How Do You Want Your Sirloin - Grain Fed, Organic or Cloned?

When the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced in early 2008 that cloned animals and their offspring were acceptable as consumable food products the resulting firestorm of debate was nothing if not loud.

From a practical standpoint proponents of cloning needed this ruling to add legitimacy to their work. If the cattle and pigs, which have been cloned, can be claimed as safe by the FDA then cloning experimentation can continue with the potential of grant monies from Universities and foundations.

What you may not know is that a fish and a tadpole were reported as clones in the 1950s and 1960s. However, cloning opponents are quick to recall the highly publicized first cloned animal, a sheep named Dolly. This animal was cloned in Scotland. This particular animal only lived to be six years old while the typical age for a Finn Dorset sheep is generally 12-15. The primary argument in this case was whether conditions for Dolly's care contributed to the disease that claimed her life or if because she was a clone from an animal that was roughly six years of age Dolly's body was essentially six years old at birth.

These and similar concerns are part of the complex nature of the cloning argument. In fact, the argument isn't simply with the acceptability of meat and other products from cloned animals, but with human life.

There are some individuals who are apposed to any kind of cloning while others may object to human cloning while finding therapeutic cloning acceptable.

In therapeutic cloning an individual's stem cells are cloned and the additional cells can be used on that same patient for therapies that may provide better health. In this case the cloning is derived from one person for the benefit of the exact same person.

In human cloning there are further divisions. There are those who perceive human cloning as a potential means of having children in the event of infertility while others view a cloned embryo as a potential means of harvesting embryonic stem cells for use in medical experimentation thus eliminating the potential for the embryo to experience life. Those who have cloned embryos for medical research view this process as a means of eradicating a multitude of diseases from the human experience.

Because cloning is still relatively new there are some grave concerns over attempting to clone a human being. The concerns stem from the multiple experiments that went wrong previous to the success of cloned animals.

Is it possible that this type of experimentation could result in even one mutated experiment that develops a life that has some ability to function but is a life form different than what we typically think of as human? What do we do with failed human cloning experiments? Are they taken care of or euthanized?

If this sounds like something out of a science fiction novel I suppose it is. Jurassic Park was developed around the idea of cloning extinct life and other novels have presented dooms day scenarios for cloning.

Religious leaders disagree about the acceptability of cloning and the role of cloning in our culture remains on that will be contested with each new experiment.

Discuss the Human Cloning at ControversialForums. Have Debates in our Discussion Forums.

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Why You Want to Avoid Genetically Modified Food

More than ten years ago the consumers of Europe eliminated GMO foods from being sold. There was no government ban. People quit buying the anything genetically modified so there was no profit. Instead they lost money. Why do the people in Europe believe Genetically Modified food to have such major negative health consequences? If these substances are that bad, why does the US still allow them?

What's Wrong with Genetically Modified Organisms?

The American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM) has major concerns about the safety of food and animals which have DNA that has been tampered with. To those of us who don't have training in genetics, substituting a small gene for another may not seem major until you realize that humans and apes have about 98% similarity in their genes. There are just a few genes, comparatively speaking, which make a huge difference between a monkey and a human.

Here are some of the problems found with genetically modified food the bio-tech industry doesn't want you to know about:

• Mice who ate GM corn as a staple of their diet had fewer and smaller babies.
• In rats fed GM soy, more than half the babies died by the time they were three weeks old. The cells in the testicles also changed.
• When hamsters were fed GM soy for three generations, most of those in the 3^rd generation could not reproduce.
• Taking larger animals, in India, thousands of sheep, goats and buffalo died after eating genetically modified cotton. True, we don't eat cotton, but there is something dangerous going on.
• Other problems include greatly elevated levels of allergies, pre-cancerous cell growth in the lining of the stomach, lesions or sores in various organs, changes in the cells of the pancreas and liver among other problems.

Follow the Money

If this stuff is so bad for humans, why would the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) allow it? The answer, I'm sure, doesn't surprise you. It is simply money. The bio-tech industry is huge. The FDA ignored their scientists, the ones they hired to advise them, who told them there needed to be long-term studies. Their very own scientists said you can't know what happens over the years when genetically modified organisms are introduced into the food chain.

The bio-tech industry pulled out its muscle well supplied with money and the FDA caved in. They essentially said, "Of course our scientists don't know as much as these wealthy corporations."

