Do Genetically Modified Organisms Help Or Hurt

Genetically Modified Organisms: Helping or Hurting?

Food has played a vital role in our lives since the beginning of time. It gives us energy to live, supplies us with nutrients, and helps us grow and develop. However, with our growing population, growing enough food for everybody has become tough. In the past few decades, scientists have been formulating new ways to boost the benefits and quantity of foods by altering the genes inside the food. These “frankenfoods” are called genetically modified organisms, more commonly known as GMOs. GMOs have some benefits, for example, creating extra vitamin A in carrots to improve the eyesight of people in less developed countries. They can also aid in the production of food, such as creating resistance to pests and herbicides. Although this technology is quite helpful, there is a large debate going on discussing the safety

I chose this topic because genetically modified foods can affect me and those around me. It is crucial to be aware of what you are putting inside your body, because foods that are potentially dangerous to you can cause long term effects, like cancer and heart disease. The ongoing debate leads us to many questions about the effectiveness and ethics regarding GMOs; are they safe?

Although genetically modified organisms haven’t been around for long, they have progressed a great deal since they were first introduced. Before altering genes was discovered, farmers in the 1800s would selectively breed their livestock to produce bigger offspring of cows or chickens. Modern genetic engineering is built off of the foundation of Gregor Mendel and his work done to pea plants in the 1800s. Mendel bred the pea plants based on color and favorable traits. The idea of breeding plants was in order to create plants with favorable outcomes, for