After discussing the importance of not using chemicals on their lawn, my friend hired a gardener. She never saw him weeding the grass, but it no longer grew weeds. After a few months of this, she asked if he was using chemicals to treat the grass. “Oh no, we don’t use anything,” he answered. “No chemicals – just a little Roundup.”
Roundup has been in the news recently as the EPA recently instructed herbicide manufacturers to remove Proposition 65 cancer warning labels from products made with glyphosate, the pesticide used in the product.[1]
In the United States, more than 18,000 plaintiffs have filed lawsuits alleging that Roundup and other glyphosate-based weed killers caused their cancer.[2] Last year, the first such case was decided in California and found that Monsanto – which had been acquired by Bayer – should have warned consumers about cancer risks from Roundup; the plaintiff was awarded $78 million, which Bayer is appealing.[3]
This is an important question — especially for families with small children. Let’s look at the facts:
Does this mean you need to be worried that your child will get cancer from playing on the lawn? Absolutely not! The health benefits of playing and exercising outside far outweigh potential dangers. However, you can be proactive about reducing the amount glyphosate your family is exposed to.
Here’s how:
If you want to take this a step further, talk with your children’s school about glyphosate. Are they using it on the grounds – and if so, can they stop? If this is a district decision, try to implement common-sense practices like washing hands after the students come in from playing outside, then consider coordinating a larger parent group to petition decisionmakers. Petitions are popping up around the country, and many have been successful at eliminating Roundup at schools.[10] It may seem like a small thing to start a petition, but this action can have big consequences in protecting your family’s health.
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[1] https://www.cbsnews.com/news/roundup-labels-trump-administration-says-it-wont-approve-glyphosate-warning-labels/
[2] https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bayer-glyphosate-lawsuit/bayer-soars-on-report-of-proposed-8-billion-roundup-settlement-idUSKCN1UZ0PT
[3] https://www.npr.org/2018/11/01/662812333/groundskeeper-accepts-reduced-78-million-in-monsanto-cancer-suit
[4] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3945755/
[5] https://www.iarc.fr/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/MonographVolume112-1.pdf
[6] https://oehha.ca.gov/proposition-65/chemicals/glyphosate
[7] https://www.ewg.org/childrenshealth/monsanto-weedkiller-still-contaminates-foods-marketed-to-children/
[8] https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/pesticide-drift/
[9] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5486281/
[10] https://www.latimes.com/socal/burbank-leader/news/tn-blr-me-busd-round-up-20170320-story.html