Corn Vs Corn

Corn has long been associated with Thanksgiving and the Native Americans. It lent itself to easy storage and preservation and was consumed in many different forms at nearly every meal. The Native Americans utilized the leftover husks and cobs to make mats, baskets, and even darts that were burned as fuel. Its usefulness as a crop was shared with early European settlers. Today its influence is obvious since the United States uses more farm land to grow corn than any other crop. The Native Americans had a lot to credit to corn, but today perhaps Thanksgiving meals should omit corn.

We have learned to use corn in even more diverse ways than those who originally taught us. Corn in some form is nearly inescapable. It is not only the origin of corn

Michael Pollan discussed this issue in an interview with Frontline. He stated that corn, given enough time will actually kill the cows that are unable to properly digest it. It also makes cows more susceptible to seemingly unrelated illnesses prior to slaughter and increases the need to administer antibiotics. It is common knowledge that the use of antibiotics in farm animals increases the resistance of pathogens, creating a dangerous scenario for modern society. The draw for feeding cows corn comes from how cheaply they can be fed and that they grow much more rapidly. In the past, a cow took about 4 years to reach slaughter size, but with corn it can be done in only 14 months. According to Scientific American cows that are raised on corn, rather than grass, make meat that is higher in calories and contains more omega-6 fatty acids and less omega-3 fatty acids—“a dangerous ratio that has been linked to heart disease”. Corn is also fed to our poultry and our plump Thanksgiving turkeys are on that list.

If a person does not want to eat corn whether in the form of corn bread stuffing, sweet corn, tamales or corn casseroles they might be stuck eating it anyway because it is hidden in so many other foods. Perhaps our Thanksgiving meals should omit corn to start an official boycott on

There is a lot of debate over whether or not GMO foods are bad for us but plenty of research suggests it is. The International Journal of Biological Sciences published a study which found that genetically modified corn causes liver and kidney failure. In 2012, Moms Across America published a report on their blog which caused heated debate about GMO products. The 2012 Nutritional Analysis - Comparison of GMO Corn versus Non-GMO Corn was conducted by an independent, outsourced, major food company. According to the analysis, the GMO corn contains a similar amount of nutrients as non-GMO corn, but has elements absent from traditional corn, including chlorides, formaldehyde and glyphosate, and in harmful quantities. There is more than enough evidence that exists which warrants skepticism on the part of consumers. Fortunately, for those of us who prefer to keep our diets natural and healthy, labeling is allowing us to make a choice to avoid GM