An Apple a Day...Brings the Doctor Running?

When I was younger I remember my parents always reminding me to wash my apple before I ate it, and of course, I did....most of the time. At seven years old the only thing your thinking about is getting that juicy apple into your mouth fast enough, the last thing on your mind is pesticides and especially, whether or not that piece of fruit was genetically engineered. 

After watching The Future of Food, I was genuinely scared that I might get cancer or some sort of disease from having eaten so many pesticides and so much genetically modified food through the years. As the first GM foods were introduced in the early 1990's, and I was born in 1990, I very likely have been consuming GM foods my entire life. But after the affects of the dramatic music wore off, and I was able to think a little clearer, I decided that I wasn't in any immediate danger (or so I hope), and there are ways to change my habits so that I no longer consume large quantities genetically engineered food. The only problem is--I'm a college student. Which translates to--I'm on a stringent budget. Which also translates to--I can't buy organic/local/pesticide free/non-GM food all the time because I don't have the means to spend $5 on a piece of fruit. So what's a girl (or any college student, really) to do?

Well, eliminating non-GM food is a no-go because there are no laws that require labels to be put on foods that are modified. So it's almost impossible for anyone to eliminate those entirely unless they grow all of their own food. However, organic and local foods are easier to come by (especially in Seattle) so I could start shopping around at farmer's markets to substitute possible GM produce with organic, local produce. But also, just being aware of where you're food comes from can be helpful. Rather than wallowing in ignorance, start to actually read the signs that are labeling your produce--choose the Washington apples over the New Zealand ones. Of course, these practices are mostly only available when the budget allows, but it's the thought that counts (which can eventually turn into change, when the pockets are a little deeper). Hopefully, with time and baby-steps, my habits can change so that (hopefully) I won't encounter some new fatal disease when I'm older. 

I'm very curious to see in the coming years, what kind of effect consuming genetically modified foods have on individual people and our society as a whole. Will my generation have higher cancer rates? Will there be an new unknown disease? Will there be new regulations on GM foods? In any case, will eating a genetically modified apple bring the doctor running instead of keeping him away? I sure hope not.  

photo credit: http://foodsafety.blogs.bftf.org/files/2007/07/moddedjpg.jpeg