Genetically Modified Foods And Its Effects On The Human Body And Environment

Norman Borlaug once said, “Man 's survival, from the time of Adam and Eve until the invention of agriculture, must have been precarious because of his inability to ensure his food supply.” Throughout the history of mankind, the global food supply has become a battleground for politicians, scientists, and farmers. Genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, have been in the spotlight throughout much of the last four decades, offering a viable solution to world hunger issues. It is through genetic engineering that scientists can achieve the creation of genetically modified crops, creating new crop varieties designed to yield more products with less inputs. Genetically modified foods offer numerous benefits, such as boosting our economy, eradicating hunger and malnutrition, and also provide a safe food source for a growing population. Genetically modified foods are economically viable, able to help ease world hunger issues and are in fact safe to eat.

Genetically modified foods can be good and bad for humans and the economy. For example, if you do not cook an genetically modify foods it can cause us humans to become deathly ill. If the soil is not treated before the genetically modified seed is placed into the ground it can damage the soil and the earth around it.

In 2004, Jeffrey Smith wrote an article about genetically modified (GM) foods and their effects on human behavior especially on the behavioral growth of children. He claims that GM foods lead to aggressive and violent behavior among children and hence, should be banned from schools. He supported his claim with the findings from two experiments - one was conducted by the students of 2nd grade and the other experiment was conducted by one student in Holland. Both experiments were conducted on two groups of mice – where one group was fed processed junk food and the other group was fed nutritious whole food. Results of two experiments indicated aggressive and violent behaviors among mice who were fed processed junk food. Consequently, author held GM foods, which are present in processed foods in the form of corn and soy, responsible for the aggressive and violent behaviors among mice. I do think that Smith has failed to provide sufficient evidence to support his claim. He has reached a significantly strong conclusion based on only two experiments. My understanding of the subject is entirely different than what Mr. Smith has portrayed; henceforth, I don’t agree with him and intend to rebut his claim. Till present, no study has established coherently that GM foods lead to violent or aggressive behavior among children or among humans for that matter. In fact, GM foods have been associated with many benefits, which shall be discussed throughout this paper. In short, GM foods do

The last few years American’s have been the center of attention when it comes to an example of unhealthy living. In 2013 obesity became recognized as a disease in order to help aid the fight for a healthy future. Fingers are being pointed at every company and government branch possible on who is to blame for the current crisis. One thing people are able to agree on is that the food we are eating is the main cause of the health crisis in America. At the heart of this debate is the discussion on genetically modified organism, or GMO foods.

By the year 2012, over 70 percent of the processed foods in the U.S can be linked to genetically modified organisms, or GMOs. Despite this strong dependency on the manipulation of genetic material, there are many questions concerning long-lasting impacts such food could bring. The government of the United States of America should enforce stricter restrictions on the consumption, production, and availability of food products containing genetically modified organisms. Genetically engineered foods have detrimental impacts on the environment, are linked to large, monopolizing industries, and do not reduce world hunger.

The food industry utilizes genetically modified organism in almost every single product that one consumes. Americans tend to go with these food options because it is cheaper and easier to access. However, not only does this option contribute to the nationwide issue of obesity, it also damages the human body in the long run. As these discoveries are quite new to the country, there has not been enough time to survey and analyze the long-term effects of GMO consumption. The concern for the long-term negative consequences of the poison being fed may soon outweigh the benefits of the cheaper alternative. (Fukuyama 118). GMO consumption infiltrates the human body and plants a seed of unknown side effects for years to come. The world is unfamiliar with the long-term consequences and one will not be able to note until a couple of more

What are GMOs? GMO stands for genetically modified organism, an organism that has had its genes or genetic makeup changed or alter in some way in a research lab. Two ways that scientist accomplish this is through either gene cloning or protein engineering (Phillips, Teresa p.1). Tampering with the genetics of any species, particularly one that we consume into our bodies has unknown effects that have not been completely research enough. We do not know how genetically modifying the foods we eat will affect our own inner bodies and genes. Big research and food companies, such as Monsanto, have put their own bottom-line, or greed, above our health and we are unwittingly being

Genetically modified foods are one of the most common products in the market today. Corn, tomatoes, and strawberries are only just a few of the many examples. In the scientific community, there’s a huge debate between whether or not genetically modified foods should still be something that should be happening. People who oppose the idea of genetically modified foods claim that using them will harm people’s health as well as nature itself, while people who support the idea of genetically modified foods claim that it will be beneficial to people’s health and problems including starvation as a whole. I am in favor of genetically modified foods as I firmly believe that they are more beneficial than harmful.

