Do you have any scientific response to the claim that biotech crops are increasing the number of people experiencing celiacs disease? httprt.comusagmoglutensensitivitytrigger343

Expert response from Community Manager

Moderator for GMOAnswers.com

Thursday, 04/12/2014 23:34

Several experts have discussed claims that GM crops contribute to gluten-related health issues. The article you mention in your question suggests that “[g]enetically modified foods such as soy and corn may be responsible for a number of gluten-related maladies including intestinal disorders now plaguing 18 million Americans.”

In her article at Genetic Literacy Project, Layla Katiraee explains:

“The Internet is exploding with stories about the supposed dangerous link between gluten allergies and genetically modified foods. Merely typing in “GMO and Gluten” into Google yields over 200,000 mentions, with most of those generated by various “green” and anti-GMO groups.

“The recent flurry of stories can be traced to an obscure essay, “Glyphosate, pathways to modern diseases II: Celiac sprue and gluten intolerance,” published last fall in a Slovakian ‘pay for play’ journal by two scientists—MIT computer researcher Stephanie Seneff and Anthony Samsel, who identifies himself as an “independent scientist and consultant”. Neither has any known expertise in genetics or toxicology. They speculated that trace exposures to the common herbicide glyphosate, which is used in conjunction with some GMOs, could account for what they claim is a rise in celiac disease and gluten intolerance.”

Dr. Peter Olins, co-founder of UltimateGlutenFree.com, provides an in-depth discussion of the claims in the study by Seneff and Samsel in this article. Dr. Steve Savage also addresses the data used to support the study by Seneff and Samsel in this post.

If you have any additional questions, please ask.