First-Ever
Lifetime Feeding Study Finds Genetically Engineered Corn Causes Massive
Tumors, Organ Damage, and Early Death
GMO
CORN, MONSANTO'S "ROUND UP READY" CORN HAS BEEN PROVEN IN FRENCH RESEARCH
TO CAUSE CANCER, LOTS OF IT.
The first-ever lifetime
feeding study1
evaluating the health risks of genetically engineered foods was published online
on September 19, and the results are troubling, to say the least. This new study
joins a list of over 30
other animal studies showing toxic or allergenic problems with genetically
engineered foods.
The
study, published in the peer-reviewed journal Food and Chemical Toxicology,
found that rats fed a type of genetically engineered corn that is prevalent in
the US food supply for two years developed massive mammary tumors, kidney and
liver damage, and other serious health problems.
The
research was considered so "hot" that the work was done under strict secrecy.
According
to a French article in Le Nouvel Observateur,2
the researchers used encrypted emails, phone conversations were banned, and they
even launched a decoy study to prevent sabotage!
According
to the authors:
"The
health effects of a Roundup-tolerant genetically modified maize (from 11% in the
diet), cultivated with or without Roundup, and Roundup alone (from 0.1ppb in water),
were studied 2 years in rats. [Editors note: this level of Roundup is permitted
in drinking water and GE crops in the US]
In
females, all treated groups died 2-3 times more than controls, and more rapidly.
This difference was visible in 3 male groups fed GMOs.
All
results were hormone and sex dependent, and the pathological profiles were comparable.
Females developed large mammary tumors almost always more often than and before
controls, the pituitary was the second most disabled organ; the sex hormonal balance
was modified by GMO and Roundup treatments.
In
treated males, liver congestions and necrosis were 2.5-5.5 times higher... Marked
and severe kidney nephropathies were also generally 1.3-2.3 greater. Males presented
4 times more large palpable tumors than controls, which occurred up to 600 days
earlier.
Biochemistry
data confirmed very significant kidney chronic deficiencies; for all treatments
and both sexes, 76% of the altered parameters were kidney related. These results
can be explained by the non linear endocrine-disrupting effects of Roundup, but
also by the overexpression of the transgene in the GMO and its metabolic consequences."
Folks,
if this doesn't get your attention, nothing will.
Does
10 percent or more of your diet consist of genetically engineered (GE) ingredients?
At present, you can't know for sure, since GE foods are not labeled in the US.
But chances are, if you eat processed foods, your diet is chock full of genetically
engineered ingredients you didn't even know about.
The
study in question includes photos and graphs. I highly recommend taking the time
to actually read through this remarkable study,3
and look at the documented evidence. They really are not exaggerating when they
say it caused massive tumors... They are huge! Some of the tumors weighed in at
25 percent of the rat's total body weight. This is the most current and best evidence
to date of the toxic effects of GE foods.
There
are two videos in this playlist:
Why
Aren't Americans Dropping Like Flies?
Rats
only live a few years. Humans live around 80 years, so we will notice these effects
in animals long before we see them in humans. The gigantic human lab experiment
is only about 10 years old, so we are likely decades away from tabulating the
human casualties. This is some of the strongest evidence to date that we need
to exercise the precautionary principle ASAP and avoid these foods. Naturally,
the study is already under heavy fire. According to Monsanto spokesman Thomas
Helscher:4
"Numerous
peer-reviewed scientific studies performed on biotech crops to date, including
more than a hundred feeding studies, have continuously confirmed their safety,
as reflected in the respective safety assessments by regulatory authorities around
the world."
However,
it's critical to understand that the longest feeding study was a mere 90 days
long – a far cry from two years! In the featured study, the true onslaught of
diseases really set in during the 13th month of the experiment, although
tumors and severe liver and kidney damage did emerge as early as four months in
males, and seven months for females.
Is
it any wonder then that feeding studies lasting just a few weeks or even three
months have failed to corroborate these horrific findings? Reuters quotes Mark
Tester, a research professor at the Australian Centre for Plant Functional Genomics
at the University of Adelaide as saying:5
"If
the effects are as big as purported, and if the work really is relevant to humans,
why aren't the North Americans dropping like flies? GM has been in the food chain
for over a decade over there – and longevity continues to increase inexorably."
