Genetically Modified Organisms And Its Effects

Gmo have been shown to harm the ecosystem,These human-made organisms can reproduce and interbreed with natural organisms, thereby spreading to new environments and future generations in an unpredictable and uncontrollable way.

GMOs could also have an effect on the environment. Crops are being genetically engineered as "Roundup Ready" so they can withstand massive spraying with the toxic pesticide, doesn’t readily break down in the environment, and ends up in our streams (Kids Right To Know). Stronger pesticides are being used because of new super weeds and super bugs becoming Roundup resistant. GMOs could also be harmful to non-targeted organisms. The pesticides and other farming techniques are life threating towards bees, butterflies, etc.

Primarily, GMOs can accidentally contaminate crops near them and affect production for independent or local farmers and the companies themselves. As chemicals were scientifically introduced to these crops, their properties may affect production for others as invasive crops, causing the companies to pay additional fees. It is a controversial issue within the discussion due to how, “…independent farmers’ crops can be damaged by neighboring GM crops. When this happens, they must pay fees or risk being sued.” (Brassard 1). As it is demonstrated by the author GMOs may be a liability for production and it may cause more issues than necessary. On the other hand, genetically modified foods can resist weather patterns

Genetically Modified Organism or GMO is an organism that has been altered genetically. There are many possibilities for altering an organism such as growing conditions, quantity, or even scientific breakthroughs. Many choose a side over this heated debate, whether GMOs are safe or if they are harmful to humans. Currently about two-thirds of all items in the supermarket is GMO(Corn The Miracle Crop). GMO promise increase crop yields, lower costs, and less herbicides and pesticides. Altering the organisms genetics could negatively affect the organism resulting in an unstable product. Researchers have found that an unstable product can result in poor crop production, decrease in nutritional value, toxic and

Not only are GMOs harmful to humans they affect many other communities. “GMOs are also responsible for killing off bees, bats, butterflies, and other pollinators, whose bodies are unable to handle the onslaught of altered DNA and chemicals that are characteristic of GMO technologies”(Bensen). This shows that GMO is not only an issue for humans but it directly affects the insect and animals communities around the plants. These are living organisms that these plants need for pollination. GMOs and the pesticides used on these crops to fight off the insects and weeds is creating more powerful weeds and insects called “SuperWeeds” and “SuperBugs.” “And this built-in resistance has allowed farmers to indiscriminately spray chemicals like Roundup on their crops without worrying about killing them. But this system is now failing, as the weeds and pests targeted by GMO technologies have mutated and developed resistance to crop chemicals and Bt toxin” (Benson). These chemicals are effective for a short period of time However these chemicals become ineffective, the offspring of the insects can be immune to the chemical. This creates a need for a new and stronger chemical mix. GMO seeds and destroy the soil and kill beneficial

Genetically modified foods can cause harm to our environment by harming species, many of which are important to the stability of humans. An online article from the Institute for Responsible Technology, 10 Reasons to Avoid GMO’s, states, “GM crops and their associated herbicides can harm birds, insects, amphibians, marine ecosystems, and soil organisms.” The methods which GM foods are being produced is taking a drastic toll on our environment. Several species face danger when they are exposed to herbicides which are contained in GMOs. The article further states, “GM crops are eliminating habitat for monarch butterflies, whose populations are down 50% in

Not just plants but also animals also are in danger from genetic modification. Butterflies suffer from GMOS; they are doubly in danger from the terminator seed pollen and the herbicide laden plants. Bats also

According to an article in “ebsco”, A 2009 study found that three types of GMO corn that have been approved for human consumption were linked to damage in the kidneys and liver as well as changes to the heart, adrenal, spleen, and blood cells in rats that ate corn just 90 days (Smith 2). Because of this proven study it shows that gmo’s do cause a potential threat to our health and we should stay away from them to prevent anymore damage. But not only does it affect people and animals, but also insects. Supporters of this topic believe that crops can spread DNA to other crops which includes GMOs, they are killing off beneficial insects as more GMOs start to spread into

While it has been shown that GM crops have a few direct benefits, they may also indirectly cause great ecological harm. Some scientists fear that plants enhanced with Bt (a bacterial species commonly used as pesticide) may accelerate the evolution of Bt-resistant insects, which will cause farmers to lose their crops to the bugs (which defeats the purpose of injecting them with Bt in the first place). Farmers are trying to prevent this catastrophe by using non-resistant bugs from conventional crops to mate with resistant bugs, but this will only delay the inevitable (“Altered Food”). Another issue caused by GMOs is ‘gene flow’. Gene flow is when genes from GM plants spread to non-targeted organic plants from pollen through wind or pollination. The pest- and disease-resistant genes from GM crops can flow onto weeds, giving them the same immunities the crops have. Neither of these two scenarios have many real occurrences presently, but experts believe it is only a matter of time before modification creates the issues it was intended to prevent (“Altered

