Genetically Modified Organisms in the USA

Many will argue that Genetically Modified Organisms(GMOs) are not safe for human consumption, however they are almost inevitable for our everyday food consumption. Some argue that the recent increase in gluten intolerance is caused by GMO foods (Argument against). Other state that the risk to humans by GMO’s is relatively small (The GMO”). The bottom line is what people put into their bodies is a personal choice and a person should be able to easily tell if a product has been genetically modified or not.

There is a lot of controversy surrounding the use of genetic modification in foods grown for human consumption. Many opponents suggest that genetically modified (GM) foods can affect human growth and development, increase allergic reactions in persons with allergy sensitivity or cause allergies to develop in healthy people. Proponents of using genetically modified organisms to alter and improve foods claim that there are no health risks to humans and that GM foods are subjected to stricter guidelines and testing than “naturally” grown food. They also claim that genetic modification of food is necessary to produce more drought tolerant, insect and disease resistant crops that can sustain the earth’s growing human population. A recent survey conducted suggests that public opinion is evenly divided on whether or not GMOs should be used in foods for human consumption. This paper looks to discuss the pros and cons of GMOs in food and the reported effects, if any, on human growth and development.

“Eat your vegetables, they're good for you”, The words a kid never wants to hear. People scan food packages for whole grains and fibers, avoid sugar, and don’t even think about buying something with trans fats. Just when people thought they knew how to eat healthy, there's another problem: Genetically Modified Organisms. Some opponents would have you believe these ingredients are the dietary curse of the decade. How concerned should people really be though? This is one of the most debated questions around the world. Many environmental organizations protest against genetic engineering, but numerous companies continue to use it in food production. The issue of Genetically Modified foods has been investigated by many different scientists for many

As Gliessman, an agricultural researcher, says in Agroecology, “conventional agriculture is built around two related goals: the maximization of production and the maximization of profit. In pursuit of these goals, a host of practices have been developed without regard for their unintended, long-term consequences” (3). The industrial food industry has created a process to produce as many crops as possible in the quickest amount of time to put onto the market. The several ways utilized to achieve these goals are those that are harmful to the consumer. Two main threats are genetic modification, and chemicals. These issues are a spark of concern in addressing the health of consumers. Food industries often try to tantalize their audience with the promise of untouched, pristine produce when in reality these foods are heavily tainted by pesticides or are genetically modifieds. “One will find this obliviousness represented in virgin purity in the advertisements of the food industry, in which food wears as much makeup as the actors. If one’s whole knowledge of food from these advertisements, one would not know that the various edibles were ever living creatures, or that they all come from the soil… “ (Berry 147). People are informed little about the pesticides that we often ingest from products like these and little do people know the negative effects of GMOs.

According to the Economic Research Service/ USDA, United States highly produce on corn (90% acres), soy (93% acres) and cotton (90%acres) in year 2013. (Jorge Fernandez-Cornejo, 2014) Since United States adopted genetically modified technologies in agricultural field, a majority of food products of United States contains of genetically modified ingredients. But the saddest part is most of the American citizens does not realized that they are consumed almost 85% of genetically modified food in their daily meal. (Stryker, 2013) This shows almost every grocery shops in United States must have processed foods that come from genetically modified food. Processed foods such as cookies, breakfast cereal, and corn syrup are containing genetically engineered ingredients from corn

Today, most soy and corn grown in the U.S. is Genetically Modified. Soy and corn are also the number one feed for the animals that we eat. Corn also provides the ingredients for most of our sweeteners and cooking oil. Most processed foods sold in the United States have ingredients from genetically modified crops. And yet, “Scientific Studies have not concluded that Genetically Modified foods are safe for the population” (Eating Well. “Should the US ban GMOs?”). The major question that has developed with GMOs is whether or not these modification in the plants we consume is detrimental to our own health. Are we trading higher crop yields for personal health risks? Are we replacing possible starvation with another form of disease or health problem? And, “Should GMOs be allowed in the General Food Supply?”

