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On Genetically Modified Food
Recently I read a book about genetically modified (GM) food called "Seeds of Deception" by Jeffrey M. Smith. The following article describes some important ideas from the book. I highly recommend everyone who eats read this book in its entirety.
What is Genetically Modified Food?
All throughout history mankind has intentionally bred plants or animals in order to create desirable traits. Sometimes it worked and other times it didn't.
We know of many cases where it worked very well. For example, there are many breeds of man's best friend - the dog - bred for different functions such as cattle herding, lap-sitting, protection, and breeds notable as good family pets.
Another example would be the many varieties of roses, which have been bred to withstand mildew, or to look or smell a certain way, or to have less thorns and long stems.
When these small-scale and deliberative attempts at modifying the genes of a species through breeding or grafting failed, the resulting animals or plants died or were discarded, the experiment failed, and not much damage to the total gene population of the species, or any other species, occurred as a result.
Genetic mutations can also change species in a natural way, leading to good or bad characteristics within a species. Good mutations are passed down to future generations and bad mutations are not. Nature takes care of the process.
On the other hand, genetically modified food which is created through genetic engineering is a whole new ballgame. It is not an extension of natural breeding. In genetic engineering biologists cut a gene out of one species' DNA, modify it, and insert it into another species' DNA.
And since virtually all organisms have DNA, scientists don't have to limit the source of their genes to members of the same species. They can search anywhere in the plant, animal, bacteria, even human world to find genes with desired traits, or even synthesize genes in the laboratory that don't exist in nature.
When you read the book, you will be amazed at the amount of guesswork involved in genetic engineering, and how pervasive and unpredictable the consequences are. The book cites 21 significant ways in which the process of genetic engineering can go wrong, and in which the intended result of the genetic engineering may not occur.
Unbelievably, most of the time scientists don't even know which, some, or all of these unintended results have occurred or not. The result of all this guess work includes unpredictable changes in DNA, antibiotic resistance, other genes that get 'turned off' and don't work anymore, awakening of sleeping viruses, cancer, immune reactions, allergies, nutrition problems, and many more.
...genetic engineers are not simply changing a specific species. They are tampering with the evolution of all species. "The results will be essentially new organisms, self-perpetuating and hence permanent. Once created they cannot be recalled."
Is GM Food Safe?
The book "Seeds of Deception" describes the truth of what is going on in the GM food industry. It cites numerous examples pointing out that genetically modified food has never been adequately tested.
The book is truly shocking in its portrayal of the extent to which the biotech industry led by Monsanto has been basically forcing its genetically modified products into the food supply. In order to do this they have used faulty and unscientific testing, bribery, theft, distortion or omission of scientific data, threats of lawsuit, and firing of knowledgeable individuals.
Even when FDA scientists were warned about toxins, allergies and new diseases resulting from the food, the scientists were silenced or ignored. Events like this are happening:
- In one case, rats were fed from a GM crop. They developed stomach lesions and seven of the forty died within two weeks. The crop was approved without further testing.
- In another case, the FDA withheld information from the US Congress after a genetically modified food supplement killed nearly a hundred people and disabled thousands more.
Integral to the plan was Monsanto's influence in government, whose role was to promote the technology worldwide and to help get the foods into the marketplace quickly, before resistance could get in the way. A biotech consultant later said, "The hope of the industry is that over time, the market is so flooded that there's nothing you can do about it. You just sort of surrender."
Wisdom of the Animals
It is well known that animals instinctively know what is good for them. They are very in touch with their biological needs and when left to their own devices they exhibit behaviors that support the health of their bodies.
In "Seeds of Deception" there are many first hand examples related by farmers who tried to feed GM crops to their livestock or who noticed specific food preferences among wild animals on their farms.
...two or three cows were led into a feeding area at a time. The first trough they came to contained fifty pounds of shelled Bt (GM) corn. The cows sniffed it, withdrew, and walked over to the next trough, which contained fifty pounds of natural shelled corn. The cows finished it off. When they were done and released from the pen, the next group came in and did the same thing... the experiment was repeated on six or seven farms in Northwest Iowa, in 1998 and again in 1999. Identical trials with hogs yielded the same results, also for two years in a row.
Some other examples from the book include wild geese who wouldn't eat GM soybeans; squirrels, elk, deer, raccoons and mice who wouldn't eat GM corn; rats who would not eat GM tomatoes unless force fed with gastric tubes; and chickens who died when fed GM maize. When mice were fed a mixture of GM and normal corn and soy they lost weight in statistically significant amounts.
If animals will not eat GM food when given a choice, there is something wrong with the food.
Milk and Genetically Engineered Growth Hormone
One of the significant chapters in the book talks about genetically engineered bovine growth hormone (rbGH). It is injected into cows to increase their milk production. rbGH is a drug of questionable safety which was passed by the FDA without adequate testing. It exists in milk sold in the US unless the milk is labelled "organic" or "no rbGH".
Some of the problems that cows experience when injected with rbGH include: birth defects, reproductive disorders, udder infections, higher incidence of foot and leg injuries, metabolic disorders, uterine infections, indigestion, bloat, diarrhea, lesions, shorter lives, increases in the size of their hearts, livers, kidneys, ovaries and adrenal glands, and many other problems. When Monsanto provided this information to the FDA, they dismissed these problems as "harmless physiological shifts".
Besides the obvious nightmare that this causes for the cows, after the rbGH gets injected into the cows it passes along to humans through the cow's milk and meat.
There have not been enough scientific studies done to determine exactly what is happening to people as a result of the use of this growth hormone. Based on what happens to the cows, there is a significant question which should be addressed about the safety of this hormone.
What Should I Eat?
The book continues on with many more examples, studies, cover-ups and media manipulations when it comes to GM food. There has simply not been enough testing done on these products to determine their safety for human consumption. Right now, the guinea pigs for this huge experiment called GM foods are the unknowing public.
And so, the big question for consumers is - what should I eat?
There are a number of relevant websites that will list for you what foods and products to avoid if you want to stay away from GM foods and food additives. A great place to start is the Seeds of Deception web site. They also provide a lot of related information regarding GM foods.
One thing to say for sure, if you live in the US and are eating non-organic food, the chances are 100% that you have eaten GM food and you didn't know it.
If you want to avoid GM food and GM food additives, shop and eat organic whenever and wherever possible, and support organic grocers and manufacturers. By supporting organic producers and distributors, not only will you be eating healthier and safer food, but also you will be putting economic pressure on the food industries to produce better food.
