The [Ugly] Truth About GMOs

With 60 countries around the world considering GMOs to be hazardous to health and the environment, one can’t help but wonder why the United States isn’t following suit.

Last month, Poland announced that it is opting out of growing genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in its food production, joining countries like Greece, France, Italy and Germany, among others. In total, 19 European Union (EU) countries are now saying no to GMOs. So, with more than two-thirds of all EU nations (19 out of 28) seemingly concerned about the health and environmental hazards associated with GMOs, one can’t help but wonder why the United States isn’t following suit.

According to the Non-GMO Project, a nonprofit organization that offers North America’s only third party verification and labeling for non-GMO food and products, GMOs are “organisms whose genetic material has been artificially manipulated in a laboratory through genetic engineering (GE).”

Most developed countries do not consider genetically modified food to be safe, and in more than 60 nations around the world, there are significant restrictions or outright bans on the production and sale of GMOs. In the United States, however, over 80 percent of all processed food contains GMOs. While it is important to note that the United States does regulate genetically modified food, it is nearly impossible to avoid GMOs—unless you only eat fresh, unprocessed foods clearly marked as non-GMO or certified organic.

According to the Institute for Responsible Technology, a comprehensive source for GMO health information, a number of health problems have increased since GMOs were first introduced in 1996. The percentage of Americans suffering from three or more chronic illnesses jumped from seven to 13 percent in less than 10 years. Food allergies, autism, reproductive disorders, and digestive problems have also skyrocketed. Although there is little conclusive, and formally accepted, evidence to suggest that GMOs are directly responsible for these health problems, a growing number of doctors have been warning against genetically modified food, begging the question—why?

The American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM), a nonprofit medical society, may have some of the answers. According to the group, “several animal studies indicate serious health risks associated with GM food, including infertility, immune problems, accelerated aging, faulty insulin regulation, and changes in major organs and the gastrointestinal system.”

The AAEM studies yielded some shocking results. In India, thousands of sheep, buffalo and goats died after grazing on genetically modified cotton plants. Mice eating genetically modified corn long-term had fewer and smaller babies. Rodents fed genetically modified corn had weaker immune systems.

Despite these safety studies, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not mandated human clinical trials or any long-term studies, which is alarming considering that before the FDA voted to allow GMOs into food without labeling, the FDA’s own scientists warned that “genetically modified food can create unpredictable, hard-to-detect side effects,” according to the Institute for Responsible Technology and a number of other sources.

In addition to some of the health concerns, GMOs are bad for the environment. According to Earthjustice, a nonprofit law organization, genetically modified crops are “responsible for increasing herbicide use by some 527 million pounds in the U.S. over the first 16 years of their commercial use.”

While there may be some speculation about the health effects of GMOs, there is little debate about the environmental hazards. According to the Institute for Responsible Technology, genetically engineered crops and their associated herbicides “can harm birds, insects, amphibians, marine ecosystems, and soil organisms.” GMOs reduce bio-diversity, pollute water resources, and are unsustainable.

Most notably, GMO crops are eliminating habitat for monarch butterflies, whose populations are down 50 percent in the United States. Roundup herbicide has also “been shown to cause birth defects in amphibians, embryonic deaths and endocrine disruptions, and organ damage in animals even at very low doses.” Furthermore, GMO canola has been “found growing wild in North Dakota and California, threatening to pass on its herbicide tolerant genes on to weeds.”

Now, that’s some food for thought.