The Case:  Jessica has Hashimoto’s Disease and can’t seem to balance her thyroid Her doctors say her levels are fine but she’s experiencing bloating, fatigue, hair loss, GI issues, and brain fog. She met with several doctors but none were able to address her concerns.    The Investigation When I met Jessica, I knew that we had to go beyond supporting the thyroid, we had to slow or stop the attack on her immune system. There are many triggers and Jessica had already cut out gluten. This was great but that told me we had to dig deeper.  I noticed that Jessica came from a family of farmers and had quite a bit of exposure. Figuring out her specific triggers was how we were going to solve her autoimmune mystery.  Autoimmune Triggers and Glyphosate I talk a lot about the four most common triggers for autoimmune disease and they are: stress, toxins, infections and foods. There is one thing that intersects with all four of these triggers - glyphosate. To explain it fully, I invited Jeffrey Smith on the show. He is the Founder and Executive Director of the Institute for Responsible Technology and Protect Nature Now. He’s also a bestselling author, award-winning filmmaker, and an in-demand speaker. I could think of nobody better to explain what’s going on for those with autoimmune disease and even for those who do not have an autoimmune disease.  What is Glyphosate? Glyphosate is the main ingredient found in Roundup (a herbicide) created by Monsanto which is now owned by Bayer. This chemical has been found (in a US lawsuit) to have contributed to Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma and cancer. It has also been linked to more than 30 diseases. It was originally patented as a descaler for industrial builders because it chelates minerals. When it gets into the human body, it also grabs minerals from our system and prevents these minerals from doing their work in keeping us healthy.  How are we Exposed to Roundup and Glyphosate? Since the late 1990’s, Roundup has been used on human food including genetically modified crops such as soy, corn, cotton, canola, sugar beets, and alfalfa. These GMO crops are engineered to be Roundup-ready which means they can withstand it. Other crops that are often sprayed are oats, wheat, mung beans, lentils, chickpeas, and even orchard fruits and grapes used for wine. It is found throughout the food chain.  Effects of Glyphosate Exposure There are many ways that glyphosate exposure can affect the body, including:  Mineral deficiencies (which can cause metabolic pathways to shut down) Acts as an antibiotic that kills off the beneficial bacteria in our microbiome.  Can break down the cellular walls of our gut, brain, kidneys, or other organs in the body Can damage and mutate the DNA which can lead to cancer.  Can damage the mitochondria which has been linked to chronic fatigue, cancer, aging, and several other diseases. Interferes with intercellular communication causing gap junctions (also linked to cancer). Blocks the production of good gut bacteria. Can throw off hormonal balance between estrogen and testosterone.  Acts as an endocrine disruptor.  Can cause epigenetic changes in gene expression in future generations. Suppresses cellular detoxification pathways and downgrades Nrf2. How Can Glyphosate Trigger Autoimmune Disease? Several of the effects listed above can then contribute to the development of an autoimmune disease. Jeffrey points to GMOs and BT toxin. BT toxin works by creating tiny holes in the insects and that is how it acts as an insecticide. While this can help grow those plans, it can also have the same effect on human cells. This is why he believes that leaky gut can be directly related to BT toxins and that leaky gut can lead to a variety of autoimmune diseases because the gut is now allowing bigger proteins that don’t below in the bloodstream, directly into the bloodstream and the immune system starts to see these as an invader and attacks them. The thing is that when the  immune system attacks them,