Genetically modified (GM) foods are helping lives one life at a time! The question everyone is asking in today's society is if GM foods are helping people or hurting people. Some people believe that GM foods are going to end up hurting the environment just like the Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, (DDT) did in the 1940's. Just because the scientist are changing the genetic code of the plant does not mean it is hurting anyone. The foods are healthier, larger, and they can provide food in a time of need. GM foods are a big help in today's society.

The late nineteenth century brought forth some of the most breakthrough scientific discoveries. One such breakthrough were Genetically Engineered (Modified) Organisms which were initially meant to reduce world hunger by being able to mass produce crops and also allow the produce to have a longer shelf life and be more ripe. However, the increasing methods of germinating crops and new, more compelling evidence from thorough scientific research has led to the conclusion that foods with Genetically Modified material can lead to dangerous diseases and side effects. In 2011, every eight in ten Americans did not know that the foods they were consuming contained Genetically Engineered Organisms, because about 90% of popularly consumed crops in the United States were made using Genetic Engineering (D 'Ambrosio). Although this relatively new scientific discovery can possibly help to end world hunger, it has not made any progress since the early 2000’s when the European Union made it a law to label all foods that contained Genetically Modified Organisms, which led to more consumers switching to organic foods. The United States has no such law making it mandatory for companies to label their products as not natural which gives consumers misleading nutritional facts. The issue of mandatory labeling of all GM foods has become a heated debate and has quickly become an important issue for many large companies. Advocates of mandatory labeling

With the increased amount of publicity, genetically modified organisms have recently been under harsh scrutiny and criticism. Consumers around the world are concerned whether or not consuming these newly modified organisms have any long term or short term health effects. “An exhaustive new study by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, found “no substantiated evidence of a difference in risks to human health between current commercially available genetically engineered (GE) crops and conventionally bred crops,”(Hall). This experiment showed that there are no alarming effects for consumers to worry about when consuming genetically modified crops. Genetically modified crops have been consumed for over twenty years now without causing any increase in health problem in the populations that consume them. These products are some of the most tested and safest agriculture products out there today. All of the testing done on genetically modified crops and their safety is monitored by the Department of Agriculture, the Environmental Protection Agency(EPA), and the Food and Drug Administration(FDA). Across the board with so many different agencies committed to reviewing testing of GMOs these products and organisms are undoubtedly safe

In the United States today we consume genetically modified organisms in nearly everything we eat, and some of us are not even aware of it. Even though GMO’s have been around for nearly two decades, only recently they have been getting increasingly more attention. The author of The Threats From Genetically Modified Foods explains that “genetic modification refers to the manipulation of DNA by humans to change the essential makeup of plants”(Mather). However, a large portion of the American population is concerned about whether or not they should be wary of these new advancements in produce, if they should allow their food to be produced the way it has been done for centuries, and if they even have a choice. These are the concerns that are

How well do people know what they are consuming? Usually, the ordinary American does not think about, let alone research the foods they eat. Previous to all the technological advancements known of today, production of food only consisted of farming, hunting, and harvesting. Today, because of technology, the mass production of food was introduced, letting people have any kind of food, any time of the year. These advancements in the food industry led to the development of Genetically Modified Organisms, also knows as GMO’s. Although this may seem appealing, many researchers, and doctors believe that GMO’s carry a big health risk. Exhausting amounts of evidence show they are not as safe as the producers claim it to be. Aside from the health risks, there is also evidence connecting GMO’s with environmental damage.

What is it that we are eating? GMO’s are unnatural. Is it healthy to eat something that doesn’t belong in our digestive system? GMO’s are genetically modified food. Genetically modified foods are created by taking genes from plants and animals and inserting into our food to alter the genetic engineering. In 1984, GMO’s were first introduced when a plant was modified from antibiotic resistant tobacco. In 1994, genetically modifying food was approved by the FDA and the first GMO food, Flavr-Savr tomatoes, was released into marketing. (A history of GM) They became an issue since the beginning, creating many health problems. Genetically modifying foods should not be allowed in America because it’s unhealthy, it decreases in nutritional value, antibiotic resistance, and has shown increases in food allergy and toxicity.

The usage of Genetically Modified foods has evolved over the years. The demand for these products have grown, since they were approved by the FDA. Today, about 70%-80% of the foods that are eaten in the United States have been genetically modified or has ingredients that are modified. As these numbers developed, many people started opposing genetically modified foods. They questioned whether certain diseases were linked with consumption of genetically modified foods. Many Non-GMO projects have arose due to these arguments. However, many influential regulatory agencies that study the safety of food supply, such as the U.S. FDA and the World Health Organization, has found that genetically modified ingredients and foods are safe and have no negative health effects with the consumption and use of it. Although, they have found that it has no effect to the consumer’s health, companies try to accomodate the consumers by making their products safer.