What Are GMOs? And Why Are they Bad?

Whether genetically modified food (sometimes called GM foods or GMOs) is beneficial to humanity or dangerous to our health is a debate has been raging for the past few years. The short answer is: both, to some extent, though the dangers of genetically modified food far outweigh the benefits, as we will see here.

The problem with coming up with a definite answer is that there are still relatively few human studies on the long-term impact to our health, despite a number of recent animal studies showing serious health consequences from eating a diet containing GM foods.

What Are GMOs?

The origins of genetically modified food began with a desire to more adequately feed large populations of people in poor countries, some of whom were suffering from starvation. The supposed benefits of genetically modified crops are that they can potentially produce higher yields, and reduce the need for additional pesticides and herbicides.

They are also supposed to better withstand fluctuations and extremes in weather. However, as more is discovered about the effects of these genetically modified plants on people, animals and the environment, serious questions are being raised as to their benefits.

On the surface, GM foods look the same as non-GM foods and have the same nutritional value. However, the DNA of GM foods are different. Food is genetically modified when genes from bacteria, viruses, insects, animals or even humans are inserted into its DNA to alter the organism’s characteristics. This is done to food crops in order to create plants that are resistant to the herbicides used to destroy weeds and to enable them to produce their own poison to kill insects harmful to crops.

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) toxin is a soil bacterium that has been used as a pesticide spray for many years. When insects bite into the plant, the poison they ingest splits open their stomach, killing them. Though GMO foods that contain this toxin are resistant to insects, with continued exposure insects may develop a resistance to it, requiring ever-stronger herbicides and dangerous chemicals to keep crops insect-free. Resistant insects will then proceed to destroy crops as they did before, but now no pesticide will be effective, and we’re back to square one.

The biotechnology companies that engineered these crop seeds claim that the pesticide has a history of safe use since Bt bacteria spray has been used by organic farmers for natural insect control. The difference, however, between the Bt toxin produced by GM plants and natural Bt spray is that the Bt toxin in the GM plants is thousands of times more concentrated than natural Bt spray, is designed to be more toxic, has properties of an allergen, and unlike the spray, cannot be washed off. Though the toxins are supposed to be destroyed in the gut, studies have found this not to be always the case. So, essentially, we end up consuming these “harmless” toxins, the full effects of which are not yet known

It is estimated that at least 70% of processed foods on U.S. Supermarket shelves contain at least some genetically engineered food.

As it now stands, as much as 85% of U.S. Corn, 91% of soybeans and 88% of cotton (mainly made into cottonseed oil that is common in processed foods) is genetically engineered. Unfortunately, the FDA does not require that food labels state the presence or amount of genetically altered food in a manufacturer’s product. You may be surprised to find that most of the processed foods you eat, including sodas, soups, crackers, and condiments, contain genetically engineered ingredients.

Genetically modified food products include soy, canola, corn, cotton (for cottonseed oil), Hawaiian papaya, sugar beets, alfalfa, zucchini, and yellow squash. In addition, dairy products from cows that were injected with rbGH, food additives, enzymes, flavorings, and the artificial sweetener aspartame may also contain GMOs. Any food containing these ingredients or foods derived from them should ideally be avoided, though this can be difficult, as a large percentage of foods contain ingredients derived from corn. These include:

• Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C)
• Aspartame
• Caramel Color
• Cellulose and methylcellulose
• Citric Acid
• Corn meal
• Corn oil
• Corn starch, food starch or modified food starch
• Dextrin or maltodextrin
• Dextrose, fructose or glucose
• Dyes
• High-fructose corn syrup
• Mono- and diglycerides
• Monosodium glutamate (MSG)
• Sorbitol
• Vanilla extract
• Xantham gum

You should also stay away from soy products, as most of them are derived from genetically modified soybeans. This includes soy flour, lecithin, soy protein, soy isolate and isoflavone.

Next, we explore the dangers of genetically modified foods and the adverse health effects it has been shown to have on animals. You can protect yourself from genetically modified food by purchasing organic foods as much as possible and seeking out products that advertise they are “non-GMO” or “GMO-free.” Find out how to avoid GMOs by reading our handy guide. Genetically modified food has no place in healthy eating.

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Eating well on a budget

It’s very easy for a lack of money to have a negative impact on your health. When shopping for food the healthiest option is rarely the cheapest, but with a little forethought and planning it becomes possible to save money and eat a great nutritious diet. Everyone loves a win-win situation.

1. Pack lunch at work: No one likes waking up at the crack of dawn to make their lunch but at the end of the week when your £50 you won’t be regretting it. The key to this is planning ahead. One of my favorite things to do is make a large pan of pasta once a week, this can be split up into containers and frozen once cooked, all you need to do is remember to put the container from your freezer into your fridge before you head to bed and in the morning you have a great cheap and healthy meal to take to work.

2. Buying in bulk:  This should be obvious but you would be surprised how many people still always go for the smallest option. For many years before I gave up smoking I would always buy the smallest pouch of tobacco available even though I knew I would still be smoking and have to re-buy the same item again at a higher cost to me than if I had bought a larger pack initially. This translates to food in just the same way, if it’s something you know you will use why not purchase a larger quantity and save some cash in the long run?

3. Invest in a good quality water bottle: We all know how important it is to keep our bodies hydrated but bottled water can cost an awful lot of money for something that’s a basic human right. Not only that but bottled water sometimes has to travel across the world before getting to you giving it a pretty nasty carbon footprint. To solve this I recommend getting yourself a good quality water bottle that can be taken everywhere with you within weeks it will have paid for it’s self as you won’t be purchasing water at every gym visit or train journey.

4. Become snack smart: By snacking throughout the day on healthy things like seeds nuts and dried fruits you can effectively strengthen your metabolism, as well as this by eating regular snacks you will have improved concentration levels and are less likely to overeat at your main meals.

5. Buy fresh fruits:  This is always a tricky one, how many times have you had to throw out half a fruit bowl of food because you left it too long before eating and they have started to go bad? I know this happens to be all too often. The best thing to do is improve your fruit storage a bowl in direct sunlight is far from ideal. Instead try and store your fruit in a cool dry cupboard. Also harder fruits such as apple have a much longer lifespan than soft ones.

6. Get writing list: One of the best things anyone can do when trying to increase their productivity is list writing, the simple act of writing something down can have a powerful effect on us and I have found it’s helped me become far more organised than I used to be.  The best thing to do with food is to keep a notepad in your kitchen, make a note of all the things you are running low on and any ideas you have regarding new things you would like to try, make sure you don’t forget this notebook when you head out shopping though!

This it guys with these tips you should be able to improve your health at the same time as tightening your purse strings, what more could you want.

Written by Cal Ince.