Consider these facts. The kids in US never had a
substantially higher food allergy rate than kids from other countries
(especially western countries as it is a good comparison) till the mid 1990s.
the biggest change in food during this period between the US and these
countries was one factor - GMOs. It was in the 1990s that GMOs were approved in
the US and massive farming of GMO crops started. Hospitalization due to food
allergies sky rocketed to over 250% between 1998-2006, while GMO agriculture
increased by the same percentage too (around 280%). Even if the numbers vary a
little based on the source, one cannot ignore the high correlation. Countries
in Europe did not see the rise because they did not approve GMOs, especially
given the fact that it had potential for negative impacts, which turned out to
be true.
I had talked to a lot of friends and neighbors who have been
living in the US all their lives and they had mentioned that they have not seen
food allergies during their time, and till the early 90s schools were never
peanut free, infact most kids used to take bread and peanut butter for lunch.
Looking at the various factors, you can narrow down to the fact that the big
change that happened in the US during this time frame, and which did not happen
in other countries, was the big increase in GMO foods in the US. GMO foods are
so prevalent in the US now that it is hard to avoid them. According to the
Non-GMO Project, eighty percent of the food supply in North America contains
GMOs. It is very difficult for one to select non-GMO items at the shop, unless
they are organic or specifically labeled as GMO-free. Even at a grocery store like Whole Foods they
cannot guarantee that a produce is GMO free unless it is specified as organic.
While shopping at Whole Foods last month, I had asked them if the Water Melon
was non-GMO and they said that they cannot guarantee that unless it is marked
organic. There are currently no labeling requirement for GMO identification,
unless it is organic or non-GMO verified. More than 60 nations in the world
require GMO labeling (including all of Europe), and yet in the most rich and
powerful country that stands for freedom, there is no freedom to know what is
in the food you buy.
So what are GMOs, and why are they bad in the food we eat? I am not a genetic
engineering expert, but I will try to simplify it based on what I have read. To
put GMO in layman terms, what is done here is that genes from a different
species is mixed together with that of a particular plant, and in most cases
with GM crops, altering the original protein coding. Proteins perform a vast
array of functions within living organisms, including catalyzing metabolic
reactions, replicating DNA, responding to stimuli, and transporting molecules
from one location to another. Altering it could lead to unpredictable results
with changes to the DNA and proteins of the resulting GM crop, which can lead
to unintended side effects like toxic or allergenic side effects. When the
protein is altered in the crop, the human body might not understand it and this
causes allergic reactions. Besides, in the case of Bt based plants, the Bt
toxin is induced into the plants, so in other words, you don’t need to spray
the pesticide as it is in the plant itself. These plants act as insecticides,
which means that they can kill other living organisms with their toxins, and
yet we are told that it is safe for human consumption, including kids.
Did you
know that all baby formula (yes, the Enfamils and Similacs) is loaded with GMO
content? Hint, hint…, do you also see why kids in the US start with allergies
right when they are very young. Again, this happens only in the US, the same
formula in Europe and many other countries is GMO free. I have noticed that if
the kids are born outside the US (even if they have lived mostly in the US
after that) have a significantly less chance of getting an allergy, could be
because their parents were not much on GMO/processed foods, and they were not
fed too much baby formula, that too with GMO. In a world where we care so much
for babies, including what kind of dress and toys we give them, we don’t care
for what type of food goes into them.
If you are inclined to know a little more about GMOs, here
are some scientific basics. The World Health Organization defines GMOs as
"organisms in which the genetic material (DNA) has been altered in such a
way that does not occur naturally." And this from the American Association
of Environmental Medicine - "Randomly inserting genetic fragments of DNA
from one organism to another, usually from a different species. For example, an
artificial combination of genes that includes a gene to produce the pesticide Cry1Ab
protein (commonly known as Bt toxin), originally found in Bacillus
Thuringiensis, is inserted in to the DNA of corn randomly." Long term
effects are not studied in detail, but a recent study titled “Long term
toxicity of a Roundup herbicide and a Roundup-tolerant genetically modified
maize” published in the reputed ‘Food and Chemical Toxicology Journal’ found
that rats whose diets consisted of GM corn has much higher rates of tumor and
early death when compared to rats with a regular diet. If you are interested in
knowing more details, especially from experts (and it is good to know this), please refer to the links I have provided at the end of this post in the PS scetion, along with the youtube video as well. Again, there are applications of GMOs that make sense, but not in food.
GMO issues are not restricted to allergies alone, just that
allergies happen to be seen easily. I believe (and so do many others), that
GMOs have an impact on many other health, environmental and economical issues.
Besides the health issues and impact on finances, especially on small farmers,
as it has happened in the US. I was very surprised on seeing that GMO
agriculture is on the rise in a big way in many developing countries like
India, Brazil and China. India is soon becoming the next big GMO hub. Clearly
the government does not seem to care for its people, or they are ignorant about
the effects of GMOs on the entire food chain. They will wreak havoc on the
farmers financially and wreak havoc on the health of the people in a huge way,
and it will be irreversible. There have
been NO long term studies done on the effects of GMO, without which it cannot
be declared safe. On the contrary, there is long term data to show that the
effects of GMO has had a big impact on health across in the US, the one country
where it has been used the most. If the Indian government is serious about the
people of the country, they should not bow to money/lobbying power by Monsanto.
You cannot cry ignorance in this age when all facts are there in the open. One
of the main arguments for GMOs are that they will reduce the use of
insecticides (though it is a different matter that the toxin is directly in your
food now). If that is true, why does data suggest that the use of pesticides,
and herbicides (read as Roundup) in particular, have increased year over year,
when GMO agriculture has seen a big rise in the past decade. Clearly there is
something amiss here, though one thing for sure is that the Monsanto execs are
laughing their way to the bank with the sale of GMOs and Roundup, unfortunately
at the expense of the common man, so unaware of things around him. GMOs are NOT
the answer to solving world hunger, it is only an answer for the money hungry
corporations like Monsanto. Sustainable organic farming is the right answer for
people and the environment. Something has to be done about this or it will be
like a great train wreak waiting to happen...
There is a ray of hope though as I am seeing a lot of
anti-GMO activity across the US as people are slowly becoming aware of the food
around them. It is also good to see some progress at the state level in the
past couple of months on GMO labeling, with Connecticut taking the lead. I also
see some of what is happening in the US being reflected across other countries
as well, including India. Also, stores like Whole Foods have finally agreed on
a plan (albeit delayed) to bring in GMO labeling across the store. Chipotle
became the first fast food restaurant to have GMO labeling, though you’d be
surprised to see that if you want GMO free food, the only option you have is plain
barbcoa, carnitas or beans without the rice or tortillas J. Finally, real change
can happen only if consumers demand good wholesome food, that will also help in
bringing down the cost. We live in a world where all the information is just a
click away, but most of us choose to be selective in what we want to know. So
it us up to each of us to become aware of what is happening around us, and
start demanding for the right things. Right for the farmer, the consumer, and
for the earth/environment in general.
-Ramanuja Iyer
PS: If you are interested in knowing more about GMOs,
checkout these articles:
·
Here is an informative article on GMO written in
a very balanced way by a doctor, and a mother of four. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-j-cederquist-md/prop-37-california_b_1971259.html.
Read for yourself and make your own judgement.
·
A very detailed report at http://www.nongmoproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/GMO_Myths_and_Truths_1.31.pdf
I’d ask all of you to watch this documentary on youtube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEVcLpMr4iU&list=PLrCHn_qRg3qPjeUsoxmB71F8Q-LRAsNYk)
and understand how GMOs have already affected you and your kids.
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