Although
there are clearly many variables that contribute to cancer, GE foods are a new
candidate as they have been in our food supply for over a decade. Interestingly,
cancer was just declared as having overtaken heart disease as the number one killer
among American Hispanics,6
and according to 2009 CDC statistics it's now also the leading killer in 18 states.
I
believe it is crucial that we implement the precautionary principle as rapidly
as possible as this study confirms it is difficult to predict precisely what GE
foods might do to the youths of today, as many are eating a fair amount of GE
ingredients practically from day one. (Yes, some infant
formulas actually contain GE ingredients!) What will their health
be 10 or 20 years from now? Most adults simply haven't been eating GE foods long
enough to tell what the real ramifications are.
Do
we really wait 50 years to see what GE foods will do to the human health
and lifespan?
GE
Foods' Connection to Breast Cancer
This
newest study provides clear and convincing evidence that GE agriculture is contributing
to cancer in exposed populations. The timing of this new study – two weeks before
Breast Cancer Awareness Month (BCAM) – is therefore all the more fitting, as GreenMedInfo.com
recently commented on this study:7
"...in
female animals, 93 percent of the tumors found were in the mammary glands. They
also '...observed a strikingly marked induction of mammary tumors by R[oundup]
alone ...even at the very lowest dose administered.'"
Generational
gene transfer is yet another issue. A frequent claim has been that new genes introduced
in GE foods are harmless, as they would theoretically be broken up in the intestines.
But researchers have now discovered that genes can be transferred through the
intestinal wall into your blood. GE crop genes have been found in sufficiently
large amounts in human blood, muscle tissue and liver to be identified.8
And the biological impact – especially the generational impact – of this gene
transfer is completely unknown, and cannot be known for at least a human generation
or two. Unless we take notice of the results from animal feeding studies, that
is...
10-Year
Feeding Study ALSO Found GE Foods Cause Severe Health Problems
This
news comes on the heels of another experimental animal feeding study carried out
over a 10-year period in Norway. It was published earlier this summer, and in
this study, genetically engineered (GE) corn and corn-based products were found
to cause obesity, and alter the function of the digestive system and major organs,
including the liver, kidneys, pancreas, and genitals.9
Animals fed genetically engineered Bt corn ate more, got fatter, and were less
able to digest proteins due to alterations in the micro-structure of their intestines.
They also suffered immune system alterations.
The
impaired ability to digest proteins may be of particular concern as this can have
far-reaching implications for human health. If your body cannot digest proteins,
your body will be less able to produce amino acids, which are necessary building
blocks for proper cell growth and function.
Monsanto's
GE Corn is Already Losing its Effectiveness, Giving Rise to Superbugs and Superweeds
Related
news also sheds light on the massive devastation brought on the environment by
GE crops, and how soil destruction ends up affecting your health by decimating
the nutrient content in the foods you eat.
In
response to a scientific study that determined Western corn rootworms on two Illinois
farms had developed resistance to Monsanto's YieldGard corn, the US Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) made an admission about genetically engineered crops:
Yes, there is "mounting evidence" that Monsanto's insecticide-fighting corn is
losing its effectiveness in the Midwest. Last year, resistant rootworms infested
corn fields in Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota and Nebraska.
"The
agency's latest statement on rootworm resistance comes a year after the problem
was first documented and just as U.S. corn yields are forecast to be the lowest
in 17 years amid drought in the Corn Belt. Corn is St. Louis-based Monsanto's
biggest business line, accounting for $4.81 billion of sales, or 41 percent of
total revenue, in its 2011 fiscal year.
...The
EPA's focus is Monsanto's YieldGard corn, which is engineered to produce the Cry3Bb1
protein from Bacillus thuringiensis, or Bt, a natural insecticide.
The
EPA expects to get data on the performance of YieldGard from Monsanto within two
months and complete its analysis by year-end the agency said in its statement,
which was e-mailed by Stacy Kika, an EPA spokeswoman. The evaluation will include
a review of scientific studies, it said.
...The
agency may implement 'strategies' to reduce the threat of resistance to Cry3Bb1,
it said. Kika said she couldn't comment on what those strategies may include."
Considering
the fact that YieldGard was introduced less than a decade ago, in 2003, this could
be very bad news for farmers growing genetically engineered Bt crops everywhere.
It really is just a matter of time before resistance sets in, and it doesn't take
very long. Naturally, Monsanto disagrees – more data is needed to prove their
insecticide-fighting corn is failing, the biotech giant claims.
