for the birds ???

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hi folks,

the following message is from the brix list

BrixTalk

 

norm )~

...... raw food, simply wonderful .....

 

 

Message: 1

Sat, 14 Dec 2002 08:21:11 +0800

" David Menne " <menne

Food and pesticides etc

 

As usual, the veterinary sector provises the lead. Any wonder I did not need

a marketing campaign to push me towards Biodynamic Foodstuffs ? :

 

See THE KITCHEN PHYSICIAN PARROTS, PRODUCE & PESTICIDES y Carolyn Swicegood

on http://www.landofvos.com/articles/kitchen3.html :

 

It is a well-known fact that parrots are especially sensitive to

environmental toxins. Chemicals that normally are only irritating to humans

and other animals can be acutely toxic to parrots. The inhalation of carbon

monoxide exhaust or fumes from overheated Teflon products, which would cause

no apparent damage to humans or other animals, can be fatal to parrots.

Their immune systems constantly are challenged by air pollution, exposure to

heavy metals, water contamination and the adulteration of their foods by

pesticides. A shocking four million tons of pesticides, numbering 20,000

different products, are fogged into the air in the United States each year!

We must control additional exposure of our birds to these products by not

using any fumigants in their presence. Similarly we must educate ourselves

as to the level of contamination of the foods that they consume.

 

Many of us like to provide a bountiful harvest of vegetables and fruits

along with the other staples of our parrots' diets. Yet, produce is the food

group with the highest incidence of pesticide and chemical residue, linked

with potential cancer, neurological problems, hormonal imbalances, and

immune system disruptions. The likelihood of toxicity is more serious for

birds than for humans because of their smaller size and their increased

sensitivity.

Due to all the unanswered questions that parrot breeders have concerning

infertility, dead in shell chicks, neurological problems, and even feather

plucking, I currently am researching the possible contribution of pesticides

and their " endocrine disruptors " to all or any of these problems. We all

remember the devastating effects of DDT on wildbird populations, including

Bald Eagles that laid soft-shelled eggs until they almost became extinct.

Endocrine disruptors in wildlife populations have caused increased

mortality, failure to mature sexually, and inability to reproduce. I believe

that the hormonal disruption caused by pesticides may prove to be just as

devastating to our domestic parrot population as DDT to wildlife.

 

Hormones are chemical messengers working in near infinitesimal amounts,

molecular keys that fit into molecular locks at receptor sites, carrying

signals that trigger and regulate processes ranging from formation of a

fetus to development of gender, from behavioral bias to the formation of

reproductive organs. When these receptor sites encounter synthetic chemicals

that are enough like the hormones it was expecting, the organism responds to

the signal it thinks it has gotten, with sometimes disastrous effects!

Research on wildlife populations, especially in the Great Lakes, has

demonstrated that endocrine disrupting chemicals profoundly impair animal

reproduction and development.

 

Birds with deformed beaks, female birds that nest with females, and fish

eggs that do not develop all have high levels of endocrine disruptors,

PCB's, dioxins and DDE's. Effects on wildlife cited by researchers include

thyroid dysfunction in birds and fish, decreased fertility in birds, fish,

and mammals, decreased hatching success and gross birth deformities in

birds, fish, and turtles, behavioral abnormalities in birds, and compromised

immune systems in birds and mammals.

 

Why, when the foods that we give our parrots contain toxic levels of

pesticides with endocrine disruptors, should we be surprised at all the

reproductive and other problems they exhibit?

If you were asked to list a dozen of the fruits and vegetables that you

offer your parrots most often, how many of these would be included?

1. Strawberries

2. Bell peppers (green and red)

3. Spinach (tied with 2)

4. U.S. grown cherries

5. Peaches

6. Mexican grown cantaloupe

7. Celery

8. Apples

9. Apricots

10. Green beans

11. Chilean-grown grapes

12. Cucumbers

 

The above list contains many of the foods that that we feed our parrots

daily. Unfortunately, according to a study by the non-profit Environmental

Working Group, they are the most toxic conventionally grown fruits and

vegetables! This report, Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce, is based

on data from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration studies. It found that

more than half of the health risks associated with pesticides are

concentrated in these twelve fruits and vegetables! Of the 42 fruits and

vegetables tested, strawberries were by far the most toxic. They were given

a toxicity score of 189 of a possible 200 points, far greater than bell

peppers and spinach, which tied at a score of 155. U.S. grown cherries rated

154 and peaches 150. The least contaminated food in this group, cucumbers,

scored a disturbing117 of 200 possible points.

