5 Reasons You Should Avoid GMOs

I’ve been on a anti-GMO kick lately… and for good reason!

According to our government, there is nothing wrong with genetically modified foods, but there are SO many studies that show that’s ABSOLUTELY NOT the case at all.

Here are 5 reasons why you shouldn’t eat GMOs (ESPECIALLY if you have an autoimmune or chronic illness!):

 

1. GMOs aren’t properly digested by our bodies.

It has been ‘assumed’ that the pesticides added into the DNA of seeds are destroyed during digestion. It’s also ‘assumed’ that it won’t interact with humans or animals of any kind. This assumption was made on the basis that we don’t have the receptor cell for this added gene, therefore nothing would happen and it would pass right on through.

But, that’s not the case.

It has been shown that the Bt toxin survives the digestion process. An example of this was shown in a small village in India. The buffalo, sheep and goats were allowed to graze on their natural cotton plants whenever they pleased. This went on for about 8 years with NO incidents of death reported. On January 3, 2008, their 13 buffalo grazed on Bt cotton plants for the first time. Within about three days, all had died. They also reported the deaths of 26 of their sheep and goats, after they grazed on Bt cotton plants.

3 DAYS?!?! After 8 years of grazing on these plants all the time, once genetically modified plants were introduced they had animals dying within 3 days?!

The village veterinarian did a post-mortem autopsy on some of the animals. They found undigested food in the first part of the animal’s digestive track, called the rumen.  Sheep that grazed on Bt cotton plants also had shriveled intestines, suggesting that the plants never got past the rumen as well. It was then suggested that maybe Bt toxin kills or interferes with the bacteria in the rumen that normally breaks down the plant matter.

In any case, these genetically modified genes do not play well with our digestive system!

 

2. GMOs can transfer into our gut bacteria or into our own cell’s DNA.

Genetically modified crops are unique because the transgene that is inserted into the seed’s DNA is similar in length to our gut bacteria DNA sequences. This makes it more likely that genes from the GMOs could transfer to our gut flora, colonizing it with the genetically modified gene. And if the transgene continued to function after transfer, it may produce GM proteins continuously inside of us. If these proteins have a survival advantage to the bacteria, it would likely continue over the long term. So, we might have functioning transgenes living in the DNA of gut bacteria long after we stop eating GM foods

There have been studies that have proved that fragments of non-GMO DNA fed to pregnant mice can be found in the brain of their offspring. It’s also been proven that DNA from food can and will travel through our bodies and end up in various organs.

To make this point even more scary, there has only ever been ONE HUMAN FEEDING STUDY that was conducted to verify this hypothesis. And guess what it found? It found that a portion of the Roundup Ready soy transgene NOT ONLY transferred into human gut bacteria, but CONTINUED TO FUNCTION!

[su_quote]The study used 7 human volunteers with colostomy bags. They had their lower intestines removed. One of the things they were testing for was the biotech industry’s claim that genes were destroyed during digestion. After feeding the volunteers GM soy burgers and GM soy milkshakes, they found a significant amount of GM soy transgenes in the colostomy bags. The GM soy had survived passage through the stomach and lower intestine, overturning the myth that digestion of genes made gene transfer impossible. More importantly, in the gut bacteria of 3 of the 7 volunteers, the transgene from soy was integrated into the DNA of their gut bacteria BEFORE they had the meal. This means that it was integrated from a previous meal. Thus, genes do transfer to gut bacteria and they continue to function. We don’t know under what conditions transgenes transfer to gut bacteria and we don’t know its medical implications or treatment. [Netherwood et al, “Assessing the survival of transgenic plant DNA in the human gastrointestinal tract,” Nature Biotechnology 22 (2004): 2.][/su_quote]

The following is from a presentation created by The Institute For Responsible Technology”:

[su_quote cite=”Institute For Responsible Technology” url=”http://responsibletechnology.org”]What can transfer?

The promoter or “ON switch” might transfer. It can permanently turn on some random gene, forcing it to overproduce a protein around the clock. That protein may be an allergen, toxin, anti-nutrient, or carcinogen produced inside our gut bacteria or possibly from within our own cell’s DNA.

In the soy burger study mentioned earlier, the promoter transferred with the soy transgene, into human gut bacteria. If antibiotic resistant genes transfer, they might create super diseases, resistant to antibiotics.

We know the roundup ready gene transfers from soybeans.

There are virus resistant genes that could transfer from zucchini, papaya, and crookneck squash. Their viral proteins might suppress own body’s viral defenses, or the proteins may be toxic.

What if the Bt gene transfers? It could theoretically turn our intestinal flora into living pesticide factories, possibly for the long term. It is a good excuse to avoid eating GM corn chips, made from pesticide producing Bt corn.[/su_quote]

 

3. GMOs cause allergies and immune responses.

There have been studies, conducted by Monsanto, that have shown that their cooked genetically modified soy contained as much as 7 times the amount of a known soy allergy!

