Genetically engineered foods: Are they safe? You decide

Tampering With Blueprints of Life GENETICALLY ENGINEERED FOODS: ARE THEY SAFE? YOU DECIDE.

By Laura Ticciati and Robin Ticciati, Ph.D.; Keats Publishing, 1998; $5.95.

Unless you can afford to shop exclusively at health food stores and buy only organic goods, nearly 70 percent of the food you eat has some components that have been genetically engineered. Author Laura Ticciati, the founder of Mothers for Natural Law, and her husband, Robin Ticciati, Ph.D., think this genetic meddling is not only morally wrong, but dangerous to the long-term health of all living things. To make their point they offer the example of a type of potato that has been genetically altered to protect it from aphids. Unexpectedly, this pest-resistant tuber is also deadly to ladybugs: The ladybugs eat the aphids and succumb to the same toxin that killed the aphids. The result is that a natural control on the aphid population is harmed by an artificial one. And this consequence, say the authors, is a threat to more than just ladybugs.

Indeed, many of the cases they cite are troubling not just because rogue genes have been introduced. Consider the case of an herbicide-tolerant corn--the company that manufactured this strain, Monsanto, did so because it wanted the corn to be able to withstand large amounts of herbicides. This means, of course, more chemicals in our food.

The Ticciatis' research seems sound. Although they do cite the popular press, specifically Time, much of their information comes from scientific journals such as Nature and Science. And their recommendation--that readers press the government to be more forceful and consistent in regulating the industry--makes perfect sense to me.

COPYRIGHT 1999 Weider Publications
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