more important.
It's the number one choice because you can be non-GMO and still be sprayed with things
like RoundUp and other toxins.
. .
Dr. Axe:Really?
Wow.
Dr. Jeffrey:. . . and insecticides.
So you can have a non-GMO loaf of bread made of wheat.
And three to five days before the wheat was harvested, the farmer may spray it with RoundUp
in order to dry it down, to desiccate, as a desiccate, a dry-down.
And then it ends up in the wheat, which is not a safe thing for us to eat.
So the number one choice is organic.
The number two choice is non-GMO.
Dr. Axe:Got it.
Dr. Jeffrey:Now sometimes, you'll see organic and the non-GMO project-verified label on
the same product.
That's actually the gold standard.
And here's why.
Organic does not allow GMOs, but it doesn't test to see if contamination has occurred.
So if you grow according it to organic standards, you can sell it.
It's supposed to be non-GMO.
And people will buy it.
If you get non-GMO project-verified, it has to be tested to see if any contamination has
occurred.
So if you have organic and non-GMO project-verified, not only does it have all the goodness of
organic, but it also has been tested to see if there's any GMO content in any at-risk
foods.
And so that would be the A, the basic gold standard, then organic, then non-GMO, then
you're on your own.
Dr. Axe:Well, I love it, Jeff.
So these are great points.
So as Jeff talked about, gold standard, organic, non-GMO verified, looking for both of those
labels on the food you buy.
We'd love to hear from you right now.
If you are on, whether it's Facebook or YouTube right now, let us know if you shop organic,
and if you personally shop non-GMO, and maybe how long you've been doing it, and how have
you learned about this?
We would love to hear from you right now.
Now, one of the questions I often get is people say to me, "Dr. Axe, I love what you teach,
but one of my concerns is the cost associated with buying foods that are labeled organic."
And I think this next thing really addresses this.
Shop at your local farmer's market.
Talk to us about your farmer's market because here's the thing, another question I'll get.
And I've done this myself, but people will ask, "Well, how do you know what your local
or that your local farmer's market people are doing it organic?"
And my answer is, typically, "Well, ask them," but what are your thoughts?
Dr. Jeffrey:I think it's the same answer.
I mean, people say, "Buy local," but you don't want to buy local poison.
It's better to buy foreign organic than local poison.
So the farmer's markets where I go, they say right on the label on the thing, "Conventional
organic," but that's because I live in California.
And everyone [inaudible 00:10:00].
But I lived in Iowa for 30 years and I had to ask.
I had to go up to people and say, "Is it organic?"
Now, sometimes they'll say, "We honor the organic principles, but we're not certified
organic."
And then I'll just follow up by a question, "So what do you spray with?"
And if they say, "We don't spray with anything," or they spray with something that's a natural
organic, acceptable spray, I want to find out because I don't want poisons on my food,
even if it's grown locally, okay?
And shopping at farmer's markets is a way to save money.
Now another way to save money is to cook from ingredients, rather than to buy processed
foods.
If you switch to organic processed foods, you're certainly going to be spending more
money than conventional processed foods, in general, but if you switch to organic raw
ingredients and cook from there, there are ways to save a lot of money by doing it intelligently.
There's also online buying clubs.
And people can form co-ops.
People can grow their own, etc.
Dr. Axe:Yeah.
I've seen a lot of patients that I have had over the years, Jeff, who have saved a lot
by doing three things.
One, going to local farmer's market and eating real food, which is big.
Another one, going to Costco, you know.
And some of these bigger chains now are carrying bulk organic products.
Dr. Jeffrey:Oh, yeah.
I went to Costco the other day like for the first time in my area.
And it was like, "My goodness.
They're really promoting organic."
Dr. Axe:Yes.
Dr. Jeffrey:And I filled up my shopping cart and saved a lot of money, but spent a lot
of money.
Dr. Axe:It's fantastic.
And the other thing you're saying, doing co-ops.
I mean, especially when it comes to our meat products, is a great thing, you know, buying
half a cow or a fourth of a cow.
And getting a freezer, you know, putting it in the freezer.
Venison, wild venison, you know, some good things there with the meat products.
Dr. Jeffrey:Make sure that cow is raised on 100% non-GMO feed.
If you can buy wild-caught fish, wild-caught game, 100% grass fed, and if you can get 100%
grass fed . . . If it just says, "Grass fed," it might be grain finished and the grains
might be soy or corn.
If it's 100% grass fed, if you get a chance to ask people, "Is it alfalfa that's genetically
engineered in that grass?" because alfalfa is a grass.
It's potentially genetically engineered.
And we don't want that in our grass-fed beef.
There's also eggs and dairy from animals that have been fed non-GMO.
And I've heard stories.
Now, we've talked about the health dangers of GMOs.
I've heard stories of families that react to GM-fed animal feed . . .
Dr. Axe:Yes.
Dr. Jeffrey:. . . versus non-GMO animal feed.
And stories that even their own chickens, they were accidentally fed GMO and the person
reacted to the eggs, not even knowing that there was a change in the feed.
So it wasn't a placebo.
It was clear like, "Oh, my God.
She was rushed to the hospital because of anaphylactic shock.
What's different?
She's eating the same eggs from her same chickens."
Call the feed dealer.
"Oh, we used a GMO feed."
That doesn't mean everyone's going to have a reaction to GMO feed.
It means that some people are very sensitive.
So if you're one of those very sensitive people who have been battling diseases and disorders
and fatigue and all these things for years, try this.
Switch to organic and take notes.
Do yourself a favor.
Get a journal.
Write down what you're eating.
Write down your mood, your symptoms.
Rate your symptoms.
Write down your energy level and do it each day and stick with 100% organic.
