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There’s a little bit of Chernobyl in us all

I’ve been reading with alarm the stories of radioactive fish being caught in the Pacific Ocean as a result of the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster in Japan in 2011. Including radioactive bluefin tuna caught recently off the California coast.

Fukushima is the largest nuclear disaster since the Chernobyl disaster in 1986, both measuring Level 7 on the International Nuclear Event Scale.

Even after the initial radiation leakage that occurred in 2011 as a result of the earthquake and tsunami, the Fukushima plant has continued to leak radiation into the Pacific Ocean.

There are no signs of it stopping because Japan can’t even figure out why it’s leaking.

All fishing off the Fukushima coast has been banned by the Japanese government, though restrictions were eased in June 2012 allowing fishing of 16 types of marine life.

But here’s the thing:  fish swim.  And they can swim from Japan to the U.S. coastline. A bluefin tuna tagged by scientists was found to have crossed between Japan and the West Cost of the U.S. three times in 600 days.

Japanese and U.S. officials claim that the amount of radiation found in the bluefin is safe. But the overwhelming scientific opinion is that there is no safe level of radiation.

So there isn’t a consensus.  But here’s what you can rely on:  governments will lie to us and downplay the danger.

So we’re on our own and have to fend for ourselves on what to eat and how to stay healthy.

There’s a little bit of Chernobyl in us all

So I went to my nutritionist last week and expressed my concern about ever eating Pacific Ocean fish again.

She surprised me by saying,  “There’s already a little bit of Chernobyl in all of us. It’s in the air we breathe.  You can’t escape it, so the best course of action is to eat as healthily as you can, given that most of the food on the planet is somewhat contaminated.”

Wow!  Sobering.

The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in the Ukraine had an explosion and fire in 1986 that released large quantities of radioactive particles into the atmosphere.  Four hundred times more radioactive material was released than had been by the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.

The official government line is that none of it reached the United States.  But there’s a large group of scientists who have found that it did: Chernobyl Radiation Distribution in the USA. 

So we’ve already been exposed to it by the air we breathe. It almost tempted me to post, “eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die.”

But I’m not giving up yet. Read on.

We’ve been eating genetically modified foods for decades

It’s estimated that 70% of all grocery store items in the U.S. contain genetically modified organisms [GMOs].  They’re so ingrained in our food system, we have to work to avoid them.

Fortunately, there are apps for our smartphones to help us shop.  I have TrueFood on mine.

I’m not going to make an argument against genetically modified foods here.  You can reach your own conclusions because there are plenty of articles out there both for and against GMO foods.

But I’ve personally done my homework and I go out of my way to avoid them.

Currently 64 countries around the world require labeling of genetically modified foods.  The U.S. does not, so it’s been sneaking into our food supply for decades.

A new report from the National Academy of Sciences found that health in the U.S. ranked 17^th out of 17 developed nations.  Yes, indeed, we’re last!

Also, allergies, asthma, autism and ADD are on the rise in the U.S.

We’ve been eating genetically modified foods for decades; other countries have not.  Is the U.S. health crisis a coincidence?  I think not. 

What to do about it?

Here’s what I do:

• Eat organic as much as possible.  If it’s certified organic, it’s not genetically modified.  The word “natural” on food products is meaningless.
• Avoid factory meat and dairy products. The industries are cruel to the animals and the animals are filled with hormones and GMO feed that in turn goes into us.
• Always wash fruits and vegetables before consuming.
• To avoid GMOs, read labels: if it isn’t organic or labeled non-GMO, it undoubtedly is GMO.  Here’s an excellent article from Mother Earth News on how to avoid GMOs.
• Start cooking more of your own food so you don’t have to buy pre-packaged.  Much of our pre-packaged foods contain genetically modified ingredients.
• Sign online petitions and write your representatives telling them you want GMO foods labeled.  [This statement is directed to my U.S. readers; most other countries already require such labeling.]  You have a voice; use it.

But here’s the most important question:  What do the Native American elders say about genetically modified foods, and radioactive fish?

What do the elders say?

This is what I’ve heard Native American elders say:

• We’ve forgotten our instructions on how to live on Mother Earth.
• We’re coming to the time of prophecy of the changing of worlds: Iroquois prophecies suggest the end of the fourth world when: A disease of the blood circles the earth [AIDS]; trees die from above [acid rain]; water catches on fire [Fukushima – radioactive fire in the ocean]
• Don’t heat food in microwaves because it kills the spirit of the food.
• Seeds belong to the people; it’s wrong for a company to patent and change them.  Everyone should pray for the seeds.
• Sacred foods and medicines are a gift from Mother Earth and it’s wrong to genetically engineer them. Scientists are playing god by creating life forms that don’t occur in nature, all for profit.
• If you’re not spiritually connected to earth and know how to live on her, with her, you may not make it.
• Everything brought here by the Creator has a spirit.  Do genetically modified foods have a spirit?
• Corn is a gift to the world from Native people.  Grains are for all the people.  No one has the right to modify them.
• Most of all, bless your food before you eat it. Never underestimate the power of prayer.  Pray to receive only the natural nutrition in your food.
  

And in the words of the ancient healer Hippocrates:  “Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine by thy food.”

Please take all this to heart; our very lives may depend on it.

 

Sources for this article:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-08-29/fukushima-fishermen-ruined-by-tepco-now-key-in-radiation-fight.html

http://www.responsibletechnology.org/10-Reasons-to-Avoid-GMOs

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/03/14/956293/-When-the-Radiation-from-Fukushima-Reaches-the-US#

http://www.davistownmuseum.org/cbm/Rad7c.html#USA

 “Every bluefin tuna tested in California waters contaminated with Fukushima radiation”

“How to avoid genetically modified food”

 

 

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