GMO foods can harm you and your health....
Today's Post: Tuesday, 5-18-2010
There may be some GMO foods that are safe. There is very clear and scary evidence that many if not most are NOT safe for human consumption. They are not tested at all or the bad results are only available to their makers and not released much of the time.
(GMO stands for “Genetically Modified Organisms” & is now commonly used to refer to Genetically Modified foods and usually to Genetically Modified plant foods.)
Many GMO foods essentially contain internal and artificially added pesticides or herbicides you can’t wash off. That saves the farmer from having to pay for pesticides and herbicides and for paying the labor to apply them – OR it saves them from having to pay a lot more for the labor it takes to weed plus it cuts the risk of and amount of crop damage. So farmers can sell for less and still make money by using these GMO plants.
And, many cheap foods today are made from corn and soy that is increasingly GMO corn and soy for these reasons. (Unfortunately for those who think well of canola oil, so is the rapeseed used to make canola oil.)
The problem is that eating these pesticides and herbicides is likely not a great deal better for you or your kids than it is for the bugs or competing plants that they target.
Quite the contrary. They can cause cancer. They can cause nerve damage and behavior problems. And they very likely & usually cause many allergies.
The internal herbicides and pesticides organically grown plants have evolved naturally over thousands of year our bodies have evolved with and actually use to support our health. The problem is that our bodies are NOT evolved to use the chemicals in things like our chemical pesticides and herbicides. And, it’s those or other pesticides we are not evolved to process that are added to GMO plants.
Allergies are caused in large part when our immune systems are exposed to things our ancestors were not. So our bodies react as if they are invaders from outer space. In fact, they over-react to the place it causes us quality of life or health problems.
GMO foods are almost custom designed to do exactly that. Something toxic that has not existed in nature before is purposely added to the GMO plant’s DNA.
For example, the common use of GMO soy may well be the cause of the sharp increase in dangerous peanut allergies over the last several years. (Soy infant formula today is most likely made from GMO soy.) Later in this post Dr Al Sears reports on some research that suggest this is highly likely in fact!
I decided to feed our daughter soy formula to help ensure she would not become allergic to milk without realizing the soy might not be safer and might even be deadly instead.
She became allergic to soy and peanuts by the time she was a toddler. Later, only brilliant work by her ER doctor plus very good luck or divine intervention spared her life when she went into anaphylactic shock and her breathing tube swelled shut. (I also recently found out the bill she and her husband had to pay off was over $60,000 for the ER and subsequent hospital bills.) It seems a cookie handed to her by a co-worker at her job had some peanuts added for extra crunch.
I had heard of this problem with GMO foods but was unaware of just how widespread their use is or how deadly they can be at their worst.
Dr Al Sears sent an email yesterday with some key points on this subject that I did not yet know and which inspired me to share his points with you in this post.
He says that people in the United Kingdom (UK) decided to create a new kind of GMO potato that would be resistant to all insects.
They decided to genetically modify the DNA of potatoes so each one would release a lectin similar to similar natural insecticides found in foods like beans, seeds, and grains.
This GMO potato caused serious organ damage when fed to animals. Researchers found pre-cancerous growths in their digestive tracts and the potatoes also seriously harmed to destroyed the animals’ immune systems. They also rapidly became sick and weak. Plus they had smaller brains, livers, and testicles.
There was a huge cover-up that it took an act of Parliament to bring out into public view. Since then, Europeans have banned genetically modified organisms (GMOs) from any product used for human consumption.
Dr Sears said this next after reporting this
“If this potato had been created in the U.S., you could be eating it in the French fries you get at McDonald’s.
Unlike the UK, our government has taken the stance that GMOs are safe.
Mega-giant seed corporations like Monsanto want to prevent any bad news about GMOs getting out to the public. They require anyone who buys genetically modified seeds to sign what they call a “technology stewardship agreement.” What does that mean? It prohibits the buyer from doing any research on the seed.
In other words, no one who has access…. is allowed to find out if they’re safe.
But evidence of the dangers is leaking out from Europe, Russia, and many other countries around the world.
Here are just some of their findings: “ (His email included the studies done and where they were published.)
“Allergies increased. When GMO soy was introduced, allergies jumped by 50%. Allergen proteins were 7 times higher. Some were unique only to GMO soy.
It wreaked havoc on digestion and the absorption of nutrients. Digestive enzymes plummeted, and GMOs caused lesions in the digestive tract.
Proteins that control stress response and energy creation in cells changed. This resulted in faster aging of cells.
It caused reproductive problems. Sperm cells had trouble developing, and embryos showed altered genes. Offspring were smaller, and many more died.
Now, here’s the second part of our problem in the U.S. Food manufacturers don’t have to tell you when products have GMOs.
About 75 percent of American farms grow GMOs. Almost 90% of the soy… more than 60% of the corn… 75% of the canola, and 50% of the Hawaiian papaya crops.
So, what can you do?
First, I recommend you avoid all non-organic soy, corn, and canola products:
Next, eliminate commercial beef and poultry from your diet. They are raised on GMO corn, soy, and grains.
