Genetically Modified Food Good Or Bad

Welcome to the 21st century, where food is not solely grown on agricultural land sites, but in laboratories as well. We can now produce food through genetic engineering - A fish or a fox gene can be introduced into a lettuce plant to create a new, genetically modified type of lettuce. (Hillstrom, 2012)

With rapidly growing technology and knowledge of information, it is not shocking for us to know that many of the foods we eat have been altered genetically. Genetically modified food (GM food) is defined as organisms such as plants and animals whose genetic material has been modified in a way that cannot be obtained through natural processes (World Health Organisation, n.d.). Common GM food includes tomatoes, corn and soy. Often, people argue

As mentioned before, the most common use of GM engineering for our foods is the insertion of genes that make crops tolerant to pesticides. To put it simply, farmers can spray as much pesticides and herbicides on their crops to rid pests without having to worry about harming their crops. However, we should not forget that the increased spraying of pesticides on the food that we eat also increases our exposure to pesticides. This is through either the consumption of their leaves and seeds where pesticides have been applied, or through the uptake of contaminants by the plants from soil and from water that has been exposed to pesticides. This is of course detrimental to our health. Studies have shown that exposure to pesticides can cause cancer and detrimental effects on our immune, nervous, respiratory, and reproductive systems. (Blair, Ritz, Wesseling, Freeman, 2014) Of course, the list goes on, and the consumption of pesticides in our body definitely causes adverse effects that are

It can possibly cause allergic responses and expose us further to harmful pesticides. This is due to the fact that the safety assessments GM food goes through before it is being placed on the shelves are often not as safe and reliable as we hope it to be. Unless checks and assessments can certify the GM food to be 100% safe, and the species of GM food can potentially bring great benefits to our society, compromises can be put in place. But as of now, where companies are still taking loopholes and regulatory advisories are not 100% accurate in their assessment process, it is clear that the Precautionary Principle should be invoked to justify the ban of GM food unless stricter regulations and checks can ensure our safety from health concerns posed by such