 

Strawberry growers everywhere use large amounts of pesticides, particularly

fungicides. The FDA detected thirty different pesticides on strawberries,

second only to apples with thirty-six. Based on a two year sampling,

strawberries were found to contain captan, benomyl, vinclozolin, iprodione,

and endosulfan. These pesticides not only are carcinogenic in humans, but

disrupt the endocrine system as well. Unless one is lucky enough to locate a

source of organically grown strawberries, in my opinion, they never should

be fed to parrots! Other fruits with far lower pesticide residues can be

offered. Substitute blueberries, raspberries, oranges, grapefruit,

watermelon and kiwis.

Bell peppers are more heavily contaminated with neurotoxic insecticides than

all other crops analyzed. Although green peppers are high in vitamin C, and

red peppers add vitamin A and carotenoids, there are several less toxic

alternatives. Substitute broccoli, romaine lettuce, green peas, asparagus,

brussel sprouts or carrots.

Spinach contains DDT, permethrin, chlorthalonil and other carcinogenic

pesticides. Because of this and its calcium binding properties, Popeye the

Parrot would not be a very healthy specimen! Substitute broccoli, brussel

sprouts, asparagus and romaine lettuce.

 

Cherries from the U.S. are three times more contaminated with pesticides

than their imported counterparts, which are among the cleanest fruits and

vegetables analyzed. Domestic cherries were found to contain twenty-six

different pesticides! Except for their marginal amounts of vitamin C and

their value as a treatment for gout, they are not as nutritious as many

other fruits. However cherries DO contain a powerful compound known as

ellagic acid that counteracts carcinogens, so it is worthwhile to seek out

imported cherries. Substitute oranges, watermelon, blueberries, raspberries

and kiwi.

 

Peaches are heavily contaminated with cancer causing fungicides and

neuro-toxic pesticides. Peaches contain low amounts of vitamins A and C, but

many other less contaminated fruits provide as many or more nutritional

benefits. Substitute nectarines, watermelon, tangerines, grapefruits,

oranges and kiwis.

 

Cantaloupes from Mexico tested positive for two or more pesticides in

forty-eight percent of the samples, more than any other crop analyzed. Avoid

offering this food to parrots during January through April, when Mexican

imports are at their peak. Substitute U.S. cantaloupe in season, papaya,

nectarines and watermelon.

 

Celery is a major source of exposure to neurotoxic pesticides. Eighty-one

percent of samples tested contained detectable residues. This could mean

that eight out of ten bites of celery that a parrot takes are bites of

pesticides.

 

Considering the minimal amounts of nutrition in celery, it is not worth the

risk. Substitute carrots, romaine lettuce, broccoli and radishes.

 

Apples contain thirty-six different pesticides, more than any other fruit or

vegetable, according to FDA data! Who said an apple a day keeps the vet

away? Substitute pears, U.S. cantaloupe, kiwi, watermelon, nectarines,

bananas or citrus fruit.

 

Apricots contain such high levels of pesticides, fourteen different kinds to

be exact, that it is better to feed our parrots other fruits that are

equally high in vitamins A and C and potassium. Substitute nectarines,

tangerines, U.S. cantaloupes, watermelon, oranges and grapefruit.

 

Green beans are a major source of carcinogenic fungicides, neurotoxins, and

endocrine disruptors. They provide only modest amounts of nutrients anyway

so unless we can find organically grown greens beans, better leave them off

our parrots' plates. Substitute green peas, broccoli, cauliflower, brussel

sprouts, asparagus and potatoes.

 

Grapes from Chile add a load of cancer causing and endocrine-disrupting

fungicides to our parrots' diets. From January through April, a whopping

ninety percent of the grapes sold in the U.S. are from Chile, where growers

use less sophisticated pest control techniques than U.S. growers. Substitute

domestic grapes in season.

