I am a big proponent of organic farming and I am an avid environmentalist. I put a lot of information in my book on GMO’s, soy, pesticides, the environment, etc. I was reading today about some political things going on in California. If it is happening in California, it will affect our food supply and it is only a matter of time, before they will want to do it in your state too. So, I think it is important to know this. I think our environment is so fragile and having huge amounts of chemicals dumped onto our environment is becoming such an enormous problem that is every increasing.

About 27 years ago, I became aware of the problems associated with genetically modified plants. I was reading books and articles on the environment and I read about how the large bumblebee was becoming extinct because they were starving to death.

The reason being that the new genetically modified plants are developed for beauty and other things and the flowers don’t have any nectar in them. Have you ever noticed that the flowers today at the florist don’t or most don’t have a scent? The flowers they plant all over town don’t have a scent. There is no nectar.

That is why old heirloom flowers or wildflowers are so important for us to plant everywhere we can. I plant them in my garden for the bees and pollinators. About GMO’s, there are two basic types of genetically engineered crops on the market now: herbicide-tolerant and insect-resistant. These are grown to handle the direct use of pesticides on them.

There are over a billion pounds of pesticides used in the United States alone each year. Many of these chemical fertilizers were developed for use as bombs or poisons in warfare. What I find alarming now is that “Last week Dow Chemical donated $1.2 million to defeat Prop 37 to label genetically engineered foods, which will appear on the ballot in California this fall.[1]

At the same time, they happen to be petitioning the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the approval of a new genetically engineered “Agent Orange” soybean that tolerates the extremely toxic chemical herbicide 2,4-D, a major component of the Vietnam War era defoliant Agent Orange.[2]

Not only does Dow Chemical not want you to know what’s in your food, but now they want to dump more toxic chemicals on it too! Numerous studies have linked exposure to 2,4-D to serious health problems that include cancer (particularly non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma), lowered sperm counts, liver disease and Parkinson’s disease.[3] In addition, dozens of peer-reviewed studies have found the use of 2,4-D to contribute to hormone-disrupting activity linked to reproductive problems and thyroid dysfunction.[4] (I got these facts and that quote from : http://action.fooddemocracynow.org/go/641?t=8&akid=613.225485.Ph-M8Z)

These pesticides and chemicals poison our food and our environment. Pesticides particularly affect our nervous system. These plants actually produce an insecticide to kill insects that feed on them. If this is what the genetically engineered plant is doing to a small insect, then what is it doing to the person who is eating this food? The effect of this type of plant on the environment and in the human body, especially long-term, is unknown. Genetically engineered, or genetically modified (GM), plants are escaping into the wild and inter-breeding with wild plants.

Our pollinators, such as bees, are in trouble now. Are genetically engineered plants a contributing factor? Good question. Genetically engineered food is such a recent food product that no long-term, in-depth studies show their long-term effect on humans or the ecosystem. You must decide for yourself if eating food that has pest control built right into it or has large amounts of poisons put on it is good for human consumption. “An estimated 75 percent of foods in U.S. grocery stores contain GM ingredients.

About seven out of every 10 items in the average grocery cart have been genetically modified. And don’t bother reading labels to see if you’re buying a GM product, because as of now, there is no labeling is required,” (quote from Nancy’s international award-winning book: How To Be A Healthy Vegetarian, page 317) like there is in most countries around the world. Well there are two basic types of GMO’s.

I personally think we need labeling. We also need to stop poisoning our precious ecosystem and environment. Let your voice be heard. If you don’t say anything, they think you don’t care and they will do whatever they think they should at the time.

Educate the people in power with your voice. If you do say something or make a phone call, they estimate that you represent a demographic of about 10 thousand people. So don’t underestimate the power of that one phone call! Help stop the poisoning of America and the world!

Please do something today. Do it for your grandchildren, if for no other reason. They deserve a safe, non-toxic land. So, support the organic organizations, support your organic farmers, because if you don’t, they may not be around to support later on.

Many people say to me, but I can’t afford organic and I say to them, you can’t afford not to buy organic. Buy local, buy seasonal, buy organic when you can, it does make a difference.

That farmer, doing the right thing, needs your financial support or he can’t keep doing it. Every time you buy something, you are voting for someone or against someone. The purchase power is powerful. You don’t realize how powerful your purchase really is. Make it count!

I have always felt that when faced with a situation; it is best to take action in the positive direction instead of just remaining in place feeling helpless. So, that is why I wrote this blog. Thanks for reading it! I hope you have found it helpful, educational and inspirational.

