Did you know that 80% of the food packages sold in the United States have GMOs in them? Its true! Imagine going to the store simply for a can of beans, or even just a chocolate bar. There may be a good chance that the food product selected contains GMOs.
As said before, GMOs are genetically modified organisms, and can be dangerous, so experts say. They say that the GMO process causes diseases such as cancer or diabetes, and some also say that GM foods can cause allergic reactions. They are saying this because, as they have discovered, some companies have mixed protein from nuts and inserted into beans, which can be harmful
Whether Americans realize it or not, most of them consume genetically modified organisms every time they eat a snack or a meal. According to Robin Mather’s article “The Threats from Genetically Modified Foods”, “you’re eating genetically modified foods almost daily unless you grow all of the food or always buy organic” (Mather). This can be a scary thought for those who know about the numerous effects of GMOs or those who didn’t know what was in the food they’ve been ingesting for years. When Nielsen selected 1,200 Americans for a survey on GMOs for The Wall Street Journal, “61% of consumers had heard of GMOs and nearly half of those people said they avoid eating them” (Gasparro). The only difficulty with avoiding genetically modified organisms is that they make up approximately eighty percent of the ingredients used in processed foods that put together most of the regular American diet (Gasparro). The reason that genetically modified organisms are in most processed foods is because most processed foods contain corn or high fructose corn syrup that comes from genetically modified corn plants. Of all the corn, soybeans, sugar beet, and canola crops grown in the United States, over ninety percent of those crops are grown from genetically altered seeds (Gasparro). Ever since 1996, when genetically modified plants were first commercially grown for the public, the use of genetically modified seeds has been on a sharp increase (Charman). Although the use of genetically modified
GMO foods were designed for various reasons; for instance, to enhance growth, resist parasites, hold longer shelf life, and hold a higher nutritional value. Controversy of GMOs is still prevalent, as they have been able to consume for over 20 years. Many are concerned because of the
Although no studies can prove that GMOs are harmful to humans, many can prove the dangers of using pesticides with crops. Justin Tolley, a crop advisor for Crop Production Services, isn’t afraid of consuming GMOs in foods because they don’t contain the harsh chemicals that can harm humans. Pesticides and herbicides contain chemicals that are poisonous to the human body, as well as the environment and its wildlife. By switching from foods treated with pesticides to GMOs, the chemical intake would decrease dramatically. Along with the lack of chemicals, genetically modified foods can have increased amounts of nutrients and minerals in comparison to standard foods. Scientists have created a grain to aid the issue of A vitamin deficiencies in poorer countries (Chien). Modified foods can also replace supplement pills; the dosage would also be controlled because it would be based on how much food one ate instead of the premeasured dosage of supplements. Risks for allergies could also be eliminated using GMOs. “Scientists have identified a new gene in peanuts that codes for a protein with no apparent allergic effects” (Agricultural Biotechnology Council). Peanut and nut allergies are a very common issue and even pose the risk of death for some people. Getting rid of gene codes that trigger allergies for nuts and other foods would reduce health and possible death risks in humans; overall the health of all humans could
GMO technology has made it easier for the farmers to spray their crop and watch it grow without having to go through any trouble. They say they use GMOs to produce more to feed the world, yet studies have shown that we have enough food to feed the world twice! So why go through all the trouble? Filmmaker Jeremy went to GMO companies asking one question: are there products safe? His main target was Monsanto, yet they avoided any questions and asked him to leave the premises, leaving Jeremy with high suspicions. The “Who can label Frankenfood?” article states that “For now, the FDA has determined that genetically modified ingredients don't require special labeling, but it has reserved the right to reverse course on that,” (Los Angeles Times). The items we eat daily could have been made by genetic engineering, but there is no
GMOs are potentially dangerous and there is little known about the effects on consumption in humans. However, there have been some significant studies on animals and the effects of GMOs. The results show a variety of conditions ranging from stomach inflammation, to tumors, or even death. There are no laws regarding labeling what food products have GMO ingredients in them, even though there have been numerous attempts to have this become required by the FDA. The only way of knowing if your food is genetically modified is by looking at the label and searching for “Non-GMO”.
