Let's talk about an ugly truth today....corn is in almost everything nowadays...and I mean EVERYTHING! Powdered sugar, Ice cream, salad dressing, even lotion and sunscreen contain corn! The list goes on and on. Why do do many things contain corn or corn derivatives? Why is corn becoming a prevalent allergy/sensitivity all the sudden? Food companies choose to use High Fructose Corn syrup to sweeten their products over regular sugar. Why is that? Well, simply put, HFCS is much cheaper than cane sugar. I'm thinking that it's no coincidence that as soon as awareness of high fructose corn syrup and the argument against it arose, so did the argument that it is 'natural' and 'there is no difference between corn sugar and cane sugar.' I don't know if everyone has seen those commercials advocating the use of "corn sugar". There's a dad walking through a corn field with his little girl talking about how it isn't bad, a mother walking through a corn field going toward her family saying there's no difference between corn sugar and cane sugar, and the older commercials where a couple is on a picnic and the cute girlfriend says that it's okay to eat the corn syrup filled popsicle because it's "natural". Every time we see those commercials my husband gets upset and yell, "Well, my wife's body sure can tell the difference!" My corn allergy like to cause swelling and sometimes gets to the point of anaphylaxis, so those sweet little "corny" commercials kind of piss him off. Anyway, corn seems to somehow weasel it's way into everything and it's creating health issues that are serious.
Corn wasn't always a problem, not until we humans decided to genetically modify it. It's not the only crop we decided to genetically modify, but it is a leading one that we consume today. Let's start off with our buzz word of the day: genetically modified. Sounds like a crazy Sci-Fi plot where aliens are trying to turn humans into creatures from another planet, but it's not. Instead, it is very real and it is used to describe how we enlist genetic engineering to produce crops (our example: corn) that come out with the most desirable traits. These traits can be anything from higher nutritional content to built-in pesticidal defenses. According to the USDA, by 2011, 88% of all corn crops planted were "genetically engineered". These crops were modified to insect resistant or herbicide tolerant. I know that genetic engineering is supposed to help keep the food supply going and supposedly keep world hunger at bay, but, as stated by ScientificAmerican, "According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Loss Project, we throw away more than 25 percent—some 25.9 million tons—of all the food we produce for domestic sale and consumption." That's food wasted in JUST the United States! We are wasting so much food that we have resulted to genetic engineering to create crops that produce more, resist pests, resist droughts, and have more nutritional value. What does it give us in the end? More than enough? What's the cost of MORE than ENOUGH?
We can go over facts and figures all day, but the cost that I am talking about is the nation's health. Is it really worth children developing allergies, sensitivities, or any complications that are the direct result of us trying to change food? Our bodies cannot adapt to the sudden genetic changes that we are forcing upon crops. The ingredient label should not be filled with corn syrup, corn-derivaives, or anything redesigned to be a more abundant (and cheaper) alternative. Creating a crop to resist pesticides, in order to allow more pesticide use, creates a market where food is filled with residual toxins. Our bodies therefore create an unusual and improper immune response to combat these toxins. This leads to reactions whenever the substance is ingested or the person is exposed. Any reaction can occur from being exposed over and over again and your body decides the substance is a threat to it. Reactions vary from person to person: a mild irritation, itching/rash, swelling of face/tongue, stomach upset, and even anaphylaxis. Not everyone has such a heighten sensitivity, yet after prolonged exposure an allergy can develop. I'm not sure what triggered the sudden onset of my food allergies, but I'm pretty sure that they had been developing for many years prior. In my opinion, all the scientific research put into creating a better crop should be spent on preserving what we already have.
I'm not trying to scare everyone into thinking they are going to develop severe allergies all the sudden, but I am trying to raise an awareness. We shouldn't be putting poisons and toxin into our body, and our nation shouldn't allow this to be such an easy thing to do. We wonder how so many health problems are more prevalent now than ever, yet we really should look at how we use (or abuse) our resources. Pollution, soil degradation, poor air quality are all a result of our abuse and need for MORE. Everything we already have naturally should be treated as a precious resource; it shouldn't become precious only after we so desperately need it.
We deserve better. Our attitude toward food should be, "Quality over Quantity." I want my future children to have high quality food that is pesticide-free and not genetically modified, so that they don't have to worry about food allergies, asthma, eczema, or any sensitivities. I can't prevent genetic traits from being passed on to my children, but I can prevent them from developing health problems as a result of unhealthy eating of genetically changed food. The cost of MORE is not worth my health or anyone else's health.
Let's be "free' by sticking to ENOUGH. Let's eat free! No pesticides, GMOs, or preservatives.
More to come,
Mary
Here are some web resources:
http://www.csa.com/discoveryguides/gmfood/overview.php/
http://www.endhunger.org/food_waste.htm
http://www.epa.gov/osw/conserve/materials/organics/food/fd-basic.htm
http://www.livestrong.com/corn-allergies/
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