Sincerely, Nancy

Resource for quote and information:
http://action.fooddemocracynow.org/go/641?t=8&akid=613.225485.Ph-M8Z

Nancy’s website is: www.organichealthylife.com and her author page on Amazon is: Author.to/nancyaddison

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Another day in the life of a wild animal rehabber.

   Today, I received a phone call from the police department at SMU. They had a mommy opossum, in the street, and she had been hit by a car. I asked what they had done and they told me that the police officer would not touch her, because of police regulations. Thankfully, they had been really great guys and not just killed her. Instead they had called my volunteer group, the DFW Wildlife Coalition, which is made up of certified and licensed wildlife rehabilitators. Thankfully we have earned and gained a wonderful reputation with the police departments around the city. Almost all the police departments in the city, now call us instead of killing the wild animals like they had previously done in the past as normal procedure. So, because of their University police rules, she was still in the street. I was not sure what to expect as I drove there quickly.

        When I arrived, there were two police cars with their lights flashing. A crowd of students standing around looking at this poor mommy opossum that was frightened, badly wounded and barely standing in the street. Many were concerned, but simply did not know what to do about handling a badly wounded mommy opossum. I was really surprised she was still standing. Her face was all bloody and her eye was hanging outside of her face. Her little babies were all clinging to her back. I pulled my car over quickly and got out of my car. I didn’t have any rescue equipment with me today. I had been fortunately been at SMU that day, so I had been nearby.

          I had been working and I was in my nice clothes and high heels; which was not the best thing to wear when trying to rescue a wild animal. I opened my car trunk and luckily I had a big towel. I got it out and walked over to the mommy opossum. The officer looked really shocked and said, aren’t you afraid she will bite you? I replied that they know I am there to help them. Animals can read your energy. Opossums are actually very docile and fragile creatures. I reached down and gently scooped her up in my towel as carefully and gently as I possibly could and started to walk back to my car. I did not have anything to put her in; so I was just going to put her down on the floor of my car on the soft towel for the car ride to my home. It was [6:45] at night and there weren’t any vets open at this hour that I knew would look at a wild animal. I would have to wait until morning.

          Officer Norris walked over to help and opened the car door and then moved some things for me out of the floor for me. I was trying to hurry, because she was so tremendously hurt, I needed to get her to a place where I could take care of her and get her calm and quiet.I knew she was in shock. I told him quickly a few of my opossum facts, like they don’t carry rabies; they are really docile and sweet. Their closest relative is the koala bear. How they have no defense except looking scary and a few quick facts so he would treat opossums with more kindness in the future. He wanted to ask me questions about how he can find me again, if he needs me. I quickly gave him my information and told him that I work with the DFW Wildlife Coalition. He thanked me and I was off.

          I drove very slowly and carefully so that she wasn’t jostled anymore than necessary. With all of the blood and her poor little eye, I didn’t think she was going to survive. Surprises do happen. I got her fixed up a little and put her to bed in a soft warm place away from my dog. Her babies still nestled up under her body. I tried to keep them intact so she would feel secure. I gave her some water, but she didn’t really drink any. I let her rest until morning, because I felt like she couldn’t take anything more that day.
           The next morning, I was so surprised to find her still alive. Just barely breathing, but still hanging in there. I called my vet and told him I was coming over with a hurt mommy. I got there and he saw her right away. I had her in a box with all of her babies still with her.

          Dr.Ward looked at her closely and cleaned her wounds. He told me he thought her jaw was broken, but after some more careful observation, he decided her jaw was not broken. I was so relieved. . Her eye really hurt her and it was awful to watch as he tried to clean it. She had dried blood caked on her head. Most of it came off pretty well and easily. She cried a little bit though. He tried to be as gentle as he could. He gave her some fluids with an IV and gave me one to take home. He gave her a shot of antibiotics and some cortisone to help with the swelling.
            When I got her home, I put her on some clean soft towels and let her rest. When I checked on her later that day, she had eaten some food, some of the water had been drunk and some of the strawberry smoothie had also been eaten. I was so happy. The babies were still nursing and she seemed really worn out. I am hoping she will continue getting better. I will continue to keep them and raise the babies; so that they can be released into the wild when they are grown. I will probably keep the mommy, because of her condition. I may keep her for life, because of her eye. I don’t think she can survive in the wild without her eye. I hope she continues to improve every day until she feels great. This is just another day in the life of an animal rehabber.

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