The Dangers Of Genetically Modified Organisms

The United States needs to ban deadly genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Maggie Cadwell has a very suitable explanation of what GMOs are. “Genetically modified organisms are plants or animals that have undergone a process where 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” (Cadwell). GMOs are destroying our food system and our human bodies. “People who eat GMOs have shown to have a higher risk of cancer, birth deformities, and tumors verses people who eat organically. GM crops and their associated herbicides can harm birds, insects, amphibians, marine ecosystems, and soil organisms. They reduce bio-diversity, pollute water resources, and are unsustainable. For example, GM crops are eliminating the habitat for monarch butterflies, whose populations are down 50% in the US. Roundup herbicide has been shown to cause birth defects in amphibians, embryonic deaths, and endocrine disruptions, not to mention organ damage in animals even at very low doses” (Smith). Several countries like Austria, Hungary, Greece, Japan, Luxembourg, France, Germany, including fifty-three other countries, have banned these life-threatening GMOs. Why have they done this? Each country has run trustworthy tests, experiments, and systematic tests on almost every Monsanto product. That is sixty reasons why we have to ban these products. The United States needs to ban

Professor Richard Lewotin said “An ecosystem, you can always intervene and change something in it, but there is no way of knowing what all the downstream effects will be or how it will affect the environment.” Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) are not healthy and they shouldn’t be put in our food. Our nation does not know the full extent of GMOs. GMOs are used in almost all of our food, and for the most part there are no regulations for these GMOs that food companies are using now a days. They have been used for years without telling us the full background and side effects they could have. As a nation we need to take the right step in learning the facts about them and making our food truly healthy. GMOs should be made illegal due to the fact that studies have shown them to be unsafe and harmful to consume.

In conclusion, GMOs and pesticides are harmful and alarming to producers and consumers. They cause animals pain and harm humans when consumed. Many animals live short and painful lives, while humans now must suffer with long term diseases or damage to their bodies. Although some argue that Genetically modified produce is benefiting producers and consumers, I still argue that genetically modified organisms harm animals and

Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), have turned into an exceptionally questionable theme here in our reality today. GMOs are life forms that have been developed through a quality joining methodologies of biotechnology or genetics building. This is a moderately new type of science which permits DNA from an individual species to be injected into another species in a research center. This produces blends of plant, creature, microscopic organisms, and viral qualities that don 't show up in conventional crossbreeding systems or found in nature. GMO’s have been liked to several health-related issues, and should be banned by the FDA (Genetically Modified Organisms, N.D. ).

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.

According to the regulations established by the FDA in 1992, “Under this policy, foods, such as fruits, vegetables, grains, and their byproducts, derived from plant varieties developed by the new methods of genetic modification are regulated within the existing framework of the act” (FDA). In other words, instead of creating new regulations that are specific to these completely unique food products, they are put within the umbrella of other “natural” products. As time passes it appears to be harder to establish strict regulations to manage genetically modified food. According to the Center for Food Safety the most current propose of the Food and Drug Administration establishes that agricultural biotech companies should notify the FDA within a period of 120 before the companies proceed to introduce the product to the market. Regrettably, there is not mention of any regulation that requires assessment for health and environmental safety. This leave the companies with the freedom decide the kind of test that they want to perform if they decide to do so. But most important if this proposal is successful approve it will mean that the companies will have the right to freely even control what they want to include on their labels, which it will most likely exclude the mentioning of genetically modified food.

Another contributing factor to the controversial nature of GMOs is the fact that a majority of the world does not consider such food products safe, since “ in more than 60 countries around the world, including Australia, Japan, and all of the countries in the European Union, there are significant restrictions or outright bans on the production and sale of GMOs” (The Non-GMO). However, even though genetically engineered organisms are widely considered to be unsafe in many aspects, the U.S. government has little to no restrictions on the production and consumption of these products.