Roundup-Ready
Crops Pose Even Greater Resistance Problem
But
YieldGard is just one of Monsanto's problems. Roundup-Ready crops are creating
super-resistant weeds that no longer respond to the herbicide. In fact, the problem
is so bad that 20 million acres of cotton, soybean and corn have already been
invaded by Roundup-resistant weeds.11
To
combat the problem, the EPA requires farmers to plant non-modified corn next to
their Bt corn, in the hopes that unexposed bugs will mate with the resistant rootworms
and create a new generation of hybrids that are again susceptible to the Bt toxin.
However,
one has to wonder whether or not it might also work the other way around. The
hybrids may just as well incorporate the resistance... Still, that's the prevailing
logic the EPA is running with at the moment.
Unfortunately,
resistant weeds are not the only, or the worst, side effect of Roundup-Ready crops,
genetically engineered to withstand otherwise lethal doses of glyphosate – the
active ingredient in Roundup.
Mounting
evidence tells us glyphosate itself may be far more dangerous than anyone ever
suspected... Earlier this month, Purdue scientist Dr. Don Huber again spoke out
about "the woes of GMO's" and the inherent dangers of glyphosate in an article
published by GM Watch.12
"Corn
used to be the healthiest plant you could grow. Now, multiple diseases, pests,
and weak plants are the common denominator of 'modern' hybrids," he writes.
"Over
three decades ago we started the shift to a monochemical glyphosate herbicide
program that was soon accompanied by glyphosate- and insect-resistant genetically
engineered crops.
These
two changes in agricultural practices – the excessive application of a strong
essential mineral chelating, endocrine-disrupting chemical for weed control and
the genetically engineered production of new toxins in our food crops – was accompanied
by abandonment of years of scientific research based on the scientific precautionary
principle. We substituted a philosophical 'substantially equivalent,' a new term
coined to avoid accountability for the lack of understanding of consequences of
our new activities, for science."
The
Environmental and Human Health Hazards of Glyphosate
I
previously interviewed Dr. Huber about the dangers of glyphosate,
and if you missed it, I highly recommend taking the time to listen to it now.
It is indeed sobering, as this broad-spectrum herbicide adds its own health risks
to an already stacked deck of health hazards related to genetically engineered
foods, whether it be Bt- or Roundup-Ready.
The
problem stems from the way glyphosate persists in and alters the soil, which has
wide-ranging ramifications. As a potent organic phosphate chelator, glyphosate
immobilizes micronutrients that are essential for normal physiological functions
not only in soils, but also in growing plants and in those who eat the plants,
namely animals and humans.
The
nutritional efficiency of genetically engineered (GE) plants is profoundly compromised.
Far from helping improve nutrition, micronutrients such as iron, manganese and
zinc can be reduced by as much as 80-90 percent in GE plants! Glyphosate also
decimates beneficial microorganisms essential for proper plant function and high
quality nutrition, while promoting the proliferation of disease-causing pathogens.
"Glyphosate
is a very powerful selective antibiotic that kills beneficial, but not pathogenic,
microorganisms in the soil and intestine at very low residual levels in food,"
Dr. Huber writes.13
"Residue levels permitted in food are 40 to 800 times the antibiotic threshold
and concentrations shown in clinical studies to damage mammalian tissues.
By
genetically engineering plants with the insertion of certain foreign bacterial
genes, glyphosate can be applied directly to crop plants without killing them.
There is nothing in the genetic engineering technology that does anything to the
glyphosate that is applied to the plant – and that accumulates in it. Both the
toxic proteins produced by the foreign bacterial genes and the glyphosate chemical
are now present in the feed and food produced for animal and human consumption.
Genetic
engineering has introduced other genes for insect resistance where additional
toxic proteins accumulate in plant tissues consumed by animals and man. These
toxins are found in the blood and readily transferred across the placenta to developing
babies in the womb.
Genetic
engineering is more like a virus infection than a normal breeding process and
results in a multitude of mutations and epigenetic effects as genetic integrity
in the plant is disrupted.
These
'foreign' bacterial genes are highly promiscuous and easily transferred by wind
or insects to other plants; to soil microorganisms during plant residue decomposition,
or to intestinal microflora during food digestion where they continue to direct
the production of toxins and allergenic proteins. Epigenetic effects are
manifest in GMO plants as a yield drag, poor nutrient efficiency, increased disease,
and reduced stress tolerance."
