GMO--Genetically Modified Organism or Getting Massively Obese?

Now that genetically modified organism (GMO) foods have been busted as far as the false promise that they are the way to end world hunger (they don’t increase yields or create more nutritious crops) and instead are basically Roundup® on a plate, a quiet shift has taken place that ensures these creepy crops can generate enormous profits.

Because they’ve found their niche--in processed and junk foods!

But alas, the truth is starting to trickle out about these lab monsters, proving once again that it’s not nice to fool Mother Nature.

Here’s the scoop:

Better ingredients, better junk food
Currently, the most widely-produced GMO crops in the US are corn, soy, and wheat.

But it’s not likely that you will see GMO ears of corn in the produce section of your local grocery store.  Instead, GMO corn is primarily used to make high fructose corn syrup—which is in virtually every processed food on the planet, and especially in soda.

GMO corn and wheat are used in snack chips and crackers.

Plus GMO corn and soy are used to make corn oil and soybean oil—the two most common types of oils used in processed foods.

Keep in mind there are no labeling requirements for GMO ingredients—so for instance what you’ll see on a bag of Fritos® is merely “corn, corn oil and salt.”

On a bottle of Heinz® Ketchup the label will show only: Tomato concentrate from red ripe tomatoes, distilled vinegar, high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, salt, spice, onion powder and natural flavoring.

GMO—Getting Massively Obese?
It remains largely unknown what the long-term health effects of GMO crops will be.

Since GMOs are created by splicing DNA between unrelated species, crossing entire kingdoms of organisms (plant and animal, including viruses and bacteria--yuck), who knows what the foreign proteins from these lab creations will do to our bodies in the long run?

Personally, I’d feel safer eating an old shoe.

But one thing studies are showing is that GMO crops contribute to weight gain, over and above that which would be expected from eating a lot of processed and junk food.

In one study examining the potential health effects of GMOs, researchers from Norway observed two groups of rats--one group was given food made with GMO corn and the other was given food made with conventional corn.

Over the course of 90 days, the rats eating the GMO corn diet grew fatter and consumed more food than the rats on the non-GMO diet.

They also observed that rats got fatter when they ate fish that had been raised on GMO corn--so there's a chain reaction effect!

They also tried the experiment on salmon and saw similar results--fish eating GMO corn grew faster and ate more than fish eating non-GMO corn.

Plus the salmon eating the GMO corn had a reduced ability to digest proteins and experienced immune system changes that didn't occur in the non-GMO-fed fish.

Now, I know people are not rats and fish, but look around you—last I checked, our obesity rate is going up, not down, plus autoimmune diseases and food sensitivities are exploding.

I don’t think that’s a coincidence.

Minimize your exposure!
Here’s how you can help minimize your exposure to GMO dangers:

Read labels
To make sure any fresh produce you buy is not GMO, look at the codes on the little stickers:

• 4-digit code:  Traditionally grown (non-GMO) produce
• 5-digit code:  Look at the first number: 

• If it starts with a 9, it's organic (like the picture above shows)
• If it starts with an 8, it's a GMO

Avoid processed foods
Unless a packaged food is 100 percent organic, you should assume it has GMO ingredients.

The answer here is easy—stick to real foods and avoid the packaged stuff as much as possible.

Buy organic whenever you can
Organic foods by definition do not contain GMO ingredients, so if you want snack chips, cereals or other packaged foods, at least opt for organic brands.

Also try to buy as much organic meat, milk and produce as possible—to not only minimize your exposure to GMOs but also hormones, antibiotics, pesticides, and herbicides.  

If you're on a tight budget and can't afford to go 100 percent organic, here is a good rule of thumb:  If you are going to be eating the entire food, skin included (like with grapes, peppers or lettuce), strive to buy organic.  If you will be peeling the food (such as with bananas, avocado or oranges) conventional is probably OK.

Also, check out local farmer’s markets and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) programs in your area.

Help your gut bacteria recover
Unless you’ve been diligent about eating 100 percent organic food, chances are excellent your gut bacteria may have already taken a harmful hit from GMOs because of the glyphosate (Roundup®) that they are sprayed with destroys your friendly flora.

In addition to a healthy diet of real foods, supplementation with a top-quality probiotic can help your gut bacteria bounce back and provide their sickness and disease-fighting protection.  

Remember YOU alone are responsible for your health--not biotech companies and food companies.

Don't offer yourself up as a guinea pig, jeopardizing your health while you help to grow their bottom lines.

When it comes to real health, natural is always best.