 

Cucumbers contain unacceptable levels of Dieldrin, an extremely carcinogenic

pesticide that was banned in the U.S. over twenty years ago. Unfortunately

it is persistent in the soil and is taken up by cucumbers. One of every

fourteen cucumber samples from across the U.S. and Mexico contained this

highly toxic compound. Substitute carrots, romaine lettuce, broccoli or

radishes.

 

Now that we know the twelve most contaminated foods, here are some foods

that are low in pesticides and high in vitamins, minerals, and

carotenoids.Sweet potatoes, broccoli, watermelon and brussel sprouts provide

lots of vitamins, carotenoids, and minerals, along with relatively few

pesticides.

 

To complement the twelve most contaminated crops, The Environmental Working

Group compiled a list of the twelve cleanest crops. Ironically, avocados

which are poisonous to parrots, are the very cleanest food that was tested!

Onions, and green onions are not generally considered suitable parrot foods

either, so these three foods are not included in the list below. These nine

foods rank from only 14 of a possible 200 points in toxicity for corn, to 49

for broccoli. These are the lowest contamination scores of the fruits and

vegetables commonly fed to parrots.

l. Corn

2. Sweet potatoes

3. Cauliflower

4. Brussel sprouts

5. Grapes (U.S.)

6. Bananas

7. Plums

8. Watermelon

9. Broccoli

 

We are fortunate indeed that corn, a big favorite of many species of

parrots, is one of the least toxic foods available. Sweet potatoes are one

of the most nutritious foods on earth, sometimes referred to as the perfect

food, and it too is a favorite of many parrot species. Broccoli is another

super food and if our birds don't like it raw, often they will enjoy it

lightly steamed. We also can feed grapes and cantaloupes safely if we give

them in season, from May through December.

 

As disturbing as the news is of widespread toxicity in our fresh foods,

according to the Environmental Working Group, the picture is actually much

bleaker than painted by the FDA data. Some of the foods listed as the least

contaminated have incredibly high contamination rates if they come from

certain countries. Examples are pears from Korea, blackberries and green

peas from Guatemala, peas from China, kiwis from Chile, carrots and leaf

lettuce from Mexico, and green onions and tomatoes from the United States.

Farmers must contend with some 80,000 plant diseases, 30,000 species of

weeds, 1,000 species of nematodes and more than 10,000 species of insects,

so the problem of pesticide residues is not likely to end soon. Every year

100-150 million pounds of pesticides that cannot be used in the United

States are exported for use in other countries. The foods that are treated

with these banned chemicals are then imported back into the United States,

to be sold at grocery stores nationwide. It is the recommendation of the EWG

that we buy organic produce whenever possible!

 

Common sense practices can somewhat reduce pesticide residues on fresh

fruits and vegetables. The USDA recommends that produce be washed under tap

water before serving. Consumers should peel away and discard outer leaves,

skin or rinds. Certain hardy vegetables, like potatoes and carrots, should

be scrubbed if the fiber-rich skins are to be given to parrots.

 

The twelve most contaminated fruits and vegetables represent the majority of

the health risks from pesticides that cause cancer, neurotoxic, and

endocrine effects. We should minimize or eliminate these foods, and maximize

the amount of foods with the least toxicity. By so doing, and by using

organically-grown produce whenever possible, we can vastly reduce the amount

of dangerous pesticides that we feed our parrots.

 

One way to provide inexpensive, organically-grown foods to our parrots is to

start SPROUTING! Sprouts are live food which our parrots are biologically

adapted to consume, high in enzymes, extremely nutritious, easy to grow, and

best of all, uncontaminated by pesticides and other chemicals! When we grow

them ourselves, we can be certain that they are pesticide free. By becoming

informed and by diminishing this very real threat to our parrots, we can

help them to achieve the level of health and longevity that they so richly

deserve!

 

David Menne : http://www.plantsfood.com

 

" We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we

created them " - Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

 

" Only the small secrets need to be protected. The big ones are kept secret

by public incredulity " - Marshall McLuhan (1911-1980)