Running Header: GMO FOODS VIOLATE YOUR HUMAN RIGHTS

GMO Foods Violate Your Human Rights

Madison Traina
Rowan-Cabarrus Community College

GMO FOODS VIOLATE YOUR HUMAN RIGHTS

Many people have the tendency to think that the food we eat is the same food that your
grandparents ate and that since it had no effect on them, why should it have any effect on you?
Well, in the past several years, food has changed so dramatically, that its hardly food anymore.
And due to the un-labeling of the GMO foods, it makes it difficult for people who are sensitive
to those foods to make an educated and safe decision. And it makes even more difficult, when
companies like Monsanto fix their data so that they give the results dont show any adverse
effects. But things can change, if more independent farmers, families, business owners, and
government officials push for legal labelling and for a more natural or at least decreased use in
GMO seeds. The food we once ate is not the same, and I feel that it violates human rights
through the un-labelling of food and un-education of society.
There are countless stories of people suffering from many ailments like Celiac disease,
Hodgkins Lymphoma, and severe allergic reactions that have recently sprung up in the last
several years. I really can sympathize with them because I personally suffer from inflammation.
Im 18 years old and I have arthritic like symptoms in my hands and feet when I eat genetically
modified foods. They ache and throb whenever I consume things others would consider
regular foods: wheat, corn, potatoes, sugar, soy, eggs, chicken, pork, and beef. I cant even eat
non-organic dairy (including milk, cheese, butter, ice cream, etc.) without being afraid of
suffering from persistent stomach aches (that lasts for several days) and a panic attack. And what
makes it even worse, is that every time you go to the grocery store, youre afraid of what youre
going to eat because you dont want to make yourself sick.
The real problem is lack of labeling. Many companies do not label there foods to say that
they contain genetically modified products. But companies like Smuckers, that have recently
started labeling there products non-GMO they make is easier for people like me and moms all

GMO FOODS VIOLATE YOUR HUMAN RIGHTS

over the United States make a truly healthy choice. I mean, 64 countries all over the world label
their foods, including Europe, Australia, China, and India (Desk, 2014), but it would cost on
average $2.30 per customer to label the products. But 80% of our food supply in America is
genetically modified foods (GMOs and your family,2014) and GMOs may even be hidden in
things called Amino Acids, Aspartame, Ascorbic Acid, Sodium Ascorbate, Vitamin C, Citric
Acid, Sodium Citrate, Flavorings (natural and artificial), High Fructose Corn Syrup,
Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein, Lactic Acid, Maltodextrins, Molasses, Monosodium Glutamate,
Sucrose, Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP), Xanthan Gum, Vitamins, Yeast Products. (GMOs
and your family, 2014) They dont have to tell you about things that can and will cause serious
intestinal damage, but they label cigarettes.
In the 1920s researchers found that PCBs had deadly effects on people (PCBs were
considered an industrial wonder chemical, an oil that wouldnt burn, impervious to degradation
and had almost limitless applications. Today PCBs are considered one of the gravest chemical
threats on the planet. Widely used as lubricants, hydraulic fluids, cutting oils, waterproof
coatings and liquid sealants, are potent carcinogens and have been implicated in reproductive,
developmental and immune system disorders. The worlds center of PCB manufacturing was
Monsantos plant on the outskirts of East St. Louis, Illinois, which has the highest rate of fetal
death and immature births in the state.) (Hanzai, 2014) Even though PCBs were eventually
banned after fifty years for causing such devastation, it is still present in just about all animal and
human blood and tissue cells across the globe. Documents introduced in court later showed
Monsanto was fully aware of the deadly effects, but criminally hid them from the public to keep
the PCB gravy-train going full speed! (Hanzai, 2014) Now, Monsanto controls our crops and

GMO FOODS VIOLATE YOUR HUMAN RIGHTS

our crop variety and encourage the use of Roundup, which within days of spraying kills fish and
animal in the surrounding areas (Hanzai, 2014).
But what I really think is interesting how they take apart the natural process of the plants.
First they take the take something called plasmid, and insert the genes that they want into the
plasmid. They then mix the plasmid of the with the cells of the plant and some of the cells take
up the plasmid in the form of T-DNA (transfer-DNA). This then inserts the genes that it wants
into the plants chromosomes. This then the beginning of a genetically modified plant. (NEPAD,
n.d) The plants DNA structure has been altered and so in essence changes the foods. And
according to editors of PureHealthMD, they say There is research to say that GMO foods
negatively affect the immune system and inflammation in animal studies and One of the
greatest concerns is that these DNA changes may mutate genetic material in bacteria, plants or
perhaps our own bodies that goes unchecked and cannot be reversed. We are all publicly
participating as subjects in a study to see what these foods will do to us. (PureHealthMD, n.d)
And in addition to the change in the plants it can also cause a major loss in natural plants, In
many countries, concern also comes from the loss of natural seeds that have been used for
centuries. GMO crops have to be replanted every year. In many areas, including areas of great
poverty, seeds are reused every year and taken from the hardiest, healthiest plants that have
acclimated to that climate. If these seeds are lost and replaced with GMO seeds, we may lose
several forms of wild plants native to a specific culture forever. We may lose potential plants,
nutrients, medication sources and feed for the rest of the food chain in ways that we do not even
understand. Many farmers of these rural, and sometimes impoverished, areas may be forced to
buy seeds each year instead of reusing seeds that would already be available to them for free
(and acclimated to the soil and climate of that area).

GMO FOODS VIOLATE YOUR HUMAN RIGHTS

GMO foods violate our rights as humans because we cannot choose if this is what we
want to eat or not. They dont label the food and they dont conduct studies on the food because
the research has a tendency to be inconclusive or not presenting any harmful effects. But I
see the effects every day in my own life and I feel as though my right have been violated. I dont
want to have to worry every time I go out with friends or shop at the grocery store. The food our
grandparents ate is not the same as the foods we eat know, and without educating the public, or
letting people make informed decisions, they do it all on the sly and let us figure it out for
ourselves.

GMO FOODS VIOLATE YOUR HUMAN RIGHTS

GMOs and Your Family. Non GMO Project. http://www.nongmoproject.org/learn-more/gmosand-your-family/

Hanzai, E. (2014). The Complete History of Monsanto, The Worlds Most Evil Corporation.
Global Research. http://www.globalresearch.ca/the-complete-history-of-monsanto-theworlds-most-evil-corporation/5387964
Process of Developing Genetically Modified (GM) Crops. NEPAD: Transforming Africa.
http://www.nepadbiosafety.net/subjects/biotechnology/process-of-developinggenetically-modified-gm-crops
PureHealthMD. How Stuff Works. http://health.howstuffworks.com/wellness/foodnutrition/facts/genetically-modified-foods.htm
Smuckers. J.M. Smucker Company. https://www.smuckers.com/products/fruit-spreads/naturalfruit-spreads-452