What You Need to Do

You need to avoid putting anything genetically modified into your mouth. Unfortunately, almost all the corn and soy in the US is GM. Protect yourself and your children by not buying it any more unless the label says "Non-GMO." Eat organic meat and drink organic milk. You want food and drink to be raised in organic hormone free and antibiotic free conditions.

Read, become informed and say "No" to drugs in milk, meat, eggs and chicken as well as any other food which is genetically modified.

Cathy Chapman, PhD, LCSW assists people in achieving their dreams of health, wealth and abundance. To receive your eye opening Special Report "Diet Lies and Myths Exposed: Myths, Differences of Opinion and Outright Lies" go to http://www.youreatinghealthyplan.com/ and fill out the form.

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Genetically Engineered Animals - Coming to Your Dinner Table

I recently read an article concerning the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in which they announced a proposal for regulating the meat and milk industry guidelines for genetically engineered animals. Genetically engineered animals have extra genes put into them usually from other animal species. Cloned animals are genetic copies.

When I read the article I found myself wondering what our society has become. In the name of science and 'for the good of the people' we have crossed the uncrossable line, which differentiates us from mere humans to human Gods.

The FDA a government mega agency has near unlimited power and uses this power to further their agenda. It has been reported and substantiated that the FDA hierarchy is made up of many physicians, PH.D's, corporate CEO's and administrative types that have either been employed by big pharma or other companies that have direct ties to our drug and food industry. Can someone say special interest! It is no secret that past decisions concerning pharmaceutical drugs have been most favorable for drug companies.

Academic scientists and biotechnology companies are developing genetically altered animals. Since there has not been a clear and unambiguous path for the introduction of these mutant animals the FDA is expected to supply the guidelines. The FDA is expected to say that the same laws that cover animal drugs will regulate genetically mutated animals. As you can see we are back to big pharma. The FDA has already ruled that meat and milk from cloned cows, pigs and goats are completely safe and need no oversight whatsoever.

Special interests such as the biotechnology industry have been heavily lobbying congress that oversees the FDA in order to speed up the guidelines to push forward the genetic engineered process. With little to no media coverage concerning this issue the FDA is free to establish the parameters with little opposition. Consumer groups who oppose genetically altered animal's claim that the FDA has little expertise in determining and evaluating the animal's ecological impact. Another disturbing fact is that all new applications for approval of new drugs will be completely confidential. The public will not know what animals are being developed and what drugs are being administered.

Barbara Glenn, managing editor of Animal Biotechnology for the biotechnology industry a trade group has stated in regards to the new proposed guidelines, "we feel this will enhance investor confidence in this technology". Did you notice there was no mention of consumer confidence only confidence for money to pour into their projects?

In the end the consumer has the last say whether or not genetically mutated meat and milk will sell. The public needs to be informed about the pros and cons then and only then can we make an educated decision whether we the people want genetically altered animals in our diet.

As for me I will not consume genetically altered meat if at all possible. The problem is will I positively know that I am not eating genetically altered meat or drinking genetically engineered milk?

I am a proponent of free ranged animals that are completely hormone free and unaltered in any way. With these animals you can fell confident that you are eating and drinking pure natural products unaltered by meddling money hungry companies interested in their fat pay checks. Furthermore our government has no business in governing our food supply. The FDA needs to account for every action it takes in our behalf and stay completely independent from big PHARMA and other special interest.

We the people demand it!

Gary Kenneth Archer is a web designer, webmaster, professional woodworker and naturalist
who is a frequent contributor to: Natural Health Products and
All Natural Supplements Blog.com

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Genetically Modified Foods - Americans Should Be Very Concerned

Genetically modified foods, or genetically modified organisms (GMO'S) are now a very real part of your diet whether you know it or not. If you eat corn, cornmeal, cornstarch, corn oil or other corn based ingredients, soybeans, soy milk, tofu, soybean oil, and other soybean based products, canola oil, cottonseed oil, sugar beets, papaya from Hawaii, and some zucchini, and yellow squash, then genetically modified foods are making up a significant percentage of your overall food consumption.

Over half of all Americans who were polled said that they were not aware that they were ingesting these GMO's and if they knew it, they would not do so. Many even expressed shock over the fact that they were not the slightest bit aware that they had been ingesting this very questionable and probably downright unhealthy stuff. The simple reason that we were not aware is because in the USA manufacturers and producers of such (food?) are not required to let us know that the food has actually been altered at the level of the DNA. In contrast, many other countries demand that GM foods be clearly labeled as such.

