The REAL Reasons You Want to Avoid Genetically Modified Foods

[Guest guest]

This is astounding .. amazing . At least it is news to me what was happening

as far back as 1989! Watch the video plus read this article.

blesssings, Shan

 

The REAL Reasons You Want to Avoid Genetically Modified Foods

_http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2007/11/06/the-real-reason

s-you-want-to-avoid-genetically-modified-foods.aspx_

(http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2007/11/06/the-real-reasons-\

you-want-to-avoid-genet

ically-modified-foods.aspx)

 

[WATCH VIDEO HERE]

 

In this lecture, Jeffrey Smith, author of Seeds of Deception, summarizes the

contents of his book, which explains how genetically modified foods cause

health problems, and their potential for creating a vast array of unforeseen

and surprising illnesses. He also sheds light on how the corruption within the

U.S. government, the FDA, and the GMO industry has allowed, and perpetuated,

the cover-up.

 

 

 

Dr. Mercola's Comments:

 

Genetically modified foods are, from my perception, one of _the largest

threats that we have_

(http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2007/08/01/genetically-modif\

ied-organisms-are-a-looming-threat.aspx) against the very

sustainability of the human race. Let’s face it, how long can your

descendants survive if there isn’t any food to eat?

Although Monsanto doesn’t believe this is a possibility, their shortsighted

focus on profits is blinding them to the very real threats that this

technology is posing to the viability of the human race.

Jeffrey Smith does a great job of summarizing his main findings in this

fascinating video series, recounting how GMO health problems have indeed been

recorded as far back as 1989. At that time, several people started seeking

medical attention for severe and puzzling health problems such as:

* Severe pain

* Hair loss

* Memory loss

* Muscle weakness, and uncontrollable muscle spasms

* Hardening of the skin

 

Through a series of events, these symptoms were traced back to genetically

modified strains of L-tryptophan. Up to 10,000 people were affected and some

100 of them died. Uncovered documents revealed that the FDA knew about these

health problems for about five years prior to the “epidemic,†which only

became known as an epidemic after the story was published in the New York

Times,

and people began coming out of the woodwork displaying these symptoms that no

one had been able to diagnose before.

To illustrate this point – that _GMO’s_

(http://www.mercola.com/2006/jan/24/the_global_blight_of_genetically_modified_cr\

ops.htm) may very well be

wreaking havoc with your health and you don’t even know it’s the source of

your

problems – is the fact that the toxic L-tryptophan was only discovered

because

its symptoms were acute, rare, and had a very fast onset. These things are

what get doctors curious about unearthing the cause. But as Jeffrey Smith

points out – what if the damage doesn’t occur overnight? What if the

symptoms are

milder?

Thousands of _genetically modified products_

(http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2007/08/08/enjoy-pesticides-\

in-every-bite-of-gmo-food.aspx

) are now on the market, creating potentially life-threatening problems,

but no one knows what to look out for.

Why?

Because no one knows the full extent of what happens to the end product when

you splice in new genes. The only thing that is guaranteed is that it will

create surprise side effects… However, according to Smith’s research, what

we

do know is that between 1994 and 2001 – at the same time as GMO’s flooded

the market – food related illnesses DOUBLED.

GMO foods can be:

* Allergenic

* Toxic

* Carcinogenic

* Anti-nutritional

 

It may also create brand new diseases that we’ve never seen before, in

addition to spurring on the disease rate of some we already have, such as

cancer.

Although the major food giants are carrying on with their claim that GM

foods are no different from conventionally grown varieties, the research begs

to

differ. Here is just a sampling of the unsavory findings associated with GM

foods:

* GM peas caused _lung damage in mice_

(http://www.mercola.com/2005/dec/8/the_damage_gm_foods_can_do_to_your_body.htm)

* GM potatoes may _cause cancer in rats_

(http://v.mercola.com/blogs/public_blog/Warning----GM-Potatoes-Linked-to-Cancer-\

5940.aspx?Expand=Comment)

* Bacteria in your gut can _take up DNA from GM food_

(http://www.mercola.com/2002/aug/3/gm_food.htm)

* They may be _spurring the creation of weed-killer-resistant

superweeds_ (http://www.mercola.com/2003/jan/29/gmo_crops.htm)

Smith mentions the superior work of Arpad Pusztai, PhD, a (formerly

pro-biotech) scientist who was hired to evaluate the safety of GMO food, and

then

fired for his negative findings and his outspoken criticism of the industry’s

shoddy science.

