Corporations, backed by influential lobbyists and western governments, dealt major blows this month against activists who are fighting to limit the cultivation of genetically modified organisms(GMOs). On Feb. 11, the European Commission gave DuPont Pioneer the green light to freely grow insecticidal corn, also known as TC1507. Nineteen of the European Union’s 28 states voted against the cultivation and openly criticized the commission, which, in 2005, concluded the corn was safe to import and consume in Europe, reports Food Freedom News. “The European Parliament, the majority of member states and 80% of citizens do not want GMOs in Europe,” said French activist and politician Jose Bove in a statement. Bove continued saying it was “inconceivable” and “political” of the commission to approve the corn. In response, French politicians are continuing their fight with new legislation that would ban genetically modified corn within the country. U.S. sees similar trend Monsanto, the world’s largest seed company, had similar success when it spent $9 million to promote the passage of the Food Safety Modernization Act, which was signed into law in by President Obama in 2011. The law doesn’t address the food safety risks of pesticide residue or genetically modified crops, but it does tighten water quality levels for smaller farms that typically don’t grow GMO food, according to Food Freedom News. “The 1,200 page act was designed to put small family farms out of business,” said Michael Tabor in a recent Farm-to-Consumer interview. “Most farmers irrigate their fields from nearby streams. Now those streams have to be tested on a weekly basis.”At $87.50 per test, the cost of doing business has now increased by as much as $5,000. Chemical farms growing biotech crops follow more lenient pollution regulations, added Tabor. In a recent standoff, protestors, with signs in hand, converged at the Monsanto headquarters in suburban St. Louis, MO during the company’s annual investors meeting in support of two shareholder resolutions that questioned the level of contamination passed onto non-GMO crops and requested the seed giant end its fight against mandatory labels on foods containing GMO ingredients, reports Reuters. The resolutions failed by considerable margins and 11 protestors were arrested after attempting to disrupt traffic near the Monsanto gates.

What You Should Know About GMO’s

Many consumers know little about Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO’s), but those who don’t shop for organic food are more than likely eating a significant amount of GMO’s in their daily diet. Some experts are saying that GMO’s are present in 80 to 90 percent of the food we eat today. But just what are GMO’s and is it possible that they could contribute to the cause of Alzheimer’s disease? What Are GMO’s? A GMO is an organism that has had its genetic makeup altered by the process of genetic engineering. The result is an alteration of DNA in anything from bacteria to yeast, plants, fish or even mammals. GMO’s occur in genetically modified food. The process is completely different than what is referred to as “hybrid food” where two plant species are crossed. In genetically modified foods the genes of the plant are manipulated to create an entirely new strain. You may be asking why would scientists want to change the genetics of food? The answer is simple, for convenience of the farmers. Genetic engineers have developed plants that have traits such as a potato with an insecticide programmed into its genetic code, or new genetically modified seeds that are said to produce a higher yield, theoretically saving farmers thousands of dollars.   Believe it or not, experts in the food industry report that up to 90 percent of all the non organic food that is grown in the United States comes from genetically engineered seeds and no labels whatsoever are required on the food to inform consumers about it.  There are also no known safety testing that is required to ensure that this food is even safe for human consumption. Examples of non organic food that is commonly genetically engineered include: sugar beets – 96%, soybeans – 95%, corn – 93%, and canola – 93%.  It is estimated that GMO’s are prevalent in 80 percent of the grocery stores in the U.S and only .7% of all crops are grown organically in the U.S.     Research Scientists have noted that much of the information on the internet about these genetically altered foods is not really backed up by any specific scientific research.  One reason there is limited research is that the Agricultural industry has been hesitant in allowing genetically altered seeds to be examined in lab tests. One genetically modified food, a potato engineered to have a naturally occurring insecticide called “lectin” was found in a study by Dr. Pusztai to cause significant health problems in lab tests when fed to rats, such as: intestinal infections, obesity, reduction of the weight in the kidneys, pancreas, liver, lungs, and brain. Animals fed genetically modified corn had difficulty digesting protein.  A 10 year study of rats, mice, salmon and pigs revealed that feeding genetically engineered food to animals caused obesity and significant changes to the organs, such as: the liver, kidneys, pancreas, genitals and more. Genetically modified foods are said to cause an increase in toxins in the body, and in the soil by creating mutated bacteria which could result in problems with future food production. Some sources fear that these mutations are contaminating adjoining soil that is being used to grow organic foods. You have probably heard a lot of GMO’s in the news recently as California’s proposal to enforce labeling to inform the public of food that has been genetically modified. This proposed law was NOT approved, but it has resulted in some good news; the public is more informed about the topic in general.  The law would also make it illegal to label any GMO’s as being “natural foods.”     According to some polls that were recently taken, 95 percent of consumers surveyed wanted the mandatory labeling of all food-including organic food, to be enforced. As many as 50 other countries have implemented laws about labeling foods that have been genetically processed, yet the food industry in the U.S. spent millions of dollars making sure the proposition did not pass. Why do they want to keep the public in the United States from knowing how our food is processed? How Could GMO’s affect Alzheimer’s disease?  Although more conclusive evidence is required to prove that GMO’s are a contributing factor in Alzheimer’s disease, recent research indicates there may be a correlation between Alzheimer’s and genetically modified food. According to the Atlantic Media.com, “Chinese researchers have found small pieces of rice ribonucleic acid (RNA) in the blood and organs of humans who eat rice.”  The article went on to say, “The Nanjing University-based team showed that this genetic material will bind to receptors in human liver cells and influence the uptake of cholesterol from the blood.” The type of RNA in question is called microRNA (abbreviated to miRNA) due to its small size. MiRNAs have been studied extensively since their discovery ten years ago, and have been implicated as players in several human diseases including cancer, Alzheimer’s, and diabetes. Surse :  http://www.nationofchange.org/despite-majority-opposition-gmo-corn-gets-green-light-europe-1392738698 http://theadplan.com/alzheimersdietblog/foods-to-avoid/what-you-should-know-about-gmos/