GMOs Priscilla Sandford
CONCERNS ⚠
BENEFITS 😃
Negative effects on the environment because of pollen from GMOs traveling to other plants.
More nutritious
Labeling GMOs
Can cause an allergic reaction
Insect resistant & herbicide resistant
More resistant to cancer
Drought resistant
CITATION: Example: A GMO with a peanut gene in it is eaten by a child with a peanut allergy and causes a child to have a severe even fatal reaction.
CLAIM: One strong benefit of GMOs is the drought resistance which helps crops not be destroyed by lack of water.
CLAIM: GMOs may negatively effect children with a rare allergy to that food that the GMO has the gene of it in.
EVIDENCE: They help the 3.1 million children who are dying each year from malnutrition because a lot of the crops are destroyed by the drought and are too expensive.
EVIDENCE: For example, if a child ate a GMO that had a banana gene in it and they had a rare banana allergy, they could have a severe or even fatal allergic reaction to that banana.
COUNTERCLAIM (Citlaly C.): What if the areas that the GMOs foods are planted in still take up water that is not being used so the water is just stored in the soil of GMO foods. Which means that the water is still not being used to the more natural foods that need more water.
COUNTERARGUMENT: Yes that may be true but in rare cases. A way to solve this is to use only GMO crops in the states that want it and the GMOs may store unneeded water but it depends on how much you water it and I don't think that access water isn't a big deal.
COUNTERCLAIM(Citlaly C.)-What if they looked at the ingredient section and check if there is anything they are allergic to.
COUNTERARGUMENT: So many states don't label in the U.S. and even if they did in some places they don't label the GMOs genes they put in.
STATISTIC: "Researchers estimate that 32 million Americans have food allergies, including 5.6 million children under age 18" (FACTS AND STATISTICS).
Non-dangerous animals like butterflies could be harmed from pollen from GMO plants traveling to others plants affecting these creatures.
STATISTIC: "We need bees in order to grow food, or at least some of it. Yet the food-GMO food, drenched in neonics-we are growing is killing the bees" (GMOs Are Killing the Bees, Butterflies, Birds and . . . ?).
CITATION: "The World Health Organization also notes it’s possible for the GMO to move from its crop area into the wild, passing its modified genes along to the natural population" (Pros & Cons of GMOs)
Labeling GMOs lets consumers know what they are eating but in many states they don't label
STATISTIC: "Studies show that more than 90% of Americans support mandatory labeling of genetically modified (GMO) foods"(Just Label It).
CITATION: "Despite common industry concerns, there’s no evidence that requiring food manufacturers to label products that contain genetically modified (GMO) ingredients will increase food prices at the supermarket" (Just Label It).
GMO tomatoes resist beetles (not the cancer resistant tomatoes).
Purple tomato's have special cancer fighting chemical in it.
Corn will help conserve/use less water and helps feed more people.
CITATION: "The pigment, known as anthocyanin, is an antioxidant which studies on animals show could help fight cancer" (Genetically-modified purple tomatoes heading for shops).
CITATION: "Crop production in North America, Europe and Australia faced nearly a 20% decline thanks to drought and extreme heat, compared to less than 10% in Africa and Latin America" (Drought and Extreme Heat).
STATISTIC:
Golden rice is now more nutritious with more vitamin A and saves children with malnutrition,
CITATION:“... main goals in producing GMOs is to create foods that are packed with more nutrients than before. ...for example, scientists developed a crop ...that was created specifically to help fight vitamin A deficiencies” (Pros & Cons of GMOs).
STATISTIC: "Approximately 3.1 million children die from undernutrition each year" (Hunger Education).
STATISTIC: "The five-year overall survival rate for AML is 27.4 percent, according to the National Cancer Institute (NCI)" (Survival Rates and Outlook for AML).