As
Dr. Huber warns, scientific studies demonstrate that the assumptions about genetically
engineered crops relied upon by the biotech industry and ignorant regulators are
invalid. The truth of the matter can be clearly seen in the following
effects:
"Future
historians may well look back upon our time and write, not about how many pounds
of pesticide we did or didn't apply, but by how willing we are to sacrifice our
children and future generations for this massive genetic engineering experiment
that is based on flawed science and failed promises just to benefit the bottom
line of a commercial enterprise."
The
saddest part about the GE debacle is that there's no real need to take the wild
risks we're currently taking with our food supply and our future. For years, genetically
modified crops have been sold as the solution for feeding the world. But mounting
evidence shows the way to feed seven billion plus inhabitants on this planet is
by increasing biodiversity and sustainable agriculture.
In
fact, the most authoritative evaluation of agriculture, the International
Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development,14determined that the genetically engineered foods have nothing to offer the
goals of reducing hunger and poverty, improving nutrition, health and rural livelihoods,
and facilitating social and environmental sustainability.
The
report was a three-year collaborative effort with 900 participants and 110 countries,
and was co-sponsored by all the majors, e.g. the World Bank, FAO, UNESCO, WHO.
In reality, genetic engineering reduce yields,15
increase farmers' dependence on multinationals, reduce biodiversity, increase
herbicide use, and take money away from more successful and appropriate farming
methods.
Hans
Johr, a high-ranking executive at the Nestle Company recently went on the record
saying GE food is not only unnecessary, but that the food industry would be better
off employing other techniques.
"Jonathan
Foley, director of the Institute on the Environment at the University of Minnesota
and co-author of a study... on water management and yield production, agrees with
Johr that GMOs are not the answer to food security. 'I don't think GMOs have contributed,
or will likely contribute much, to food security. Most of the GMO traits are focused
on pest and herbicide resistance, which is arguably a good thing, but are not
improving yield characteristics all that much (at least compared to conventional
breeding, or better yet, marker-assisted breeding).
Furthermore,
there are other approaches to managing pests and weeds that would be equally (or
more) effective, like not planting such large monocultures in the first place...'
Johr also went one step further, and addressed the issue of labeling. 'We [Nestle]
have a very simple way of looking at GM: listen to what the consumer wants. If
they don't want it in products, you don't put it in them...'"
Passing
Prop 37 is Key to Expanding Sustainable Agriculture in North America
Despite
Johr's stated view, Nestle has donated nearly $1.17 million to the "No on 37 Coalition,"
which is working to prevent the labelling of GE foods in California. So much for
listening to consumers...
Although
many organic consumers and natural health activists already understand the importance
of Proposition
37, the California Right to Know Genetically Engineered Foods Act, it cannot
be overemphasized that winning the battle over Prop 37 is perhaps the
most important food fight Americans – not just Californians – have faced so far.
Once food manufacturers can no longer label or market GE-tainted foods as "natural"
or "all-natural," and once all GE ingredients are clearly marked, millions of
consumers will demand non-GE alternatives, and organic and non-GE food sales will
dramatically increase.
But
in order to win this fight for the right to know what's in our food, we need your
help, as the biotech industry will surely outspend us by 100 to 1, if not more,
for their propaganda.
Please
remember, the failure or success of this ballot initiative is wholly dependent
on your support and funding! There are no major industry pocketsfunding this endeavor,
which was created by a California grandmother. In order to have a chance against
the deep pockets of Big Biotech and transnational food corporations, it needs
donations from average citizens. So please, if you have the ability, I strongly
encourage you to make a donation to this cause.
It's
important to realize that getting this law passed in California would have the
same overall effect as a national law, as large companies are not likely going
to label their products as genetically engineered when sold in California (the
8th largest economy in the world), but not when sold in other states. Doing so
would be a costly PR disaster. So please, I urge you to get involved and help
in any way you can, regardless of what state you live in.
Whether
you live in California or not, please donate money to this historic effort through
the Organic Consumers Fund.
If you
live in California and want to get involved, please contact CARightToKnow.org.
They will go through all volunteer requests to put you into a position that is
suitable for you, based on your stated interests and location.
No
matter where you live, please help spread the word in your personal networks,
on Facebook, and Twitter. For help with the messaging, please see CARightToKnow.org.
Talk
to organic producers and stores and ask them to actively support the California
Ballot. It may be the only chance we have to label genetically engineered foods.
For
timely updates, please join the Organic Consumers Association on Facebook,
or follow them on