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  • Essay / Issues Surrounding the Consumption of Genetically Modified Foods

    Why are genetically modified foods making recent headlines and being vilified by many? Most people are already familiar with organic foods, even if they don't understand how they are different. However, this new craze concerns the recent engineering and production of genetically modified or modified (GMO or GE) foods, and the implications that arise from this. A genetically modified food is a product whose DNA has been artificially modified in the laboratory by genes from other plants, animals, viruses or bacteria, in order to produce foreign compounds in that food. The correct scientific term is "transgenic" and this type of alteration is not found in nature, it is experimental. Recent FDA and USDA regulations have been passed stating that certain GMO and GE foods actually meet safety regulations. However, this is a very controversial issue in the United States today and not everyone accepts these claims, especially since the amount of food contained in food was once limited. GMO “foods” are linked to increased allergies, tumor growth, decreased crop yields, and are harmful to us all. The American people must be warned that their access to knowledge regarding these harmful products in their food is no longer a government requirement, but a privilege, and is slowly diminishing. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get an original essayThe fact that “GMOs have not been proven to be safe and the long-term risks to human health from foods genetically modified have not been sufficiently studied” (Gillam) should arouse some interest in all of us. This definitely piqued my interest. Three years ago I discovered what GMOs are and their impact on our environment, but what struck me most about it was that there are only inconclusive tests for show the long-term consequences of consuming this type of food product. Since GMOs were introduced into the commercial food supply in 1996, it has been impossible for tests to show that GMOs actually have no impact on our health. As a consumer, this really upset me because I really don't know if the food I'm feeding my body will have any harmful effects. I never want to lose the ability to know what's in the foods I put in my body, and I think most people can agree. A recent 2012 CBS/NYT study found that 89% of Americans are wary of concerns about GMO foods and want them to be labeled. So why haven't we seen any regulations for their labeling yet? of genetically modified foods, we will consume more genetically modified products than ever before. “There has been crossbreeding of natural crops and species with those that have been genetically modified. Crosses are guaranteed with alfalfa and most likely with corn. When ethanol corn cross-pollinates feed corn, the results degrade the feed corn. When genetically modified alfalfa pollinates organic alfalfa, that alfalfa is no longer organic” (Bittman). What Americans and people around the world are beginning to realize is the high saturation of GMOs in the food industry. This brings us to one of the most worrying arguments, that "the organic dairy industry will suffer immediate and frightening losses when alfalfagenetically modified will be widely grown, since many dairy cows eat dried alfalfa (hay) and contamination of organic alfalfa means milk from animals fed this hay can no longer be called organic. Soon the majority of animals on the planet will be raised on these foods, making it nearly impossible to find anything GMO-free. Likewise, “when feed corn is contaminated with ethanol genetically modified corn, the resulting products will not be organic” (Bittman). At the current rate that GMOs are being incorporated into the global food supply, they will become inevitable, especially as the government has stopped enforcing the requirement that any organic food containing five percent or more GMOs must be labeled as such. If this only applies to organic foods, what about foods that aren't? "The FDA and USDA do not require any of these products or foods containing them to be labeled as genetically modified because they do not want to 'suggest or imply' that these foods are 'different'" (Bittman ). The USDA joins the FDA in not considering genetically modified foods to be materially different, but on the other hand limits the amount found in organic foods. Even the most recent bill proposed in the Vermont Senate last week states: "that foods made from genetically modified crops 'potentially present risks to health, safety, agriculture and the environment'" and should be labeled” (Gillam). The government is not doing everything in its power to protect the health of its citizens, but instead providing us with biased testing and information. “Last October, a group of 93 international scientists issued a statement saying there was a lack of empirical and scientific evidence. to support what they saw as false claims by the biotech industry about a "consensus" on safety. The group said there is a need for more independent research because studies demonstrating safety tend to be funded and supported by the biotechnology industry” (Gillam). This shows that the testing provided and relied upon to ensure that GMO and GE foods are safe comes from the companies that make GE products. Thus, the validity and credibility of health reports on these products are widely questioned. “The majority of our food already contains GMOs, and there is no reason to think there won't be more. It seems our “regulators” are using us and the environment as guinea pigs, rather than requiring conclusive testing. And without labeling, we have absolutely no say” (Bittman). European foods must be labeled if they contain 0.9% or more GMOs and "In the absence of robust health and safety data, many national governments around the world have taken steps to minimize the presence of genetically modified foods within their borders. Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary and Luxembourg have banned the cultivation and importation of genetically modified products, and nearly 50 countries around the world require that all genetically modified foods be labeled as such” (Dahl). The American Public Health Association and the American Public Health Association The Nurses Association is one of many medical groups that condemn the use of GMOs. Even though the government claims they are safe, we are smart enough to look at the evidence ourselves,.