And, if you eat out, eat at restaurants that cook from scratch. Avoid suspect GMO foods like corn chips, tortillas, soy sauce, and sweet corn. If they use oil to cook, ask them to use a non-GMO oil such as olive….”
Dr Sears has often recommended grass fed beef for this and other reasons. Without the GMO worry I will only eat beef now that is grass fed for those reasons alone. This new GMO information certainly strengthens my resolve to follow this policy.
Another very widely spread way GMO soy may be in your kitchen is because soy oil is so widely used because it’s so cheap.
Mayonnaise is by definition a food made from egg yolks and olive oil as just one example.
You can buy dozens of versions in stores of what is labeled as mayonnaise. But if you want to eat mayonnaise made from egg yolks and olive oil, you have to make it yourself. The stuff in the stores is all made with soy or canola oil instead.
Since those now are likely made with GMO foods, that’s problematic if you happen to like mayonnaise.
Prepared salad dressings are much the same. At least you CAN find versions with olive oil instead. But most have soy or canola.
Soy protein and soy oil are also listed as ingredients all over grocery stores in snack foods, ice creams, and breads.
You CAN avoid the stuff. But you do have to always read labels and pass on most brands of many foods to do so.
Because mostly that I know canola oil and soy oil and corn oil are high in pro-inflammatory omega 6 oils that also lower the protective HDL cholesterol while extra virgin olive oil does not, I’ve been buying only extra virgin olive oil and passing on canola and soy and corn oils for quite some time.
But all this bad news may be new to you.
The simplest guideline is to pass on buying or eating it if it has any other oil but olive oil in it.
My only wish is that meat and eggs from pasture raised chickens was much more widely available. At least grass fed beef is becoming available.
Meanwhile, if you have an opportunity to support changing our policy to that of Europe, please do so.
Today's Post: Tuesday, 5-18-2010
There may be some GMO foods that are safe. There is very clear and scary evidence that many if not most are NOT safe for human consumption. They are not tested at all or the bad results are only available to their makers and not released much of the time.
(GMO stands for “Genetically Modified Organisms” & is now commonly used to refer to Genetically Modified foods and usually to Genetically Modified plant foods.)
Many GMO foods essentially contain internal and artificially added pesticides or herbicides you can’t wash off. That saves the farmer from having to pay for pesticides and herbicides and for paying the labor to apply them – OR it saves them from having to pay a lot more for the labor it takes to weed plus it cuts the risk of and amount of crop damage. So farmers can sell for less and still make money by using these GMO plants.
And, many cheap foods today are made from corn and soy that is increasingly GMO corn and soy for these reasons. (Unfortunately for those who think well of canola oil, so is the rapeseed used to make canola oil.)
The problem is that eating these pesticides and herbicides is likely not a great deal better for you or your kids than it is for the bugs or competing plants that they target.
Quite the contrary. They can cause cancer. They can cause nerve damage and behavior problems. And they very likely & usually cause many allergies.
The internal herbicides and pesticides organically grown plants have evolved naturally over thousands of year our bodies have evolved with and actually use to support our health. The problem is that our bodies are NOT evolved to use the chemicals in things like our chemical pesticides and herbicides. And, it’s those or other pesticides we are not evolved to process that are added to GMO plants.
Allergies are caused in large part when our immune systems are exposed to things our ancestors were not. So our bodies react as if they are invaders from outer space. In fact, they over-react to the place it causes us quality of life or health problems.
GMO foods are almost custom designed to do exactly that. Something toxic that has not existed in nature before is purposely added to the GMO plant’s DNA.
For example, the common use of GMO soy may well be the cause of the sharp increase in dangerous peanut allergies over the last several years. (Soy infant formula today is most likely made from GMO soy.) Later in this post Dr Al Sears reports on some research that suggest this is highly likely in fact!
I decided to feed our daughter soy formula to help ensure she would not become allergic to milk without realizing the soy might not be safer and might even be deadly instead.
She became allergic to soy and peanuts by the time she was a toddler. Later, only brilliant work by her ER doctor plus very good luck or divine intervention spared her life when she went into anaphylactic shock and her breathing tube swelled shut. (I also recently found out the bill she and her husband had to pay off was over $60,000 for the ER and subsequent hospital bills.) It seems a cookie handed to her by a co-worker at her job had some peanuts added for extra crunch.
I had heard of this problem with GMO foods but was unaware of just how widespread their use is or how deadly they can be at their worst.
Dr Al Sears sent an email yesterday with some key points on this subject that I did not yet know and which inspired me to share his points with you in this post.
He says that people in the United Kingdom (UK) decided to create a new kind of GMO potato that would be resistant to all insects.
They decided to genetically modify the DNA of potatoes so each one would release a lectin similar to similar natural insecticides found in foods like beans, seeds, and grains.
This GMO potato caused serious organ damage when fed to animals. Researchers found pre-cancerous growths in their digestive tracts and the potatoes also seriously harmed to destroyed the animals’ immune systems. They also rapidly became sick and weak. Plus they had smaller brains, livers, and testicles.
