tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49824623494040578202024-03-13T11:53:15.634-07:00FrankenFoodFactsAn independent investigation into the validity of claims made by pro- and anti- GMO groupsBioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.comBlogger93125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-34952123154393725992018-02-13T20:52:00.000-08:002018-02-13T20:52:14.872-08:00Sometimes a Pink Pineapple is Just a Pink PineappleIf you've been following my blog, you'll know that I've reviewed a few GMO crops where I've questioned the health benefits that are being touted by crop developers. The few that stand out are the claim that decreasing the amount of acrylamide when frying the Innate potato is beneficial and the claim that increasing the amount of antioxidants in crops is healthier (such as the pink pineapple)BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-75181454460729074902018-01-03T12:21:00.000-08:002018-01-03T12:21:30.217-08:00BioChica UpdateHi Everyone,
It's been a while since I've written here, so I thought I'd give you all an update on what I've been doing/writing.
First off, I'm going to continue using this space for scientific papers. I'll continue taking requests so if anyone has any papers on risks of GMOs or any trait they'd like to know more about, let me know and I'd be happy to review (you can email me at biochica.gmo atBioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-75749193440722713782017-07-11T12:00:00.001-07:002017-07-11T12:44:37.758-07:00X is connected to Y which is connected to Monsanto. Therefore, I am a shill...Hey everyone,
As some of my readers may know, I'm going to be featured in a movie called "Science Moms". It all started when I joined forces with a group of awesome women to write a letter to Sarah Michelle Gellar because she was against GMOs. Readers of this blog may also know that I'm a super Buffy fan, so SMG's ad about GMO labeling was like a stake through my heart. HAHAHA!!! GET IT?? BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-8809522448556708722017-05-13T21:29:00.001-07:002017-05-13T21:29:28.548-07:00A GMO pineapple with a blushA couple of months ago, I saw an article about a new "pink pineapple" that was being approved by the FDA and was a GMO. I've wanted to learn more about the variety, so in this blog post I'll be exploring the topic.
The pineapple was developed by Del Monte Fresh Produce (not to be confused with Del Monte Foods). The company plans to label it as "extra sweet pink flesh pineapple" and it will BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-30021703802382139662017-04-07T06:18:00.001-07:002017-04-07T11:05:36.618-07:00Plants vs Zombies: The GMO EditionI know. It's been a while... Things are a bit rough. I've written a few pieces over on Medium, if you want to check them out.
So, in this blog post, I wanted to write about "superweeds", what they are, how they're related to GMOs, and some misconceptions about them. The first thing to know is that "superweed" is not a scientific term. Searching through the NIH's database of scientific BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-77138484845490240202016-11-14T07:36:00.001-08:002016-11-14T07:36:45.850-08:00The Future of FrankenFoodFactsTo my spouse and all my readers,
The past couple of days have been interesting, to say the least. I'm writing this blog a few days after the US elections, where in an incredible upset, a candidate that believes vaccine cause autism and does not believe in climate change was elected into office. There's a lot of other things about the president elect that concern me, but for the sake of this BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-44479041053428854042016-08-29T21:26:00.000-07:002017-10-10T08:37:22.986-07:00I Expose My Family to Carcinogens Everyday And So Do You
Last year, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified glyphosate, a common herbicide, as a probable carcinogen. I've been asked how it is that I can ingest "a known carcinogen",
"The Globally Harmonized System sign for carcinogens,
mutagens, teratogens, respiratory sensitizers
and substances which have target organ toxicity." Wikipedia
so I'm going to take the BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-20951055440434795002016-08-07T20:46:00.000-07:002016-08-07T21:03:40.050-07:00Farmers and Scientists Are People, TooLast month was the spouse's 20th high school reunion in his home town of Plainview, Texas. I'd been to Plainview a few times to visit his family and friends, but never over the summer. He had always said that I wouldn't enjoy the heat, so we had always visited in December.