Through scientific research there have been no substantial findings of harmful side effects on eating foods that have been genetically modified. In his article,” National Academy of Sciences Report on GMOs”, Steven Novella states that “It is especially compelling that over the last two decades, animals and humans exposed to GMOs have not experienced any relative increase in any major disease” (Novella). With over 20 years of observations and conclusions, there has been no evidence to support the argument that GMOs are harmful to humans or animals. Furthermore, Alan McHughen, in his article, “A Path Forward”, says “Every major scientific body in the U.S. and around the world has reviewed independent research related to GM crops and food and has concluded they are as safe as food and crops developed from other methods in use today” (McHughen). Thousands of reports and findings

In the past few years, society has been made more aware of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Because of this, GMOs are being replaced in diets with more natural and organic options. GMOs have been researched and found to cause adverse effects on human health because of the gene splicing, or genetic alterations that are done to create them through genetic engineering. Before this issue became an issue, many people were eating processed and even healthy foods without understanding what chemicals and toxins they were actually putting into their bodies. GMOs are infused into food without awareness because one never really understands what all those unpronounceable words, label GMOs, really are. Due to recent research, it has been found that genetically modified organisms are harmful and can lead to increased risks of disease and cancer.

“More than half of U.S. consumers express concern about genetically modified organisms, but many have no idea what that means” (Goldman 115). In modern days, we find ourselves living in a “plastic society”. Everything that we see is not really what we see, it is being camouflaged. This applies greatly to social media, but people don't see it very much in food. Now more than ever, the food industry is using genetically modified seeds and chemicals. This is an unethical practice because people don't know what they are consuming, and if what they consume has negative effects on them, they should be informed.

More than sixty countries have a ban, labeling, or restrictions of some sort on genetically modified foods (). The United States is not amongst them. Originally GMOs were introduced to create better yields, tolerate droughts and increase nutrition (). 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().

It can be difficult to discern as to why there is so much controversy over genetically modified ingredients within our food supply. I myself have heard so many accounts of the opposing sides to this debate and some things can get misconstrued along the way. The article “FAQs about GMOs” by Jean Halloran presents specific questions and answers related to the topic of genetically modified foods, or GMOs. Includes the effects that GMOs have on consumers’ health, social aspects of labeling GMOs, and environmental influences of GMOs.

Genetically modified plants are the leading cause for food allergies and neurological diseases according to the Exposure to Environmental Hazard’s website. The fact that more genetically modified plants and food are being grown than non-modified plants is extremely disappointing and shameful. American’s consume most, if not all of the genetically modified plants without even realizing it. Some of the genetically modified plants are corn, soy, and wheat. Corn is in most everything we eat, it’s 80-90% of our supermarket shelf food consumption; which is why our GMO consumption is leading to our neurological diseases and neurological disease

Imagine knowing what is really in the food on our dinner plates every night. Probably organic, naturally grown foods, right? That might be the case in some foods, but now a days, most crops are grow genetically modified (GM). GM foods are foods that have been altered with a gene or protein from another living organism to give it a quality or characteristic that it never had before. Some examples of GM foods are apples that do not brown and potatoes that do not bruise. These are made when the organisms are genetically modified to reduce the levels of enzymes that cause browning and bruising. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are unsafe. While they can be beneficial, GMOs are unhealthy for human consumption, cause environmental impacts, and have

Since a whopping 80 percent of processed food is genetically modified, many health issues come from GMOs. For one, in 1997 to 1999 children’s food allergies spiked 3.4 percent and from 2009 to 2011, 5.1 percent (National Center for Health Statistics.) More research conducted by Brown University states that because “Genetic enhancements often combine proteins not contained in the original organism, which can cause

GMOs are plants or animals that have undergone a process; scientists alter their genes with DNA from different species of living organisms, bacteria, or viruses to get desired traits such as resistance to disease or tolerance of pesticides. Majority of fruits and vegetables we eat contain GMO’s. This injection causes the produces to become larger and grow at a faster rate. According to some scientists it’s ok to consume GMO. According to Victor Tutlyan, the author of Genetically Modified Food sources (Tutelyan, Victor. Genetically Modified Food Sources Safety Assessment and Control. Amsterdam: Elsevier/Academic, 2013. Pages 24-30.) He believes consuming such harmful chemicals can and will do harm to our body. As a matter of fact, I read that consuming GMO’s can lead to food allergies, increased toxicity, and decreased nutritional value and anti biotic resistance. They recommend us to watch all the labels of the foods we buy; it clearly states what foods are contaminated with GMO’s to keep us