of mice and GMO's..

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Thu, 20 Jun 2002 19:50:13 +0100

" Jenny " <uk_jenster

Mice Won't Eat Genetically Engineered Food

 

message dated 6/6/02 5:54:58 PM,

 

Following is from a British journal (June 2002) excerpt:

 

" While the International scientific community spares no effort in branding

GM food as " substantially equivalent' to conventional food (essentially so

as to prop up the ailing biotech industry), a 17-year-old Dutch

undergraduate has created scientific history with some simple & disturbing

experiments on mice. "

 

by Devinder Sharma

 

Excerpt:

 

" Hinze Hogendoorn conclusively demonstrated that not everything endorsed by

Nobel laureates & other so-called authorities like the UK's Royal Society is

scientifically correct. Hogendoorn may not find a place of honour in the

pro-GM stuffed Royal Society, but he has surely put the august body to

shame.

 

Following basic scientific conventions, H. conducted his experiments on

mice. He picked up 30 female 6-week-old mice from a herpetology centre.

These rodents were originally bred to feed snakes.

 

Then, like any other net-savvy teenager, he searched the web for

information on how to take care of mice. Accordingly, he bought some rodent

mix, some Kellogg's and Quaker cereals and some oatmeal that was specified

to be 'GM-free'. H. also bought some GM maize and soya. These foodstuffs

were to form the staple diet for the mice.

 

The mice were let loose in big cages with 2 piles of food--one GM and one

non GM--stacked in 4 bowls. Unaware of received opinion on the virtues of

GM 'functional foods', the mice delivered their own verdict. They

completely emptied the bowls containing the non-GM food. The bowls with GM

food remained untouched.

 

But H. was still not satisfied. He conducted a series of other tests to

find out what would happen when the mice were force-fed with GM foods.

 

Significantly, but for unknown reasons, one of the mice died. The other

GM-fed mice initially appeared heavier, but by the end of the experiment

they had actually lost weight. A rival group of mice was fed a non-GM diet.

 

These mice ate less and gained more weight, and continued to gain weight.

 

Equally sorrying were the behavioural changes that the diet induced in

the mice. The GM-fed mice 'seemed less active', more nervous & distressed'

and were completely at a loss.

'Many,' Hogendoorn was quoted as saying, 'were running round and round the

basket, scrabbling desperately in the sawdust, & even frantically jumping up

the sides--something I'd never seen before.'

 

The Royal Society has so far refrained from commenting on H's

experiments........................As a face-saving device, it has drawn

attention to the potential risks GM foods pose for babies. The latter are

particularly susceptible to changes in the nutritional make-up of food.

 

But the Royal Society report is full of contradictions. It states that

consumption of genetically modified DNA has no effect on human health. Are

babies not human? "

 

from article in THE ECOLOGIST, vol. 32, #5, June 2002 page 33