And if you see a change, you may have caught a culprit that's causing these problems.
Dr. Axe:Yeah.
Great advice, Jeff.
And we would love to hear from you.
If you're a person right now, you're on Facebook, you're on YouTube here or live, and you are,
and you have found a way to eat organic and do it in a cost-effective manner, I know there's
a lot of people who would love to learn from you.
So post right now ways that you've saved your family money, yet eating organic, natural
foods, some of your best tips.
We'd love to hear from you now.
Number five here, plant an organic garden.
So now, this isn't for everybody.
You might be a busy person.
You might live in a city and not have necessarily the land to do this but, Jeff, I know one
of the things that I've done with Chelsea before is grow tomato plants and, you know,
and cucumbers.
And there are certain plants, basil and some others, that we're able to do even in our
house in a windowsill.
Dr. Jeffrey:Absolutely.
I mean, there are so many innovative things.
And we have Google Search.
And so it's easy to find.
People will grow in their windowsill, they'll grow sprouts.
People will also process foods into kraut and into other things like that.
So processing, growing your own, it's part of a lifestyle that adds a little extra ownership
of what we're eating.
It's exciting, especially if you have kids.
Dr. Axe:I love it.
Great stuff.
So the last one here is stay informed.
You know, one of the things, again, that I love about Jeff, who I met years ago, was
just seeing his heart and passion to literally change history and change the world.
You know, we are up against a giant.
If you go online and do a Google search for Monsanto, one of the words that comes after
it is Monsanto evil.
It is known, and has been voted at times the most evil corporation in the world.
And so these companies, these are giants, but you know what?
We need to speak with our dollars.
We need to stay informed.
And so we'd encourage you, read some of the things that Jeff has put out.
He's written some great books I'll share with you.
You can go on my web site, draxe.com, or just Google search Dr. Axe, GMO, or non-GMO.
We've put out a lot of articles on this.
We want you to be completely informed on how to go non-GMO with your food.
And so we've broke down some of the things here.
Remember these things.
Avoid corn, canola, and soy.
Buy foods labeled GMO-free, also organic.
Remember that combination Jeff talked about is the gold standard.
Shop your local farmer's market.
Plant an organic garden.
Stay informed.
And so doctor, or Jeff, I want to talk to you about some of these products here you
have now.
You have an amazing . . . this video is awesome, Genetic Roulette, I absolutely love.
Talk about these different things that you've put out there in terms of some of your great
content.
Dr. Jeffrey:Sure.
I started out with Seeds of Deception.
It's the world's best-selling book on GMOs since 2003.
It's because it takes the complicated area and turns it into stories, the scientist who
got gagged and his gag order got lifted and he changed the world, and how the FDA was
corrupted, etc.
So this is the story book for the right-brainer.
This is a book called Genetic Roulette.
There's also a movie with the same title.
This is the left-brain book.
And when I created this in 2006, I'm not a physician, I'm not a doctor, but I started
presenting this evidence as a compilation of all the health risks to physicians' organizations
and done dozens of them so far.
And there's now thousands of physicians prescribing non-GMO diets.
And what do we hear from them?
Their patients get better.
And they list all these different diseases and disorders.
They get better when they prescribe non-GMO diets.
Dr. Axe:Jeff, I want to mention this too.
I know a lot of chiropractors.
My brother-in-law's a chiropractor.
My brother is a chiropractor, my cousin.
So I've got a lot of holistic doctors and chiropractors in my family.
What they do is they actually have this DVD playing in their office all the time.
So if you're a doctor watching, whether a holistic medical doctor, a naturopath nutritionist,
a chiropractor, whatever it is, this is a great DVD to get.
Put it in your office and play it for your patients.
Dr. Jeffrey:I know some doctors that give IVs.
And the person has to stay there for an hour.
And they play the film.
Talk about a captive audience.
And then we have someone else's books.
We have other books and other materials on our site at responsibletechnology.org.
We have a newsletter.
We have a speaker training program.
We have a way to get involved with local activists called the Tipping Point Network to help generate
enough people to create a tipping point, which is actually already underway, to usher GMOs
out of the marketplace because the food companies don't want to use them, if people aren't going
to buy them.
So we have a whole movement that we're creating through this messaging, through this education,
about this truth about GMOs and why people can protect themselves and their families
by avoiding eating GMOs.
Dr. Axe:Yeah.
I want to encourage you.
Vote with your dollars.
You know, if we are going to ban GMOs, we're going to have to stand up against this giant
and say, "We're not buying your products."
And we are gathering and putting an army together, Jeff is here, to stop GMOs for good.
So I really want to encourage you.
Take a minute right now.
Go to Jeff's website.
It's responsibletechnology.org, dot org, responsibletechnology.org.
And by simply buying one of his products, you are supporting the cause, as well.
So, again, remember this.
If you go and you're a doctor and you buy this DVD, Jeff takes some of these proceeds,
and he's taking these proceeds and putting them toward banning GMOs for good.
Dr. Jeffrey:Absolutely.
Also, our 501(c)(3) and our whole work around the world in over 40 countries is supported
by donations.
So we welcome that, as well.
Dr. Axe:Awesome.
Well, Jeff, thanks so much for being here today.
Again, I love your heart.
Love your mission.
Love your movement.
And we appreciate you being here with us, standing with us, helping us get rid of GMOs.
Remember, help us spread this message right now.
Take a minute.
And punch that share button right now.
Click the like button.
We are locking arms together, moving forward together, banishing GMOs.
Hey, guys, again, thanks for sharing this.
And, Jeff, thanks for being here with me today.
Dr. Jeffrey:Sure.
Dr. Axe:All right.
Dr. Jeffrey:Thank you.
Dr. Axe:Thanks, guys.