Are You Eating a Gasoline Additive?

Dear Health Conscious Reader,

I don’t mind telling you… I hate soy. I loathe it.

Soy sucks nutrients right out of your bloodstream. It can turn a man into a woman. Soy is one of the worst crops for the environment. It destroys the soil and wrecks our ecosystem.

And now, here’s another reason to hate it even more.

Natural-food manufacturers are using a toxic chemical called hexane to process the soy in their products.1

This is the same substance that makes gasoline explode. It’s the stuff in glue that gets you high. Hexane fumes go straight to your brain and cause damage almost immediately.

Some of these foods are probably in your kitchen cupboard right now. And you probably thought they were good for you because they say “Natural” on the label.

Here’s how it’s happening…

Natural-food manufacturers use hexane because it’s cheap. They take whole soybeans and soak them in big vats of this toxic soup until the soybeans dissolve. Then they extract the protein, fiber, and oil from the beans to make the “natural” foods you believe are healthy.

If you work around hexane, there are strict limits to your exposure. If it touches your skin, it can cause blisters. If you breathe it, you’re disoriented within 10 minutes. If you’re around it long enough, you might even up with permanent nerve damage or Parkinson’s disease.2,3

Hexane is so toxic, the EPA has it listed as a hazardous chemical that causes cancer and birth defects.

An independent lab found levels of hexane residue as high as 21 parts per million in soy oil, soy grits, and soy meal.4 But no one knows what happens when you eat these foods.

That’s because the soy industry is powerful. The FDA doesn’t require testing for hexane on any of your food or in baby formula.

I have always told you to stay away from soy. It can cause mineral deficiencies and hormone imbalances. And you may think you’re doing that. But it can be hidden in foods you’d never suspect. Like hamburger buns, mayonnaise, and coffee creamer.

Here’s how you can avoid this toxic substance:

1. Check food labels. It’s not enough just to avoid “soy” products. Check the ingredient list carefully. If you find things like texturized vegetable protein, hydrolyzed protein, or soy isolate, you know hexane-processed soy is hiding inside.

2. Eat organic. Don’t think you can switch from soy to another grain. Hexane is also used to extract corn, rice, and other grains. But hexane is banned from organic-food processing. So, look for a green seal that says, “USDA Organic.” If you see that seal, you know your foo

d doesn’t contain hexane residue. And don’t be fooled by a label that says, “Made with organic ingredients.” Foods only have to be made with 70% organic ingredients to use that on their label. So, more than likely, they contain hexane-processed soy.

To Your Good Health,

Al Sears, MD

  1. “Behind the Bean: The Heroes and Charlatans of the Natural and Organic Soy Foods Industry. The Social, Environmental, and Health Impacts of Soy.” The Cornucopia Institute. 2009.
  2. Pezzoli G. “Parkinsonism due to n-hexane exposure.” Lancet. 1989 Oct 7;2(8667):874.
  3. U.S. Occupational Safety and Hazards Office, Occupational Safety and Health Guideline for n-Hexane (Washington, DC: USOSHO, last updated March 10, 2009).
  4. Ibid. The Cornucopia Institute. 2009.