I've been hearing that GMO foods are bad and that they should be labeled on foods. However, I don't understand how GMO foods are bad. The closest to them being an issue is that certain modified crops produce their own chemicals that are used to deter bugs, which allows farmers to use less pesticides. However, if there's no proof that this food is harmful for humans, why are there GMO food bans or labeling requirements? Maybe I'm missing some information?
They aren't bad, if anything, they are beneficial. But the growers are fighting 2000 years of eating normally grown foods, in a highly religious community. And although the Church may like plastic, they dislike the idea of us humble humans making our own food, without the deity's proper soil. I myself don't mind GM crops, sure, it's slightly creepy how it is grown, but I find bio-weapons even creepier.
As far as I know, the biggest issue with genetically engineered food is that we still lack sufficient long-term studies to back up whether they're really inoffensive or not. Technically, you just use certain genes from plants with a specific ability in other plants so that you get a plant with maximal growth, production and resistance. Nothing dangerous, per se, but as long as we don't know if there are any health issues or environmental problems (invasiveness etc.), we shouldn't spread those plants around the world.
As far as I know, the biggest issue with genetically engineered food is that we still lack sufficient long-term studies to back up whether they're really inoffensive or not.
It's similar to how in the 50s and 60s, kids were allowed to play with loose mercury and lead-based toys for fun.
I support GM food but caution has to be taken. Example:
Chinese researchers have found small pieces of rice ribonucleic acid (RNA) in the blood and organs of humans who eat rice. 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. They usually function by turning down or shutting down certain genes. The Chinese research provides the first in vivo example of ingested plant miRNA surviving digestion and influencing human cell function in this way.
