in supermarkets contain genetically modifi ed substances
Also Watch Out For…
whose effects on our health are unknown. As a medical doc-
tor, I can assure you that no one in the medical profession
would attempt to perform experiments on human subjects
CLONING
without their consent. Such conduct is illegal and unethical.
Cloning raises fundamental issues around the ethics
Yet, manufacturers of genetically altered foods are exposing
of eating.
us to one of the largest uncontrolled experiments in modern
Cloning is not the same as genetic engineering.
history.”
Cloning is a reproductive technique that makes a ge-
In terms of nutrition, as early as 1992, scientists at the
netically identical copy of a plant or animal, bypass-
Food and Drug Administration warned that GMOs could
ing normal sexual reproduction. Cloning is used along
cause “undesirable alteration in the level of nutrients” in
with genetic engineering to reproduce genetically
foods. Later, one study found that GMO soybeans repeatedly
modifi ed organisms.
sprayed with herbicides had 12 to 14 percent less essential
Currently, many animals considered commer-
phytonutrient content than conventionally grown soybeans.
cially useful are cloned. The question this raises is,
Here’s why scientists think GMOs are different: when
even if we can do this, should we? Critics say cloning
plants are forced to do something as stressful as having
is unethical, unnecessary and unsafe.
to stay alive while being repeatedly sprayed with a lethal
“Dolly,” a sheep, was the fi rst cloned farm
herbicide, they make tradeoffs during the growth cycle. One
animal. She lived from 1996 to 2003 and remains a
tradeoff might be diminished nutrient content; another might
symbol of what can go wrong. The Center for Food
be in the plant’s ability to produce seed, which would affect
Safety reports that, “More than 90 percent of cloning
productivity. More than 8,000 fi eld trials and numerous stud-
attempts fail, and cloned animals that are born have
ies have shown that herbicide-resistant soybeans are 6 to 11
more health problems and higher mortality rates than
percent less productive than conventional varieties.
sexually reproduced animals.”
Carol Tucker Foreman, director of food policy
at the Consumer Federation of America, adds that
The Politics of Food
cloned animals have higher rates of birth deformities.
The facts about GMOs reveal that they are not more pro-
Cloning creates untold suffering for animals sacrifi ced
ductive than conventional crops and they are not better for
in the process, and the defects in the animals can af-
people. Still, many consumers and farmers believe the adver-
fect the meat and milk products they produce.
tising that says GMOs can feed the world.
Regardless, in September 2008, the FDA ap-
Unfortunately, the public does not get reliable informa-
proved the sale of meat and milk from cloned animals
tion about GMOs. That’s because, even before GMOs went
for human consumption. Since the government does
on the market, government regulators made a political deci-
not require that it be labeled as such, consumers will
sion, not one based on science, that they would treat GMO
not be able to refuse it at the supermarket.
foods the same as natural foods. It also was decided that
The Center for Food Safety, which has sued the Food
no new laws would be passed to oversee this industry. This
and Drug Administration to stop approval of food
ineffective regulatory system is causing even greater con-
from cloned animals, summarizes the issue at
cern now because pending products, such as GMO animals,
CenterForFoodSafety.org/pubs/fact%20sheet.pdf and
fi sh and insects, and plants that are engineered with human
CenterForFoodSafety.org/cloned_animals.cfm.
genes and pharmaceuticals, are coming on the market or
have already contaminated farm fi elds and the food supply.
Animal rights, humane organizations and the Union
Public interest groups and independent scientists have
of Concerned Scientists question many aspects of
documented the problems caused by GMOs, reporting, for
animal cloning. As a starting point,
instance, that GMOs have increased the use of herbicides,
see
aavs.org/images/cloningfactsheet.pdf and ucsusa.
thereby increasing soil and water pollution.
org/news/press_release/scientists-say-cloning.html.
Research has shown that GMO insecticidal corn harms
monarch butterfl ies and other benefi cial insects. Weeds
growing near GMO farms have become ‘superweeds,’ which
don’t die when sprayed with weed killers. GMOs have
spread their unnatural DNA into forests and grasslands and
contaminated the crops grown by organic farmers. Today,
even conventional seeds are laden with GMOs, so that farm-
ers who want to plant conventional crops are unintention-
ally growing GMOs. GMO contamination also has caused
serious legal problems for farmers and had an impact on U.S.
farm exports.
The persistent problems of hunger and poverty in coun-
continued on page 28...
www.MichiganHealthyLiving.com
November 2008
27
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