Fortunately, he finally managed to get his animal feeding study published in

the journal Lancet in 1999 (see the _Lancet October 16,

1999;354(9187):1353-4_

(http://download.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/0140-6736/PIIS0140673698058607.pdf)

for the full PDF article).

Despite the efforts of concerned scientists like Pusztai, you may be

surprised to learn that you have a 75 percent chance of picking a food with

genetically modified ingredients in the United States. This is because at least

seven

out of every 10 items have been genetically modified!

Many of you probably try to avoid genetically modified foods, but very few

know what they really are, since there are no labeling requirements

identifying GMO ingredients. To get an idea of how widespread these ingredients

are, I

recommend taking a look at _The GMO Food Guide_

(http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2007/09/18/the-gmo-food-guid\

e.aspx) I published a

couple of months ago.

Jeffrey Smith’s website _www.seedsofdeception.com_

(http://www.seedsofdeception.com/Public/BuyingNon-GMO/index.cfm) also gives

you a more in-depth

overview of GMO laced products, but the four main culprits are:

* _Soy _ (http://www.mercola.com/2006/sep/5/secrets_in_your_food.htm)

* _Corn _ (http://www.mercola.com/2006/sep/5/secrets_in_your_food.htm)

* Cottonseed

* Canola

 

The offspring of these products include items such as maltodextrin, soy

lecitin, and high fructose corn syrup. Other GMO products include:

* Some varieties of zucchini, crookneck squash, and papayas from Hawaii

* Milk containing rbGH

* Rennet (containing genetically modified enzymes) used to make hard

cheeses

* Aspartame (NutraSweet)

 

What Can You Do?

Along with using the GMO Food Guide and avoiding the products mentioned

above, there’s other tricks you that can use to figure out if something is

genetically modified in your fresh produce aisles:

* Examine produce stickers on the fruits and vegetables you buy. The

PLU code for conventionally grown fruit consists of four numbers; organically

grown fruit has five numbers prefaced by the number nine; and GM fruit has

five numbers prefaced by the number eight.

* Buy _organic produce_

(http://www.mercola.com/2006/aug/17/how_to_get_inexpensive_organic_locally-grown\

_vegetables.htm) as often as you can. By

definition, food that is certified organic must be free from all GM organisms.

Stay away from all processed foods, as most of these contain corn and soy

ingredients.

Fortunately, as a consumer you do have power. You can choose not to be a

victim of deception, and you can choose what you feed your family. Large

portions of Europe have already succeeded in squashing GMO’s out of their

food

supply, forcing food manufacturers to use real ingredients in their European

product lines. But here in the U.S. we’re still stuck with it to a very large

degree.

You can be the change you want to see in America, by educating yourself,

spreading the word, and refusing to buy GMO products.

Share this article with your friends and family, and if you haven’t yet

taken the time to watch _The Future of Food_

(http://www.mercola.com/2007/jan/11/the-future-of-food----you-need-to-watch-this\

-video.htm) , please do so now. It

is perhaps one of the most important videos on this subject, and one that

everyone in American should watch and pass on to others.

 

Related Articles:

 

_The Future of Food -- You NEED to Watch This Video!!!_

(http://www.mercola.com/2007/jan/11/the-future-of-food----you-need-to-watch-this\

-video.htm)

 

_The GMO Food Guide_

(http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2007/09/18/the-gmo-food-guid\

e.aspx)

 

_Monsanto Workers Ban GMO Foods From Their Own Cafeteria_

(http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2007/08/10/monsanto-workers-\

ban-gmo-foods-fro

m-their-own-cafeteria.aspx)