Genetically Modified Foods: Are They a Risk to Human Health?

Genetically Modified foods: are they a risk to human health?

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May 1, 2015

Genetically modified foods are already very much a part of our lives. Like any new product entering the food chain, genetically modified foods must be subjected to rigorous testing. We eat every day of genetically modified foods, but you did not know it. However, so far we still do not clearly know all the aspects of genetically modified food. Do they damage to our healthy? The question will be whether consumers warm to genetically modified foods made with their health in mind, or remain way of anyone tinkering with the fundamental chemistry of their food.

What are GMF? It is a kind of foods produced from organisms that have had specific changes introduced into their DNA using the methods of genetic engineering. Though widely used in the U.S, genetically modified foods face opposition in Europe, where critics see them as a health and environmental risk. The reason why bring genetically modified food to our table, because “GM technology enables pant breeders to bring together in one plant useful genes from a wide range of living sources, not just from within the crop species or from closely related plants. This powerful tool allows pant breeders to do faster what they have been doing for years-generate superior plant varieties-although it expands the possibilities beyond the limits imposed by conventional plant breeding.”it can increase crop yield per units, reduces the production cost and improve agricultural resistance.

Everything has two side, even genetically modified foods. It has possibility of humans developing new allergic reaction to the foods they eat. Second, Genetically modified foods can disturb the natural flow of our environments. According to Ghana public health association” a number of concerns and potential negative health impact were identified: first, current efforts are focused primarily on a few crop/trait combinations that have high commercial value and occupy large international markets, hence are primarily profit driven. Second, potential for unpredictable, unintended mutations in the organism with consequential medico-legal events. Third, tendency to provoke allergic reactions. New pesticide residue effects in alimentary system may affect gut bacteria provoking peripheral immune and allergic reactions, and so on. The most important concern is most of the trials supporting introduction of GMOs are not independently done and are commercially driven, the trial designs are laboratory design and of short duration. Short-term studies may mask chronic toxicological effects including later developmental and reproductive effects. This part is bother me, it will destroy safety: once public health are in private hands, the drive for profits will come before all else. Even so, all these concerns have not been proven yet there is need to keep an eye one the correlation through further observational and epidemiological studies.