Genetically modified foods are produced by inserting genes from some other species into the very DNA of the food. Almost two thirds of all products on the shelves of your local grocer contain at least one element that has been genetically engineered (altered). When engineers manipulate food crops in order to make them produce their own insecticide, or make them resistant to chemical herbicides that kill other plants, a genetically modified organism which would never occur in nature is created.

The question is: Are these GMO foods safe for human consumption? The common sense answer to that question as far as this writer is concerned is NO. At the very best, it should be noted that nobody has any idea as to the potential health problems associated with eating such food. Despite many warnings of health dangers from its own scientists, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration decided to allow genetically modified foods into the marketplace without labeling or safety testing. The genetically modified seeds that are a product of such manipulation are now planted commercially so that at this writing the majority of the soybeans, corn, cottonseed (oil), and canola (oil) that you buy are actually genetically modified, and you would have no way of knowing which products are and which ones aren't since there is no law that requires that they be labeled as such.

Studies conducted on rats have produced evidence that should alarm consumers as to the possible dangers associated with GM food. Rats which were fed genetically modified corn were compared to their parents who had been fed non-genetically modified corn. Rats that had been fed the GM food produced signs of kidney and liver problems, as well as problems associated with the heart and spleen. The parents who were not fed the GM food did not seem to have any significant rate of problems in these areas. Other studies conducted on test rats which were fed GM food have produced evidence of various health related problems. At this juncture we really can't tell all of the health related problems that these foods might cause, since we ourselves are the rats in which the experiments are being conducted.

In my personal opinion, apart from mounting evidence that we have been heading down a very slippery slope, is the innate sense that is resident in me that anytime scientists alter a God given resource such as food, that this manipulation carries with it a host of problems. I personally am fully persuaded that a Creator God made all things perfectly, but suppose you are one who believes that all things have evolved naturally, then even if that were true, scientist have no business altering that which nature has produced. In my opinion and based on my firm beliefs, scientists certainly cannot now, nor will they ever improve on God's creation and we have no business manipulating the food we eat at the level of DNA. Certainly from a health perspective nothing good can come of this.

Steps To Avoid GMO's

1. Only buy products labeled 100% organic, or products which are certified organic since these products cannot knowingly contain any GMO ingredients.

2. Find products that carry a "Non-GMO Project Seal."

3. Avoid products such as corn and corn based products, soy beans and soy based products, canola (oil), cottonseed (oil), sugar beets, Hawaiian Papaya, zucchini and yellow squash if they do not boast the 100% organic label or do not carry the NON-GMO Project Seal.

4. Do not consume dairy products from cows injected with bovine growth hormone.

In the end it is up to individual consumers to recognize this dangerous problem and take precautions to insure that they and their families are not placed at risk by this genetic engineering of our food supply. It only takes a small percentage of people who refuse to buy genetically modified foods to effect a change at the level of the largest food companies. When major food business begins to see that offering GMO's does not pay, they will begin to pull these dangerous foods off of the shelves, or at least begin to clearly label foods that have been thus modified.

Since there is absolutely no regulation in place regarding the disclosure of GMO's in the marketplace, nor any regulation regarding their sale, we as consumers must take the initiative and effect a radical change in big food business as usual. Greed and the bottom line will continue to be the only concern of major food companies and the government is historically very easy to buy off, so your health and the health of your family will continue to be the least of their worries. By realizing the sad truth that big food business and the government are willing to sell your health for their gain, we must stand up and say NO to genetically modified food in the marketplace. Make your voice heard by refusing to buy the above listed products if they are not clearly labeled organic or if they are not carrying the Non-GMO Project Seal. We must stand together and stop this madness before it progresses even further. Please do your part and make your voice heard.

I am passionate about health issues, and the state of the health of our wonderful America. I believe the American diet is literally killing us and that a steady flow of money and perks from the meat, egg, and dairy industries to the U.S. government is the reason we have had a long sustained brainwashing campaign that has precipitated the shift from a predominantly plant-based diet to an animal-based diet. The result has been an unprecedented increase in heart disease, diabetes, stroke, and cancers of all varieties. I believe Americans are suffering from a lack of truthful information concerning our diets. I enjoy writing motivational articles that will help to correct the problem regarding this lack of information and also examine the prevailing misinformation in the light of truth.

Healthy Vegetarian Choices For Life Dedicated to the advancement of informed choices that will benefit our health, our environment, and our animal friends. Please visit my website at http://www.ourhealthforlife.com and look around awhile. I would very much appreciate comments concerning your reaction to what I have written as well as any input that might aid me in the task of making my site more helpful. I thank you in advance for your consideration.

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