Are You Eating Franken Food? What You Need To Know About GMO or Genetically Modified Food
Genetically modified foods (GMO's) or Franken food, more aptly, are foods that have never ever been seen on this planet and yet 80 to 90% of the foods consumed by uneducated Americans are genetically engineered or genetically contaminated. Chemically engineered organisms are now called organisms, not plants. They are not animals either. They are neither. From a molecular standpoint, scientists call these new creations’ proteins “funny” proteins or funny sugars. The fact is, there is nothing funny about these proteins or sugars. These proteins and sugars have odd looking bonds and wierd looking connections to other elements.
The big four are corn, soy, canola and wheat. Your body doesn't know what to do with these funny proteins or funny sugars (this is from an article called Ignorance Breeds Autism). To read the full article go to www.gobeyondorganic.com and type GMO in the search field. You can also sign up for the free newsletter which is very good.
So how do you know if your fruits and vegetables are genetically modified? The PLU codes (PLU-stands for price look up) on produce are based on four digit numbers for conventional produce, to which an extra digit is added to indicate organic or GM status. If the number is five digits beginning with a nine, then the item is organic. If the number is 5 digits beginning with an eight then it is a genetically modified variety. For example, the code for bananas is 4011. If the sticker on the banana bunch reads 94011, then they are organic bananas. If the sticker reads 84011, then the bananas are genetically modified. If the PLU is simply 4011 they are conventional (not genetically modified but may be grown with pesticides*) As of now there is no genetically modified meat however most animals are fed GMO products and are injected with hormones and fed antibiotics.
You should buy meat, dairy and eggs that are as close to natural as possible. The label should specifically state that the animal has not been given antibiotics or hormones. Just because it says "all natural" or "minimally processed" does not mean anything really. It needs to be stated on the label or carton (for dairy and eggs) that no hormones or antibiotics were used. You can buy organic cage free eggs.
We as consumers need to speak out. You can go to http://www.naturalnews.com/024865_GMO_GMOs_food.html to see how you as a consumer can help to fight against GMO food. It gives some very practical advice.
*See my post on Pesticides in Food; The Dirty Dozen
