Posted by Scott Smith on Apr.10, 2009

www.AllergyKids.com

1 out of every 3 American children has allergies, asthma, ADHD or autism. What has changed? - allergykids.com

Robyn O’Brien never expected to be an anti-establishment crusader, exposing the collusion between big government and big business and how it’s poisoning our food supply and making our children sick. Raised in a conservative Texas family, this mother of four was taught that “food is food, and if the FDA approves it, then it’s safe – period. Don’t ask any questions.”

But everything changed a few years ago when her daughter had a severe allergic reaction to scrambled eggs. O’Brien was shocked to learn that child food allergies have increased dramatically in the past 15 years, and she saw the need for a “pink ribbon” type of symbol to identify young children with food allergies. Inspired to help her daughter as well as other children and parents, she created a universal symbol for food allergies (pictured above) and launched the Allergy Kids Foundation at www.allergykids.com.

Since then, O’Brien has been featured in the New York Times and on CNN, Good Morning America, ABC World News, CBS Evening News, and Robert F. Kennedy’s radio show Ring of Fire. And she’s just getting started. While researching food allergies, O’Brien uncovered several shocking truths about our food supply.

In May, Random House will release O’Brien’s new book The Unhealthy Truth: How Our Food Is Making Us Sick – And What We Can Do About It. The book presents scientific evidence that was never revealed to the American public, as well as the political science behind the corruption of our food supply. O’Brien exposes the money trail behind scientific research and shows how research doctors are funded by big food and big pharma industries.

“If these doctors who are telling us not to worry our pretty little heads about the food supply actually had to wear baseball caps with the word ‘Kraft’ blazed across the front of them, then you’d take their opinions a little differently,” says O’Brien. “Once you really see who’s behind the funding, it calls into question the validity of the opinions that some of these doctors issue.”

O’Brien’s thinking has certainly changed. Before she learned the unhealthy truth about our food supply, she never considered herself to be a foodie. “I had always kind of rolled my eyes at the foodies,” she admits. “I thought it was a hippie thing or a lifestyle of the rich and famous – certainly not for me as a mom in the suburbs. I needed those tubes of blue yogurt, thank you very much!”

O’Brien never considered herself to be an environmentalist or tree-hugger, either. “I thought that was kind of an alternative movement, too,” she says. “But I am a kid-hugger!” And it’s O’Brien’s love of children that led to her shocking discoveries.

The Unhealthy Truth about Our Food

So what is this unhealthy truth that O’Brien discovered in her research? What caused this suburban mom to change her lifestyle and her worldview? What is it about our food supply that’s making our children sick?

“In 1994, the United States began to engineer the food supply in order to make it more profitable for the food industry,” explains O’Brien. “It started in 1994 when farmers began injecting cows with a synthetic hormone that increased their ability to produce milk.

“This made the cows more profitable for the farmers and the dairy industry. But those injections elevate hormone levels in the bloodstream, and those elevated hormone levels are linked to breast, prostate, and colon cancer – and for this reason, governments around the world said, ‘Yikes! We don’t want this in our food. No thank you!’ And yet here in the U.S. we allowed it because it was quote-unquote never proven dangerous. Other governments said, ‘It was never proven safe, either.’ And that’s why they didn’t allow it.

“Then in 1996, after genetically engineering milk, U.S. corporations began to genetically engineer soy so that soy in the field could withstand doses of chemical pesticides. As scientists engineered soy, again they introduced new proteins and new allergens that had never been tested.

“And then the same thing happened with corn. Around 2000, they introduced genetically engineered corn – and this one is pretty darn scary! They took an insecticide and engineered it into the cell of the corn seed, so as the corn plant grows, it releases that insecticide.

“So before, as a mom, I could at least wash those ears of corn and clean off the insecticide – but now it’s actually inside the corn! Oh, by the way, our government and these corporations didn’t feel that we needed to know this. As they introduced new proteins and allergens into our food supply, there was no notice given that this was happening in the U.S.”

While U.S. citizens had no idea what was happening to their food, other governments around the world labeled genetically modified foods (or banned them altogether) so that citizens could make informed choices. O’Brien thinks that the introduction of new genetically modified proteins into our food supply has contributed to the rise in food allergies.

“When you look at children with food allergies, their bodies recognize food proteins as foreign substances, and the immune system attacks them. And so one question I’ve raised is: ‘Is a child with a milk allergy actually allergic to the organic milk protein, or is she allergic to the synthetic milk protein that was introduced in 1994?’ And because no tests were ever done, we don’t know!”

O’Brien believes that there’s also a connection between our corrupt food supply and other childhood epidemics such as autism. She explains, “When you have chronic inflammation in the gut, it affects the child’s behavior.”