There was a huge cover-up that it took an act of Parliament to bring out into public view. Since then, Europeans have banned genetically modified organisms (GMOs) from any product used for human consumption.
Dr Sears said this next after reporting this
“If this potato had been created in the U.S., you could be eating it in the French fries you get at McDonald’s.
Unlike the UK, our government has taken the stance that GMOs are safe.
Mega-giant seed corporations like Monsanto want to prevent any bad news about GMOs getting out to the public. They require anyone who buys genetically modified seeds to sign what they call a “technology stewardship agreement.” What does that mean? It prohibits the buyer from doing any research on the seed.
In other words, no one who has access…. is allowed to find out if they’re safe.
But evidence of the dangers is leaking out from Europe, Russia, and many other countries around the world.
Here are just some of their findings: “ (His email included the studies done and where they were published.)
“Allergies increased. When GMO soy was introduced, allergies jumped by 50%. Allergen proteins were 7 times higher. Some were unique only to GMO soy.
It wreaked havoc on digestion and the absorption of nutrients. Digestive enzymes plummeted, and GMOs caused lesions in the digestive tract.
Proteins that control stress response and energy creation in cells changed. This resulted in faster aging of cells.
It caused reproductive problems. Sperm cells had trouble developing, and embryos showed altered genes. Offspring were smaller, and many more died.
Now, here’s the second part of our problem in the U.S. Food manufacturers don’t have to tell you when products have GMOs.
About 75 percent of American farms grow GMOs. Almost 90% of the soy… more than 60% of the corn… 75% of the canola, and 50% of the Hawaiian papaya crops.
So, what can you do?
First, I recommend you avoid all non-organic soy, corn, and canola products:
Next, eliminate commercial beef and poultry from your diet. They are raised on GMO corn, soy, and grains.
And, if you eat out, eat at restaurants that cook from scratch. Avoid suspect GMO foods like corn chips, tortillas, soy sauce, and sweet corn. If they use oil to cook, ask them to use a non-GMO oil such as olive….”
Dr Sears has often recommended grass fed beef for this and other reasons. Without the GMO worry I will only eat beef now that is grass fed for those reasons alone. This new GMO information certainly strengthens my resolve to follow this policy.
Another very widely spread way GMO soy may be in your kitchen is because soy oil is so widely used because it’s so cheap.
Mayonnaise is by definition a food made from egg yolks and olive oil as just one example.
You can buy dozens of versions in stores of what is labeled as mayonnaise. But if you want to eat mayonnaise made from egg yolks and olive oil, you have to make it yourself. The stuff in the stores is all made with soy or canola oil instead.
Since those now are likely made with GMO foods, that’s problematic if you happen to like mayonnaise.
Prepared salad dressings are much the same. At least you CAN find versions with olive oil instead. But most have soy or canola.
Soy protein and soy oil are also listed as ingredients all over grocery stores in snack foods, ice creams, and breads.
You CAN avoid the stuff. But you do have to always read labels and pass on most brands of many foods to do so.
Because mostly that I know canola oil and soy oil and corn oil are high in pro-inflammatory omega 6 oils that also lower the protective HDL cholesterol while extra virgin olive oil does not, I’ve been buying only extra virgin olive oil and passing on canola and soy and corn oils for quite some time.
But all this bad news may be new to you.
The simplest guideline is to pass on buying or eating it if it has any other oil but olive oil in it.
My only wish is that meat and eggs from pasture raised chickens was much more widely available. At least grass fed beef is becoming available.
Meanwhile, if you have an opportunity to support changing our policy to that of Europe, please do so.
Labels: a likely reason why peanut allergies have tripled, why avoid all GMO foods, why avoid corn and canola and soy oil, why avoid soy foods, why GMO soy likely causes peanut allergies
posted by David at 1:45 PM
2 Comments:
This is terrifying and should be stopped.Why don't the health department ban the GMO infused products?
My understanding it that such foods are banned in Europe.
So far in the United States, the manufacturers who know a large percentage of people would not buy foods labeled as GMO or genetically modified have succeeded in their efforts to prevent that from being on the labels.
They have also so far been able to have GMO foods made legal throughout the United States as far as I know.
So far, here, only some food companies marketing to upscale or health oriented customers insist on using real foods, non GMO, foods and say so on their labels.
For the same reasons, many supplement makers do also.
The producers of GMO plants and seeds use science to make their GMO foods and many of them use science to make the pesticides and herbicides they also manufacture.
They seem to think that means they need not test their products very much for safety. They act as if people who fear their products don't know or trust science and so should be ignored.
They may be correct in that. But they also have ignored the science of safety testing since it would interfere with their products they make money from & believe are safe without much evidence.
Unfortunately, real science does NOT work that way. To find out what really happens, you have to do tests. And for something like GMO foods, such tests need to be quite extensive. I've seen very little evidence they have.
The reseach reported by Dr Sears suggests GMO foods range from somewhat harmful to very harmful from actual data.
Real scientists pay attention to such things. So far these companies have not. Their attitude is if it doesn't kill you directly, why should they stop making money from it?
I don't think it should be allowed either.
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