Genetically modified organisms is a topic that has been hotly debated for many years; stemming from the central question of the future legality of GMOs, the question rages whether GMOs are the key to alleviating several of the world’s struggles or if they are too riddled with dangerous ramifications. Advocates argue GMOs offer positive health effects. Additionally, they insist GMOs offer improved crop yield; nevertheless, opponents claim GMOs cause adverse health effects like increases in allergic reactions. Similarly, opponents maintain GMOs harm the environment through increased dependence on the use of herbicides. Some experts argue

Most concerns with respect to GMOs have been due to their effects on human health and the environment. Some of the possible health concerns to humans include organ failure and birth defects. Based on tests carried out on rats, it has been shown that organs such as kidneys, liver and the heart may fail due to GMO consumption. Research has also shown that pregnant women are also at the risk of experiencing birth defects due to GMO consumption. On the environment, GMOs have resulted into weed resistance whereby they cannot be destroyed by the normal pesticides. In United States for instance, it has been reported that nine species of weeds have evolved to become resistant. GMOs have also been reported to persist in waterways. Researchers have been able to show that while pollen or leaves find their way to streams, these chemicals persist in waterways (Cavdar & Aydin, 2015).

Genetically modified organisms, otherwise known as GMOs, are a great danger to humanity. GMOs are genetically altered organisms engineered with the purpose to be resistant to dangerous pesticides, or to repel certain pests or certain viruses. The main purpose of them is to save farmers money when it comes to harvesting crops and cutting down labor costs. Overall, GMOs (also known as biotech or transgenic crops) are not safe and there are many reasons to prove it. First and foremost, GMOs pose a great risk to people’s health. GMOs are not natural. Scientists have developed these to help increase crop yields and profits for farmers and the companies selling the seeds and pesticides. They sacrifice people’s health at the expense of risks such as, humans developing allergies and possible resistance to antibiotics. Second, the environment will suffer greatly from GMOs by increasing the use of harmful herbicides. GMOs have insecticidal properties in their DNA. This on its own can be very harmful and poisonous to the ecosystem. The required herbicides used on GMOs to kill the weeds are also very dangerous to the environment. Lastly, GMOs cause great distress to organic agriculture. The organic agriculture is being compromised and abolished when GMOs come into contact with organic crops. While only a few big companies hoard the seed industry, this can be the demise of the planet’s organic agriculture. That will leave GMO companies in charge of the

LD₅₀- In toxicology, the median lethal dose, LD₅₀, LC₅₀ or LCt₅₀ of a toxin, radiation, or pathogen is the dose required to kill half the members of a tested population after specified test duration

More than sixty countries have a ban, labeling, or restrictions of some sort on genetically modified foods (Barrett, 2013). The United States is not amongst them. Originally GMOs were introduced to create better yields, tolerate droughts and increase nutrition (Wesson, 2001). Today GMOs have excided beyond the standards of the past. 80% of the foods sold in the U.S. today are genetically modified. This group of foods include alfalfa, corn, canola, cotton, sugar beets, soybeans, tomatoes, squash, potatoes, oil, golden rice, salmon and many more(New).

As an added benefit to the environment, genetically modified organisms also address the widespread problem of soil erosion. The quality of topsoil used in agriculture is quickly degrading and it is estimated that there may only be 60 more years of usable topsoil remaining (What if the World 's Soil Runs Out?). Topsoil is important because it supplies water and nutrients to plants, while giving microbes the carbon they need (What if the World 's Soil Runs Out?). Degraded soil results in lower crop yields, which is counterproductive to supplying sufficient food to the world’s growing population. The way that genetically modified crops help this issue is by allowing farmers of modified plants to till their soil much less often, if at all (Johnson). Soil tilling also harms helpful organisms, such as worms, microbes poisoned by oxygen, and fungi that have healthy symbiotic relationships with plants (Johnson). While tilling removes weeds, the process also contributes to soil erosion. Since the farmers of herbicide-resistant crops can effectively use herbicides in limited quantities to remove weeds, they can leave plant residue, such as fallen leaves or dead plants on the ground to help create new topsoil and maintain soil quality (Johnson).