Dr. Kenneth Bach, who wrote the foreword for O’Brien’s book, is the author of Healing the Childhood Epidemics: Allergies, Autism, ADHD & Asthma. In his book, Dr. Bach addresses how you’ve really got to clean out a kid’s system to remove harmful toxins. “As you pull these chemicals out of your child’s diet, you can see dramatic behavior improvements,” says O’Brien.

How Our Food Supply Became Corrupt

As a long-time conservative Republican, O’Brien had a hard time believing some of the facts that she uncovered in her research.

“There’s been a revolving door in place between industry and government for the last 30 years that has really helped enable legislation in the favor of corporations to allow the approval of these chemicals,” reveals O’Brien. “That was stunning to learn and really disheartening and disappointing.”

“Suddenly I found my entire belief system called into question,” she says. “The personal journey has been rough at points.”

In other countries, O’Brien reminds us, citizens were informed about genetically engineered foods. Other governments banned or labeled genetically modified foods. Only in the United States were citizens kept in the dark, almost as if the food industry needed a giant guinea pig for live market research.

“Governments around the world have banned these chemicals,” says O’Brien. “American corporations like Wal-Mart, Kraft, and Coca-Cola have removed these chemicals from their products overseas, so we’re not asking them to reinvent the wheel. We’re simply asking them to place the same value on the lives of the American kids – and all of us. We’re all consuming these chemicals.”

“Every family is somehow impacted by someone with asthma, autism, ADHD, breast cancer, or prostate cancer,” O’Brien continues. “When you really look at the chemicals recently introduced into our food, there isn’t a family that hasn’t been impacted.”

O’Brien hopes that her new book will help to shed light on this vital issue. Most Americans simply do not realize that their food supply has become so unhealthy.

“Toxic chemicals are everywhere,” stresses O’Brien. “Our system is so deregulated and loose in order to benefit these corporations, and the kids are just getting hammered… I think it’s important to give people tools to feel inspired and empowered to do what they need to do to protect their family.”

Within two hours of O’Brien’s book manuscript hitting New York City, she’d heard from all of the major publishing houses. Within eight hours of her meeting with Random House, all other deals were wiped off the table. The Unhealthy Truth will be published on May 5, 2009, by Random House, and O’Brien will embark on a nationwide tour to promote the book.

Advice for Green Diva Moms

“Mothers are an incredibly inspiring force in the movement,” says O’Brien. “It’s a kid-hugger movement! It’s simply what we owe our children.”

Despite her shocking, disheartening discoveries about our corrupt system, O’Brien maintains a positive attitude: “Because things are such a mess, there are a lot of opportunities for improvement. There’s so much we can do, and our generation is really taking to this path and running with it. People feel compelled to do something once they learn the truth.”

O’Brien continues, “The chemical toxins in our environment, whether they’re in our food, water, air, or vaccines – there’s so much toxicity that’s impacting our health. You have to really take a step back and say, ‘What would happen if I were to try to remove some of these chemicals from my daily exposure? How much better would I feel?’ There really are some amazing preventative steps we can take. Our healthcare system is commercialized, so it’s not structured to suggest preventative measures, but once you connect the dots, you realize how much you can do.”

What can I do?

First, learn the facts. Conduct your own research about the food you eat. O’Brien recommends watching the documentary The Future of Food. “It’s a brilliant documentary,” she says. You should be able to view the film in its entirety on Google Video.

Next, take steps to avoid exposure to dangerous chemicals in your food and in your environment.

“We need to get back to raising our kids the way our grandmothers raised theirs,” says O’Brien. “Our grandmothers could pronounce everything they used in their kitchens and to clean their houses! Now we’ve got so many chemicals in our products and in our food. If we could just get back to ingredients that we could pronounce, that would go such a long way.”

“That doesn’t mean you have to shop at Whole Foods or spend your whole paycheck to buy expensive cleaners,” adds O’Brien. “Our grandmothers cleaned their kitchens with water and vinegar. That’s something that everybody can afford – and it’s something you can pronounce. It doesn’t contain a list of toxic chemicals that have never been proven safe.”

The path to a non-toxic, natural lifestyle may be challenging at times. “I had to learn how to cook,” admits O’Brien. “I couldn’t cook before. I burned pancakes. I even burned noodles once! As I was learning to cook, it was a food fiasco at our house. It didn’t happen overnight, but we eventually got there.”

O’Brien suggests starting with small steps: “You can do one thing – even if it’s buying milk that’s rBGH-free. That’s where we started. Or if you’re making Kraft mac and cheese for your kids – for instance – as I was trying to wean them off that fluorescent orange powder, I used half the pack instead of the whole pack. That’s not radical.”

When you’re shopping for food and preparing food, read the ingredients and ask yourself, “Can I pronounce this?” Get your gets involved, too! If your children are old enough to read, then they’re old enough to start learning about healthy, natural ingredients versus unhealthy, synthetic chemicals. Directing a lifestyle change for the whole family may not be easy, but your child’s wellbeing is well worth the hassle.

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