So it was my first time visiting the state in temperatures above 100ºF (for all you awesome metric people, that's about 40ºCBioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-30665514782447857762016-07-18T17:29:00.002-07:002016-07-18T17:29:39.512-07:00Sources of Information about GMOsOftentimes when I start a discussion about GMOs with someone online, it turns into a discussion about sources. The person that I'm having the discussion with doesn't trust my sources. I, in turn, don't trust theirs. Last week, I finally sat down to outline why I don't trust some of the most popular anti-GMO sites.
The basis of my argument is this: if a site regularly provides incorrect BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-69900787167045899362016-07-04T10:33:00.003-07:002016-07-04T11:02:20.718-07:00NaturallySavvy's "Top Ten Reasons to Avoid GMOs" A few days ago, I found myself reading a list entitled "What's So Bad About GMOs? Top Ten Reasons to Avoid Them" (archived here). I first stumbled upon NaturallySavvy.com when they were demonstrating the "toxic" properties in tampons by performing an experiment worthy of a 3rd grade science fair project, in efforts to scare the bejezuz out of you and convince you that their organic femcare biochicagmohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08412055084884920116noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-35778136834563325482016-06-26T21:34:00.000-07:002016-06-26T21:34:34.896-07:00The Institute for Responsible Technology's "10 Reasons to Avoid GMOs" ListHello kind readers. Today I'm reviewing a post from the "Institute for Responsible Technology" entitled "10 Reasons to Avoid GMOs". For those of you who are not familiar with the IRT, it's a "charitable organization" run by some guy: it's not a government institute, it's not affiliated with a university, research facility, or hospital. And when I say that it's run by some guy, that's not an BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-10184775411569816532016-06-20T21:10:00.001-07:002016-06-20T21:10:46.816-07:00Things I Have in Common with GMO-Opponents. Dear Angry Person Commenting on my Post,
I hear you. I genuinely do. You're telling me that corporations are destroying the environment. That nature is being harmed. That greedy CEOs don't care about anything other than lining their pockets. That politicians are turning a blind eye to the suffering and destruction around them because those same CEOs are keeping them in office. You're BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-43264875223350657642016-05-28T16:08:00.001-07:002018-05-17T12:49:44.924-07:00Review of "GMO Dangers: The Facts You Need to Know"Hi everyone!!! I was on vacation for the past month, which is why you haven't heard from me here. We went to Prague and to Haifa in Israel, both of which were awesome. I was able to keep up with my Facebook page and share lots of GMO news from the past month, which included a report from the National Academy of Sciences declaring GMOs to be as safe as conventionally bred crops and a statement BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-21250971719007598332016-04-16T18:39:00.001-07:002016-04-16T18:39:51.963-07:00Better Know a Scientist: Weed Scientist Dr Lynn Sosnoskie
People: we’re in for a special treat today. One of my favorite tweeple, Dr Lynn Sosnoskie, has graciously accepted a Q&A for “Better Know a Scientist”. Dr Sosnoskie is a scientist at UC Davis’ Plant Science Department where she does research on weed control. She has a PhD in weed science from Ohio State and has done research at University of Wisconsin, as well as the University of Georgia.
biochicagmohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08412055084884920116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-87861343550932586122016-04-03T21:51:00.001-07:002016-04-07T12:06:38.161-07:00Review of "Compositional differences in soybeans on the market: Glyphosate accumulates in Roundup Ready GM soybeans"
Soy bean field with irrigation system.
Wikimedia Commons. Image by Dwight Burdette.
A friend asked me to review the paper entitled "Compositional differences in soybeans on the market" (free available here), so I thought I'd make my comments publicly available. I'm going to read the paper first, provide comments as I go along, and then find reviews online (if any exist).
