WARNING: This product contains deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). The Surgeon General has determined that DNA is linked to a variety of diseases in both animals and humans. In some configurations, it is a risk factor for cancer and heart disease. Pregnant women are at very high risk of passing on DNA to their children.

If one were to reword this as: "This product contains vegetables that have been genetically modified using animal deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)", this could be a very valid warning.





Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/25/2015 02:18AM by Prana.

We share long sequences with plants.
[biology.missouri.edu]

In fact we share about 50% of our DNA with the banana.

I want a tshirt that says "50% banana."

it is not only the DNA that carries information but also the chromatin (protein). The chromatin is inheritable and carries "history." It does a lot of stuff. If a virus DNA (or RNA) gets inside the cell and modify it, it is very probable that food DNA do the same in some way. Yes, some of the DNA makes its way through because it is a real mechanical process (as opossed to an idealized one that people make). Nature has had billions of years to come up with correct order of pieces but humans think they can engineer (genetic engineering specialization) new pieces as fast as people can buy them and profit. Plant cells are eucariotic like mamals and have very similar functionality except for the energy part chloroplasts and the membrane. Plants also have mitochondria just like mammals (need O2). The hemoglobin gene is found in beans, and chlorophyll and hemoglobin are very similar. The DNA is identical in terms of elements in all life forms. It only differs in the order (information).

Best book money can buy about learning all about DNA: [www.amazon.com]

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

Quote

The amount of transgene that survived passage through the small bowel varied among individuals, with a maximum of 3.7% recovered at the stoma of one individual. The transgene did not survive passage through the intact gastrointestinal tract of human subjects fed GM soya. Three of seven ileostomists showed evidence of low-frequency gene transfer from GM soya to the microflora of the small bowel before their involvement in these experiments. As this low level of epsps in the intestinal microflora did not increase after consumption of the meal containing GM soya, we conclude that gene transfer did not occur during the feeding experiment.

[journals.plos.org]

Quote

based on the analysis of over 1000 human samples from four independent studies, we report evidence that meal-derived DNA fragments which are large enough to carry complete genes can avoid degradation and through an unknown mechanism enter the human circulation system. In one of the blood samples the relative concentration of plant DNA is higher than the human DNA. The plant DNA concentration shows a surprisingly precise log-normal distribution in the plasma samples while non-plasma (cord blood) control sample was found to be free of plant DNA.

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/25/2015 03:05AM by Panchito.

cool paper, thanks.

It says

"..shows large variation from subject to subject following strikingly well a log-normal distribution with the highest concentration in patients with inflammation (Kawasaki disease, IBD). These findings could lead to a revision of our view of degradation and absorption mechanisms of nucleic acids in the human body."

I read some of the animal studies, too. Some of them find it and some of them don't but it's undetectable a few days after stopping the feed. There doesn't seem to be a health hazard associated with it.

And in this study, they didn't find any in healthy humans:
Netherwood, et al., Assessing the survival of transgenic
plant DNA in the human gastrointestinal tract.
Nat. Biotechnol. 2004, 22, 204-209
(but maybe monsanto funded it)


My take from this is that if your bowels are healthy and you don't have cancer, this will not be as much of an issue.

it opens the door for a lot of GMO junk. There are many people eager to apply their education and make NEW invented modified foods. GMO food is a case of the government not being capable to regulate what it doesn't know and weight properly the pros and cons. They are playing dice. For example, the oil industry made people rich and brought many new products, energy, etc. It is now that we are starting to realize the price of pollution, etc. Technology has a price that is not in the adds. Someone is paying with health. In that sense I am sure that GMOs will bring new unforeseeable health problems. It is not natural food. It is artifically engineered food. Once the door open companies will push and push the limits. The best thing is to make it a free choice. Everybody happy, right? If people believe on GMOs then they buy them. Hope they don't force the herd ideologies on everybody by the label omission thing.

My issue is not the potential for health hazard.

It is the monopoly, the monoculture, the loss of genetic diversity, and the profit making.

It's certainly no good for the planet and not good for the people. We would do better with small-scale farmers and a riot of different breeds of plants, not the clone cultivars that we eat over and over and over again.

Good food should be available to all, not just rich people.