Effects of GMOs on Children
Excerpted
from Jeffrey M. Smith’s Genetic Roulette:
The Documented Health Risks of
Genetically Engineered Foods
“Swapping genes between organisms can produce unknown toxic
effects and allergies that are most likely to affect children.”13 —Vyvyan
Howard, expert in infant toxico-pathology at Liverpool University Hospital,
United Kingdom
Changes in nutrition have a greater impact on the structure
and functioning of young, fast-growing bodies. More of the food is converted to
build organs and tissues, whereas adults convert more to energy and store this
as fat.
The UK Royal Society said that genetic modification “could
lead to unpredicted harmful changes in the nutritional state of foods” and
recommended that potential health effects of GM foods be rigorously researched
before being fed to pregnant or breast-feeding women and babies.”14
Epidemiologist Eric Brunner said that “small changes to the nutritional content
might have effects on infant bowel function.”15
Children are more susceptible
to problems
Children are three to four times more prone to allergies
than adults and “are at highest risk of death from food allergy.” 16 Infants
below two years old have the highest incidence of reactions, especially to new
allergens encountered in the diet. Even tiny amounts of allergens can sometimes
cause reactions. One reason for this sensitivity, according to the EPA, is that
“An immature gut or permeable mucosal epithelium is more likely to allow a
higher degree of macromolecular transport and access to the immune system than
the intact barrier of a normal mature gut. . . . The immune system must also be
of sufficient maturity. . . . Both systems appear to be functioning optimally
by age three to five.”17
According to the Royal Society of Canada, “The potentially
widespread use of GM food products as food additives and staple foods,
including use in baby foods, may lead to earlier introduction of these novel
proteins to susceptible infants either directly or via the presence of the maternally
ingested proteins in breast milk.”18
Children can react to much smaller doses of toxins than
adults. Exposure to hormones or endocrine disruptors may also severely affect
normal development. And children who are prone to infections may be severely impacted
if antibiotics lose their effectiveness due to antibiotic-resistant genes in GM
food and the overuse of antibiotics in rbGH treated cows.
Children have a high
exposure to GMOs
Children consume a large amount of products that may be
genetically engineered. Their diet consists of a higher percentage of corn
compared to adults, and allergic children often rely on corn as a source of
protein. Cornstarch as a talc substitute on children’s skin may also expose
them via inhalation. Infants are sometimes reared on soy infant formula. Among
the potential side effects are changes in soy’s natural estrogen mimickers,
which may influence sexual development.
____________________
[information below from
Jeffrey Smith’s “Removing Junk Foods (and GMOs) Improved Children’s Behavior”]
Best Prevention:
Eliminate Junk Foods
Before the Appleton Wisconsin high school replaced their
cafeteria’s processed foods with wholesome, nutritious food, the school was
described as out-of-control. There were weapons violations, student disruptions,
and a full-time police officer on duty. After the change in school meals, the
students were calm, focused, and orderly. There were no more weapons
violations, no suicide, expulsions, dropouts, or drug violations. The new diet
and improved behavior has lasted for years, and now other schools are changing
their meal programs with similar results.
Mice react to junk food and genetically
modified foods
Years
ago, a science class at Appleton found support for their new diet by conducting
a cruel and unusual experiment with three mice. They fed them the junk food
that kids in other high schools eat everyday. The mice’s behavior was
completely different than the three mice in the neighboring cage, who were fed
nutritious whole foods. They slept during the day inside their cardboard tube,
played with each other, and acted very mouse-like. The junk food mice, on the
other hand, destroyed their cardboard tube, were no longer nocturnal, stopped
playing with each other, fought often, and two mice eventually killed the third
and ate it. After the three month experiment, the students rehabilitated the
two surviving junk food mice with a diet of whole foods. After about three
weeks, the mice came around.
Sister
Luigi Frigo repeats this experiment every year in her second grade class in
Cudahy, Wisconsin, but mercifully, for only four days. Even on the first day of
junk food, the mice’ behavior “changes drastically:” they become lazy,
antisocial, and nervous. And it still takes the mice about two to three weeks
on unprocessed foods to return to normal. One year, the second graders tried to
do the experiment again a few months later with the same mice, but this time
the animals refused to eat the junk food.
Across
the ocean in Holland, a student fed one group of mice genetically modified (GM)
corn and soy, and another group the non-GM variety. The GM mice stopped playing
with each other and withdrew into their own parts of the cage. When the student
tried to pick them up, unlike their well-behaved neighbors, the GM mice scampered
around in apparent fear and tried to climb the walls. One mouse in the GM group
was found dead at the end of the experiment.
And
a senior scientist at the Russian National Academy of Sciences presented
evidence at the 14th European Congress of Psychiatry
that genetically modified soybeans fed to rats caused an increase in “Anxiety and Aggression.”
It’s
interesting to note that the junk food fed to the mice in the Wisconsin
experiments also contained genetically modified ingredients. And although the
Appleton school lunch program did not specifically attempt to remove GM foods,
it happened anyway. That’s because GM foods such as soy and corn and their
derivatives are largely found in processed foods. So when the school switched
to unprocessed alternatives, almost all ingredients derived from GM crops were
taken out automatically.
Protect Yourself & Your Family
GM
ingredients are much more common in processed foods, hidden in ingredients like
lecithin and sweeteners. These components are deteriorating the health of our
families, our crops and animals, and our ecosystems. Instead, reach for wholesome, nutritious foods to improve
overall health, balance, and behavior.
For
recipe ideas with fresh, wholesome ingredients, visit DeliciousLivingMag.com
For
ideas on how to get kids involved in a healthy, nutritious diet, watch for our
article in the Burlingame Mother’s Club newsletter
this spring!