A genetically modified organism, GMO, has been altered by genetic engineering techniques. GMOs are widely used by scientists in many different ways to include the production of food and in research.8 Zebrafish genetically modified to be a fluorescent bright red, green and orange have been available for purchase as pets in 49 states in the United States since 2003.8 However, these patented GloFish are banned in California. The California Fish and Game Commission decided the fish were the result of a “trivial use for a powerful technology.”7 The Commission’s belief that the fish should not have been created led to a law making the GloFish illegal. Originally GloFish were developed by scientists in Singapore to be living pollution sensors as they would only glow when in the presence of pollutants.7 The Commission’s ban on GloFish highlights the controversy over genetically modified organisms and how public opinion can be swayed by the beliefs of others whether those beliefs are based on science or not. This paper will focus first on what genetic modification means and then will look at the pros and cons of genetically modified foods. Finally, the author’s opinion of the issue of GMO food will conclude the paper.

In other situations, like devastating crop damage due to insect pests, proteins specifically toxic to the pests may be engineered in to cause fatality within the insect, as in the case of Bt corn. Opponents of genetically modified crops, or anti-GMO, state that the health effects of genetically modified crops are unknown and potentially hazardous to human beings. This health effect is not known because the genetically modified crops are a relatively new technology and it would require an extensive period of time to study the chronic effects, if any, of the GM crops. Given the limited data available, it is reasonable that some individuals may caution the use of GM crops. However, given that there will be future case studies and evaluations of GM crops, it is unlikely that the GM crops will cause any different health effects than normal crops. Anti-GMO groups also state that GMO crops are costly for farmers and the consumers. In addition, these groups, like GeneWatch, lobby the government in support of anti-GMO laws.

GM plants that are destined to be eaten are checked for possible dangers, and the results are evaluated by multiple agencies. The three main agencies involved in regulating GMOs are the US Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (Library of Congress, 2015). The FDA regulates GMOs in conjunction with the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is responsible for protecting agriculture from pests and disease, including making sure that all new genetically engineered plant varieties

Lying in the middle of this conflict are perhaps the most essential parties, the U.S. Government and the American public. The government has not truly taken a stand on either side of this conflict as of yet. Their position can best be classified as optimistic supporters. Seeing as GM foods have not as of yet been subject to heavy administrational burdens, research and testing by several different agencies continues today. The lead agency in biotechnology testing is the Animal and Plant Health

Controversies and public concern surrounding GM foods and crops commonly focus on human and environmental safety, labeling and consumer choice, intellectual property rights, ethics, food security, poverty reduction and environmental conservation. (Bawa, 2012). Safety concerns for genetic engineering can cause various regulations intended to prevent environmental and health problems (Bawa, 2012). Concern from consumers has been expressed for GMOS because several agricultural practices, such as the widespread use of DDT in past decades, have caused serious problems that were unintended and unexpected (Old Citation: Brill, 1985).

Genetically modified food have been the subject of much controversy lately. Genetically modified organisms (GMO’s) are a broad group of plants, animals and bacteria that are engineered for a wide for a variety of purposes ranging from agricultural production to scientific research. The types of potential perils posed by GMO vary depending on the type of organism being modified and its intended purpose (EOH, 2003).

Many Americans consume thousands of pounds of genetically modified foods every day. Throughout the 21st century, genetic engineering tremendously impacted new research in pharmaceutical and forensic science. During that time, it also revolutionized the food in America and many other countries around the world. Using Recombinant DNA biotechnology on crops and farm animals helps improve nutrition and quantity of foods. However, crops that are altered with hybrid genes can also contain chemicals harmful to humans. By using developed biotechnology, scientists are able to inject viruses and bacteria into the embryos of plants to produce genetically modified crops (). The same is applied for transgenic farm animals to increase the size of the

Most of the promises made by these corporations are promises of luxury, not necessity, and carry an inherently and dangerous risk. As science continues to understand further the basic element of life, DNA, the danger involved genetically modifying organisms becomes apparent. The beneficial potential genetic engineering brings are attractive, but paradoxically it also brings disastrous potential at a greater degree. The qualities brought forth by these GM foods are not necessary for our survival and only brings forth dangerous consequences to our health, environment, and economy. In order to