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GMO Foods,Do Not Believe the Hype Julien Beacham Northwest Jackson IB World Middle School Year 3 Sciences (4B) Ms. S. Evans, Instructor

A genetically modified organism (GMO) is any organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques. The first GMO to be sold was the Flavr Savr tomato in 1994. It was developed by Calgene and it was engineered to have a longer shelf life by inserting an antisense gene that delayed ripening. That GMO was tested more than regular tomatoes for diseases and other harmful things.The use of GMOs and their benefits outweigh the negatives, because there has been little to no proof that shows that GMOs have negative effects. GMOs have gained a bad name in the food market, but that is only due to fear and accusations made without proof. GMOs actually have many benefits according to inside.battelle.org. They listed examples such as biotechnology can be used to make foods more nutritious and also that GMOs can actually the amount of harmful pesticides that farmers use. Also, in the article it states that GMOs are most likely our best bet to adapt to changing global conditions. In another article by the New York Times, an analysis of 76 studies published in February in Scientific Reports by researchers in Pisa, Italy, found that GMOs contain lower amounts of toxins than commonly produced by fungi. However, many continue to believe that GMOs are harmful to eat and have negative effects. In an article done by medicalnewstoday.com, they note that some people believe that GMOs can cause allergic reactions. They also note the risk of cancer as another possible result of eating GMOs. Lastly in the article, they talk about antibacterial resistance as another consequence of eating GMOs. They state that “There is concern that genetic modification, which can boost a crop's resistance to disease or make it more tolerant to herbicides, could affect the ability of people to defend against illness.” On the contrary though, in the same article, they state a rebuttal or bring up the lack of evidence or the very unlikely chance of these consequences happening. When it came to the allergic reaction point, they state “that there have been no reports of allergic effects of any GMO foods currently on the market.” Also, in response to the claim that eating GMOs could cause cancer, they state in rebuttal a finding by the American Cancer Study, in which they found no evidence of this being anywhere near true. Lastly, in response to the claim about antibacterial resistance, they said “There is a small chance that the genes in food can transfer to cells the body or bacteria in the gut.” Also, they state that WHO said that the risk of gene transfer is very unlikely. In closing, I have shown you more than enough reasons of why the benefits of GMOs outweigh the negatives of them. I would like to just ask that those in the food market stop frowning on the title GMOs. Also, i would like for those who are buying the food, that we all do our research, before formulating an opinion, Many of us continue to believe that just because a product has a label that reads “non-GMO” that makes it better. However, as shown in this essay, GMOs are actually not harmful or bad at all. In some cases, they are actually less harmful or better for us.

� References Five Good Reasons to Support GMOs. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://inside.battelle.org/blog-details/five-good-reasons-to-support-gmos Brody, J. E. (2018, April 23). Are G.M.O. Foods Safe? Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/23/well/eat/are-gmo-foods-safe.html Barrell, A. (n.d.). Pros and cons of GMO foods: Health and environment. Retrieved from https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/324576.php