My anti/pro GMO non-rant

[GilpinGuy]

FYI: This is not meant to be a pro/anti GMO ballot question thread. It’s not meant to be a pro/anti Monsanto thread either, though I understand that both might creep in. Let’s try not to focus on the sterile seed issue and focus on the health issue. And yes, I did a search and read a bunch of the other stuff posted about this. Still confused here.

I have heard and read anti-GMO and pro-GMO propaganda for years and I never really thought too much about it. I figured the anti stuff is mostly pot-hazed hippie BS that I got away from decades ago and wasn’t really interested. I figured a green bell pepper is just that. WTF is the problem? These days I’m more interested in self reliance and GMO stuff comes up quite a bit so I’m interested now.

I’ve read that GMO veggies will shrink your nuts, give you cancer, cause birth defects, blind you, etc., etc. The sky is falling and we’re all doomed. I’ve also read that without GMO, we’d have a hard time actually feeding ourselves with ever-expanding population – never mind what we export – and that they are harmless. After all, the Gov’t lets us eat it, so it can’t be that bad.

Like most topics, I suspect that the truth is in the middle somewhere. Here’s what I think. But I’m no super-g that’s for sure.

Now, there is selective breeding, cross breeding, etc. IMHO, this is not GMO. Crossing a German Shepherd with a Black Lab doesn’t produce a GMO dog, right? Neither does crossing a XX corn with YY corn to make bigger corn. Shit, we’ve been doing that for thousands of years. So this is a non-issue for me. Hell, the Shepherd might have hit the bitch Lab all on his own without human intervention. Good for him.

But taking a gene from an amoeba and splicing it into a corn gene so it’s resistant to this or that is different – to me, that’s “Genetically Modifying” something in a laboratory. This is what I consider GMO.

So, there are a few things to consider:

If the amoeba’s gene causes a resistance to some pesticide and its gene is combined with the corn so that farmers can saturate the corn with pesticides to deter pests, that can be bad. The pesticides could be bad to us humans who eat the corn. Or it could not be bad. It depends on the pesticide, I suppose.

But what if that amoeba’s gene causes a resistance to a naturally occurring pest (worm, mite, etc.) that attacks the corn? Is that so bad? As long as it doesn’t have any harmful effects on humans, why wouldn’t we embrace this kind of GMO? With this I’ve read “totally bad” because of the gene being passed to other organisms like bees, etc., but I’ve also read the “totally harmless” argument.

To be honest, most of the “the sky is falling” folks sound like the hippie freaks I disassociated with years ago. But there may be something to some of this. I guess I’m confused. GMO bad or good? Yeah, I think it depends, just like most things.

I’ve made it 44 years with my nuts intact, my baby is as healthy as can be, I have my eyesight, and there’s tons of veggies in the store right now, so I’m not freaking out about a damn thing regarding GMO food. But it is interesting to hear both sides. But when I can grow my own non-GMO veggies, you’re damn right I’m going to, just to be safe.

[Great-Kazoo]

As i posted in the L&P , how you voting/ ballot thread. You should be more concerned where your produce, fish, and meat is coming from. Not to mention dried & canned goods. Think those OOPS, contaminated bags of dog food and lead paint in children's toys from china was a mistake? Even more disappointing, was the lack of public outcry and no response from HHS over it.

[Kraven251]

The biggest issue with the gene spliced food is the testing and research. Chances are it is nothing, but the question becomes is this going to create a new protein that is deadly and contaminate the food stock with a corn plant that looks just like another corn plant but is pure poison etc.

...but aside from that scenario there is really very little it can do otherwise, especially after it is cooked/processed.

[HoneyBadger]

My real concern with GMOs is the money behind them. "Corn" as we know it today is heavily modified in various ways to become any number of different end products, from corn syrup to ethanol that goes in your gas. Certain companies/industries can obviously benefit from such "advances," but are they really in the best interest of the people? regular consumption of HFCS (High-fructose corn syrup) is a huge contributing factor for diabetes. Burning ethanol in most car engines has been shown to shorten the life of the engine substantially. Corn itself has limited nutritional value, and is packed with sugar (which really is the devil of the food world). Why do we use and consume these products?

On the other hand, growing crops more efficiently with GMO techniques is a huge money-saver for the consumer. GMOs could potentially offer other neat or useful properties, such as apples and bananas that will keep for weeks before going bad (I'm pretty sure this is already a thing). The possibilities here really are endless....

[ZERO THEORY]

sugar (which really is the devil of the food world)

In terms of body composition, there is no difference between simple sugar and other carbohydrate sources. Furthermore, assuming you utilize the carbs or glycogen stores before they are converted to fat, the body response in negligible. Some will site a deviance in cortisol or insulin, but assuming you actually get regular strenuous cardiovascular, respiratory, and musculo-skeletal exercise, sugar poses you no threat and is actually a highly-effective short term fuel source.

[68Charger]

One specific case where I have a concern with GMO is the production of HFCS.

The process requires a GMO Enzyme that turns glucose into fructose. Imagine if this enzyme got into your liver intact... your liver processes fructose to make glucose, and this enzyme turns it back to fructose- and you have an on-going loop where at best you wind up with insulin resistance.

My parents and at least 2 uncles had type 2 diabetes by the time they were my age... I have tried to eliminate as much HFCS as possible, and my A1C test results are excellent.

Now is it just because I've reduced my sugar intake overall? maybe. But nobody could argue that HFCS has any redeeming value as an ingredient in food- it's only value is that it's cheap.

[Bailey Guns]

Just like GMO foods I've various arguments about HFCS. Some say it's the worst thing ever, others say it's really no worse than many other things.

Personally, I'm pretty sure I've been eating GMO foods for about 50 years and don't see any harm to it. It's not something I'm going to worry about when I go to the grocery store and grab a bag of fruit or vegetables. Probably far worse dietary threats out there that most people don't think twice about such as processed and pre-prepared foods. The amount of sodium that can be consumed in just a day is staggering and likely presents a threat just as bad as HFCS. But it sure tastes good.

And I'm now at the age where I have to really watch my intake of sodium and sugars. A1c was just slightly elevated...not enough to cause concern but enough to start thinking about lowering it. Unfortunately I could eat only bread and pasta and other carbs and be totally happy.

[Great-Kazoo]

Just like GMO foods I've various arguments about HFCS. Some say it's the worst thing ever, others say it's really no worse than many other things.

Personally, I'm pretty sure I've been eating GMO foods for about 50 years and don't see any harm to it. It's not something I'm going to worry about when I go to the grocery store and grab a bag of fruit or vegetables. Probably far worse dietary threats out there that most people don't think twice about such as processed and pre-prepared foods. The amount of sodium that can be consumed in just a day is staggering and likely presents a threat just as bad as HFCS. But it sure tastes good.

And I'm now at the age where I have to really watch my intake of sodium and sugars. A1c was just slightly elevated...not enough to cause concern but enough to start thinking about lowering it. Unfortunately I could eat only bread and pasta and other carbs and be totally happy.

I had to do low cholesterol a few years back. EVERYTHING that was LC was high Sodium and vice versa.

[Rucker61]

Budreaux: I had an uncle that raised GMO chickens with four drumsticks.
Clereaux: How did they taste?
Budreaux: No idea. Never could catch one.

[RblDiver]

As a general principle, I don't mind GMOs. I feel there's probably a lot more hype than substance. Heck, anything can cause cancer, just ask California, everything causes cancer there!

And after all, to a starving kid in Africa, would they rather have a GMO ear of corn, or be told "You can't have that corn, because if you eat 10 pounds of it a day every day for 30 years you'll get cancer?"