Reaping What We Sow continued
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Pineapples
Cabbage
Sweet Peas
Onions
Asparagus
Mango
Papaya
Kiwi Fruit
Eggplant
Grapefruit
Cantaloupe
Cauliflower
Sweet Potato
Pesticides are not the only
problem we have created with
our food. Studies show 90% of
the food Americans eat is
processed, vs. eaten in their
whole, natural, nutrient-rich
state. That is a lot of canned, boxed, bagged, and
fast food. These foods have been proven to
contribute to chronic health issues like obesity,
diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. It is hard to
restore balance in this area because processed foods
are readily available, cheap, and flavorful, which
seems to trump low calorie, nutritious, and whole.
Another issue with processed foods is that they are
chock full of additives. The Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) has a list of three hundred
food additives, but maintains that they do not create
risk in the quantities used. Tell that to the people
with countless anecdotes of reactions to
monosodium glutamate (MSG) in the form of
numbness, tingling, burning, chest pain, headaches,
nausea, weakness, and more.
A more recent concern has emerged with processed
food. Genetically modified organisms, or GMOs,
are being widely used in our food supply.
According to The Non-GMO Project, GMOs are in
as much as 80% of conventional
processed food in the United States. What
is the issue? GMOs are plants or animals
that have been genetically engineered
with DNA from bacteria, viruses or other
plants and animals. They do not occur
naturally, or from a natural crossbreeding. The long-term effects are
unknown of creating new organisms and
using them in such a widespread fashion.
There is a growing body of evidence
detailing impacts on the environment, the
rights of smaller farmers and consumers,
and our health. Once we fully open the
door to Frankenstein food, it is impossible
to re-close it—the monster is loose to
wreak havoc on Earth Mother and her children.
It’s easy to assert that if consumers stop buying
GMOs, companies will stop using them, and
farmers will stop growing them. However, it is
difficult to always identify GMO products; they are
not always labeled. The Non-GMO Project
maintains an extensive list of verified products that
do not use GMOs, which you can find at http://
www.nongmoproject.org/find-non- gmo/searchparticipating-products/.
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