[su_quote cite=”Institute For Responsible Technology” url=”http://responsibletechnology.org”]”Their study suggests that the cooking process, which normally breaks down this allergen, did not function as expected in their GM soybeans. Monsanto chose to leave out this data from their publication which was entitled, “The Composition of Glyphosate-Tolerant Soybean Seeds Is Equivalent to That of Conventional Soybeans.” They also left out data showing that GM soy has about twice the amount of soy lectin, which can block nutrient absorption, as well as other significant changes. The data was recovered by an investigator from the archives of the Journal and made public.

Stephen R. Padgette and others, “The Composition of Glyphosate-Tolerant Soybean Seeds Is Equivalent to That of Conventional Soybeans,” The Journal of Nutrition, vol. 126, no. 4, April 1996 (The data was taken from the journal archives, as it had been omitted from the published study.)[/su_quote]

Dr Arpad Pusztai was given $3 million to conduct research on rats using genetically modified potatoes which produced their own insecticide. The study was funded to establish whether GMOs were harmful or harmless.

They had 3 different groups

First group was fed a balanced diet and the genetically modified potatoes.

The second group was fed a balanced diet and potatoes sprayed with a pesticide.

The third group was fed a balanced diet and regular, non-gmo potatoes.

What were the findings?

Group 2 and 3 were shown to have no problems. The group that ate the genetically modified potatoes had serious health damage. It was concluded that the problem was most likely NOT the insecticide, but the genetic engineering process the potatoes had gone through.

[su_quote]”When fed to mice, the lower part of their small intestines suffered tissue damage. There were fragments of cells, damaged cells, and potentially pre cancerous growth. Further, mice developed an immune response as if they had been fed Cholera toxin. They also develop an adjuvant response. This means they are sensitized to other compounds that they never reacted to before, as in the case of the condition called multiple chemical sensitivity.[/su_quote]

Since then, there have been numerous studies which show increases in IgG, IgA, IgM responses (which cause allergic reactions) and increases in cytokine counts (immune cells which have been shown to be factors in numerous diseases).

Here are a few of the diseases which have been proven to be a result of increases in these immune responses:

• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Inflammatory bowel disease
• Osteoporosis
• Multiple sclerosis
• Various types of cancer (multiple myeloma and prostate cancer)
• Allergy
• Allergic rhinitis
• ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease)
• Autoimmune disease
• Colitis

 

4. GMOs cause leaky gut.

For the past few years there has been a TON of research done surrounding whether leaky guts cause autoimmune or chronic disease. Within my studies, I whole heartedly believe that a leaky gut = chronic illness. And sure, maybe we won’t be able to completely cure an autoimmune disease, BUT we can take steps to cleaning up our diets, healing our guts, and stopping the progression of our diseases in their tracks.

I came across a great article by The Paleo Mom the other day that finally revealed that a study showed that a leaky gut almost always preceded an autoimmune illness in rats! Read “Which Comes First: the leaky gut or a dysfunctional immune system?

Well, guess what. The toxins in our food and the process that GMOs undergo CAUSE LEAKY GUT AS WELL!

 

 

You’ll notice that the rats who were fed genetically modified potatoes have expanded intestinal walls.

The tight junctions between our epithelial cells (our immune system cells which create the lining of our gut) begin to open. The ‘glue’ that holds these cells together begins to disappear and a hole opens up in the lining of our digestive track. Our digestive track now has an open doorway right into our body.

And that, my friends, is exactly what leaky gut is.

 

5. There are so many alternatives out there, there’s no reason we need to be buying GMOs!

One of the best ways we can force GMOs OUT OF HERE is to vote with our dollars!

In order to avoid eating GMOs, you must:

• Buy organic, which is not allowed to use GM inputs
• Buy products that are labeled Non-GMO
• Buy products listed on a Non-GMO Shopping Guide
• Or read labels and avoid the at risk ingredients, such as soy protein isolate, lecithin, high fructose corn syrup, dextrose, maltodextrin, and all corn derivatives, canola and cottonseed oil, etc.

www.NonGMOShoppingGuide.com has a guide which spells out brands and foods to choose and avoid! There is also an app you can get for your phone that will allow you to keep this information with you wherever you go!

If we show retailers we’re serious about taking a stand, then they’ll start stocking different products!

And also, make sure to support your local and state governments by supporting GMO labeling bills. There is a movement right now trying to get all food companies to label genetically modified ingredients in their foods. The problem is, 9 out of 10 people have said they wouldn’t buy it if they knew it contained a GMO. Therefore, the food industry is throwing millions upon millions of dollars at the bills trying to prevent them from being passed. We have a right to know what’s in our food!! Don’t you agree?

Here is an example of a petition that’s currently circulating online. General Mills is changing the names they use in their ingredient lists to hide these GMOs from the general public! It’s absurd!! Click here to urge them to stop doing this!

Have any other reasons you believe that GMOs should be avoided? Write them in the comments below!

Wishing You A Pain Free Day!

 

 

 

 

Not sure what to do next? Here are some steps you can take to help get rid of GMOs!!

 1. Pin this blog post so others can read it too!

 

2. Take Action: Tell General Mills: Stop Hiding High Fructose Corn Syrup

 

3. Here are some articles you can read to familiarize yourself with GMOs and where you can find them!