Gary Hirshberg (2013), Chairman of Stonyfield Farm, stated that GMOs are genetically modified organism that have been altered with other species that wouldn 't be found in nature. The U.S. Commerce Department and the U.S. Patent Office, both see this to be a new, unique organism, can be equivalent to a non-GMO products. FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) declared that GMOs can be modified to have the same amount of calories, carbohydrates, fiber, and protein, therefore they do not need a label to warning costumers (para. 3). GMOs were first discovered in 1996, and are very common now, most of our soy and corn produces are roughly 90% GMOs in all of US markets. USA is one of the few nations that don 't need to label on GMOs, 64 other countries need an approval label and have not risen food prices (para. 6). Hirshberg announced, as of right now its too early to see the impact that GMOs have on our generation, so no one can yet claim if this is a safe or harmful product to use (para. 7). Hirshberg firmly stated,
There is a general scientific agreement that food from genetically modified crops is not inherently riskier to human health than conventional food, but should be tested on a case-by-case basis.[138][139][140][141] No reports of ill effects have been proven in the human population from ingesting GM food.[138][142][143][144] Although labeling of GMO products in the marketplace is required in many countries, it is not required in the United States and no distinction between marketed GMO and non-GMO foods is recognized by the US FDA. In a May 2014 article
The good news is that most of the scientific community have found that GMOs are safe to eat. This includes the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and one of the world’s most prestigious scientific groups, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). Not only are they safe to eat but in some cases, they are more nutritious. An example of this would be:
The average American consumes about 23 teaspoons of added sugars and sweeteners per day. More than 68% of U.S. adults are overweight or obese and 17% of children from ages 2-19 are obese due to processed foods. According to Dr. Mercola, the GMO ingredients in processed foods are well-established primary contributors to chronic disease. They're also more heavily contaminated with an antibioticty-resistance promoting carcinogen that the US government does not test for. Hence, GMO foods are inherently less safe than conventional foods. The top food ingredients we get from GMO crops today are high fructose corn syrup (corn), vegetable oil (corn, soy, canola, and cottonseed), and sugar (sugar beets). All of these ingredients have been scientifically identified as promoters of disease, so to say they're safe is not adequate when looking at long term chronic
GMOs are increasing in production due to the economic benefits that it possess for producers, but there are no health benefits of GMOs for consumers. GMOs are known to be very toxic to the body, but are still edible. They contain negative genes such as antibiotic resistant genes and new combinations of proteins that occur in these genetically modified species. The effects of consuming these negative genes and new combination of proteins are still unknown and pose very serious health risk uncertainty. The GMOs that are being produced may even be in our foods and we may not even know since the foods that are GMOs are widely common that we eat them every day. The current GMO foods that are circulating the world today are canola, soy, sugar beets, corn, Hawaiian papaya, zucchini and yellow squash.
When you walk through the different aisles of your grocery stores, do you shop for flavors or the health establishment of your food produces? How would you know the apple you picked up are not one of the genetically modified food? Many consumers, like you, are unaware that many of their food products are genetically modified organisms (GMOs). GMOs are common in grocery stores and supermarkets nationwide.
GMO’s are created by gene-splicing a plant’s dna, and modifying it to meet the creators needs. But plants that are modified like this, their seeds can spread, and affect other plants, and eventually, affect us. A research team from the FDA ( Federal Department of Agriculture), found that over 80% of the world's corn population has been affected by GMO’s. If we eat this corn, it may cause bad news for us.
Concerned parents and health-nuts alike cry out in alarm as they discover that their favorite cereal contains GMOs. However, these concerned consumers are rarely, if ever, well informed about what precisely a GMO is and what that entails, as well as where the scientific controversy regarding them lies. GMOs are not inherently harmful to humans and instead warrant an individual case by case evaluation. To understand why this is, it is important to know what GMOs are and why we have them, why the process of creating a GMO doesn’t make them harmful, where the confusion surrounding GMOs comes from, and ultimately that GMOs can’t all be thrown together and labeled as good or bad.