ARTICLE: Is Organic Really Better? 4 Food Myths Debunked By Science
The following is an article on Futurism clearing the air on a variety of food myths, including ones about GMOs.
For some consumers, the mere act of shopping at the supermarket can be full of overwhelming decisions. After extended debate in the grocery aisle, after attempts to parse through the misleading packaging, you might end up choosing the organic tomatoes over the conventional ones. They’re twice the price, so they’ve got to be better, right?
But it’s not so simple. Celebrities, anti-GMO groups, and food trends have spread misleading information and myths about the food we chose to eat every day. Do foods labeled “organic” actually make us healthier? Are they free of pesticides? Should we be afraid of pesticides in the first place?
Myth 3: GMOs Are Dangerous to Eat
The ability to alter the genetic makeup of a crop has been the topic of heated debate for decades. Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) — crops with genomes that have been augmented with DNA from other organisms — have permanently changed the agricultural industry. Scientists have created genetically engineered (GE) varieties of crops containing genes that protect them from pests, weeds, or even certain plant viruses.
Even though the first GMOs hit the market 23 years ago, the debate surrounding their safety still rages, fueled by misinformation about the impact they have on health.
Genetically engineering crops allows scientists to transfer desirable traits individually — a much more efficient process than cross-breeding, a less high-tech method that may also transfer a number of traits that may pose a threat to the newly created plant. Cross-breeding also limits the palette of new traits to traits that are already present in either the male or female plant; genetic engineering, on the other hand, allows for scientists to use foreign but desirable traits.
GMOs are also not limited to “unnatural,” synthetically engineered uses — they can take advantage of natural processes as well. For instance, the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) was discovered to be a naturally-occurring insecticide more than 100 years ago. Recently, bioengineers have modified the genes of crops such as corn to express the insecticidal protein present in this natural microorganism, foregoing the need to physically spray crops with it separately. As a result, the crop itself is toxic to insects, and neighboring fields and ecosystems are largely unaffected.
Please visit the Futurism website to read about all four myths, including more mythbusting on GMOs.
