GMOs 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 …show more content…
To begin with, GMOs are unsafe for human consumption. One reason they are unsafe is the fact that they cause health problems. Some of the health problems they cause are immune problems, faster aging, changes in major organs in our bodies, and infertility. The most common health problem GMOs cause is allergic reactions. They cause allergic reactions because GM foods contain combined proteins that weren’t in the original organisms. When the GM proteins are added, it can cause a new allergy to its’ consumer. Ken Mandel, a contributor at NewsMax, said, “For example, if a protein from an organism that caused an allergic reaction is added to something that previously didn’t, it may prompt a new allergic reaction.” That is only one reason why GMOs are unsafe.
Besides the fact that GMOs are unsafe for human consumption, they also have impacts on the environment. One impact GMOs have on the environment is that it causes damage. When livestock eat grass, hay, or any genetically modified pesticide-producing crop, it can lead to sick, sterile,and even dead livestock. The article “GMOs: Facts About Genetically Modified Food” states, “Genetically modified foods
GMOs can cause environmental damage and health problems for consumers. Anti-GMO organization Center for Food Safety said genetic engineering of plants and animals is, potentially. Lallanilla refers to GMO crops as “Frankenfoods.” The long-term effect of GMOs still remains unknown. They have been linked to toxic allergic reactions, sick, sterile and dead livestock, and damage to virtually every organ studied in lab animals.
To see the effects that GMOs can have on humans, animal studies were conducted and showed organ damage, immune system disorder, accelerated aging and infertility. There was a groundbreaking study by Dr. Judy Carman about the long-term toxicology study on pigs fed with a mixed GMO diet.
Now, some of you may be wondering, “What exactly are GMOs,” or “Why should I care about them?” GMOs stand for genetically modified, or engineered, organisms. Scientists GM foods by inserting genes from an unrelated species into another. The explanation given from scientists on why they do this is for the safety of our health. It is believed that genetically modifying foods are to 'strengthen,' or enhance the food product. However, rather than aid our health like it was
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
The American Academy Of Environmental Medicine have found out, Gmos also cause organ damage, gastrointestinal and immune system disorders. They also discovered the GMOs leave material behind that leads to long terms problems
According to the Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, A genetically modified plant could have lower nutritional quality than its traditional counterpart by making nutrients unavailable or indigestible to humans. Medical Daily stated, “There hasn’t been enough research to determine whether GMOs are entirely healthy for humans, although the FDA has listed them as safe. Some concerns include the fear that altering the natural state of an organism has unknown consequences for humans, and that genes meant to keep plants resistant to herbicides or antibiotics could potentially harm humans
Overall, they do not seem to be good for people, animals, insects or our environment. More specifically, since they have been altered in a non-natural way, they have an effect across the board. (GMO's) deplete the soil of its nutrients. Also about the soil issues, the irrigation used to grow (GMO's) foods naturally carries all of these problems into water sources and into the air. This exposes different bacteria, insects, and animals to the same problems. The toxicity levels from the chemicals used are not good for our water supply. Once we Genetically modify a plant in an agricultural environment, it is sensible to assume it will become part of a larger ecosystem. This being said, the problem of environmental damage done by GMOs is much bigger than potentially harming our health. Pretty Scary! So as a Harris Teeter manger I want are store to try to stay away from (GMO) products. We would be out of business if we completely did this because we have to offer cheaper food. Generally (GMOs) are connected to cheaper
Imagine this, a customer sitting down at a restaurant and ordering their favorite meal. The meal consists of corn, chicken, and a soft drink. All of these foods and drinks have GMOs, but the customer does not know what the repercussions are to themselves. The consumption of GMOs is detrimental to our bodies because of the unintended effects, the immunity to antibiotics, and the harms caused by pesticides.
Undoubtedly, GMOś are unhealthy and are bad for our health. The farmers contaminate their crops with pesticides and many more harmful substance.
Michelle Schoffro cook, PhD, DNM, Clinical Nutritionist. Michelle states that “according to research published in the Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, Scientists found that the genetically-modified corn was linked to liver and kidney damage in animal” (Schoffro). In other words what Michelle is saying is that there is proof that GMOs could cause some damage to the animal’s organs. These so called GMOs are modified genetically so that they can produce their own pesticides and therefore they are immune to any plague. Studies show that some of those pesticides are toxic to humans. Some of those toxins are the Bt-toxin and Roundup Ready which are now found in corn, cotton and soybeans. These two pesticides have been linked to severe health risks. Studies conducted on animal have shown that GMOs can cause damage to their liver, kidney, and the male’s reproductive organ damage and spleen damage. This should make us wonder, if these modifications on the food have a drastic effect on animals, then we must assume the same thing could happen to us. In the same matter, now that these pesticides and toxins are built in the plants they cannot be washed off, which means that they are being consumed. This leads us to the conclusion that we are eating a food that could kill
This implies that the intake of genetically modified food leaves the body in an unnatural state and impedes the body’s natural mechanisms, which therefore endangers the body’s health. Dangerous side effects of excessive consumption of GMO in a diet disrupts the natural state of the body which can range from body toxicity, food allergies, negative reproductive effects, and sometimes even death (6 Negative Side Affects To Eating Genetically Modified Foods, 2010).
While these are valid concerns, they are entirely wrong. According to the World Health Organization in 2005, “GM foods currently traded on the international market have passed risk assessments in several countries and are not likely to present risks for human health” (Novella). Many of those who are anti-GMO claim that GMOs are not safe because they do not know enough about them or they have heard far too many conflicting reports. While there are many reports that claim that GMOs are detrimental to the environment, the three agencies that oversee GM crops, the FDA, USDA, and EDA, have ruled that these crops do not pose any real threat. Since the beginning of the GM crop in 1996, there have been 2,497 approvals of the safety of GMOs in the environment and 1,129 of these approvals have been for the food safety of the products (Monsanto). This further disproves the claim that GMOs are unsafe for humans and the environment and reassures that there is no risk involved in either the consumption or the planting of GM
They give us new medical opportunities, have the ability to end world hunger, and who knows what else this science is capable of. The risks still need to be acknowledged, because let's face it, nothing comes without consequences. Circumstances can go askew and GMOs could cause harm, but with proper research and careful use, the risks of mutation or newly accumulated diseases are very minute. Foods like corn and papaya, and other items like cotton and glow in the dark cats, are generally all genetically modified, and most of the time people are not aware of the foods that are being genetically edited, which can cause potential issues if the product is not labeled properly. Our world has been consuming GMOs for a while now and we have not yet encountered any major problems. Genetically modified organisms benefit our world greatly and without them, our would be a completely different
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.
Humans have been intentionally changing the genetic properties of animals and plants for centuries, through all the standard breeding techniques of the use of radiation and chemicals to create random mutations, some of them turn out to be useful, for example Genetic Modified (GM) Foods. What is Genetically Modified (GM) Foods? GM foods are foods that are derived from organisms that have been genetically engineered. Also they are called genetically engineered (GE) or transgenic crop that are generally made of a genetic marker. GMO have a very long history. In fact, they have been around for thousands of years. So perhaps the conflict over their safety shouldn't be about whether they are safe for humans to consume, but rather how they will impact long term.Even though Genetically Modified Foods (GMF) would increase food costs, these can improve yields for farmers, provide nutritional benefits,and help to alleviate the increasing global population of third world countries.