The paper starts by BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-44391080955265916392016-02-28T12:27:00.000-08:002016-02-29T11:10:35.052-08:00Vitamins and nutrients from GMOsThis week, my fellow #Moms4GMOs Kavin Senapathy and I published an article in Forbes magazine (every time I think of "Forbes magazine", I get that Bruno Mars song stuck in my head...). Our article was about how there are documented instances of foods losing their nutritional content when they obtain Non-GMO certification from the Non-GMO Project. There was a LOT we wanted to write, but we had to BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-76109116753035295092016-02-22T17:11:00.000-08:002016-02-22T17:11:21.926-08:00Naturally modified sweet potatoesSeveral months ago, a paper was published about sweet potatoes being "natural GMOs". It got a lot of coverage in the press. I thought that it was high time that I read the original paper to see what it was all about.
The paper is freely available in PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. My mom freaked out the first time she heard me jokingly call the journal "pee-nass" after BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-34375595877909691702016-01-24T21:14:00.001-08:002016-01-24T21:17:50.665-08:00Anti-GMO Activists: Venezuela is Not Your TrophyOn January 21st, the Organic Consumer Association posted this on Twitter:
Having grown up in Venezuela, it set off a murderous rage in my soul, and I'm going to take some time to outline how that one tweet represents the epitome of the anti-GMO lobby's head-up-their-ass-ishness.
The Organic Consumer Association (OCA) is an advocacy group that believes in the dangers of vaccines BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-78509553759735413822016-01-22T08:15:00.001-08:002016-01-22T08:15:48.765-08:00Defining the GMO debate: Guest post by Mommy PhD
This is a guest post by a fellow #moms4gmos, Dr Alison Bernstein, aka Mommy PhD. You can follow her on twitter (@mommyphd2) or on Facebook.
An old article from Nathanael Johnson on Grist, What I learned from six months of GMO research: None of it matters, from January 2014 showed up in my feed on various social media platforms recently. You may wonder: if none of it matters, why are we still BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-68252609719969767382016-01-04T08:18:00.002-08:002016-01-05T21:30:46.379-08:00GMO labeling arguments are not exclusive to GMOs
When discussing labeling, there are many different reasons to want GMOs labeled: some people want to know if something's a GMO because they want to avoid pesticides, some people want to avoid food produced by Monsanto, etc. The issue with every single argument is that it's never exclusive to GMOs. I made the following infographic to outline the more common labeling arguments I've heard, as well biochicagmohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08412055084884920116noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-84740275245925329712015-12-22T10:37:00.001-08:002015-12-22T10:37:19.914-08:00GMO DNA in our BloodSome of you may know that I was recently given notice of my laid off due to a corporate re-org. Luckily, I've had a few good leads and will hopefully start working soon after my last day at my current job. But, needless to say, I find myself with more time on my hands than usual. I've been trying to make the most of it, so you may see an uptick in my number of blog posts and infographics. I also biochicagmohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08412055084884920116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-88826780434840455342015-12-15T21:36:00.002-08:002015-12-16T06:08:33.323-08:00Why aren't GMOs tested on humans?
How much corn is enough corn for a feeding study?
From Wikimedia
A very common question or criticism of GMOs is that they are not properly tested, particularly on humans. The spouse and I had a discussion about this a while back and he asked why GMOs weren't tested like drugs since they're regulated by the FDA. I've read comments such as "I won't believe GMOs are safe until they're tested for biochicagmohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08412055084884920116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-79325096989621586112015-11-20T09:57:00.001-08:002015-11-20T09:57:29.116-08:00Dear Christie Brinkley: We Aren’t Guinea Pigs
This letter is co-written by Mommy, PhD and BioChica (Dr Alison Bernstein and Dr Layla Katiraee. For more information about the authors, please see the end of the letter).
Dear Christie,
We read this week about your new book and watched your interview on FOX Business. As scientists and science communicators, we are concerned that, while your motivations to help people eat healthy diets is biochicagmohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08412055084884920116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-83248594623327114132015-11-12T16:13:00.000-08:002015-11-12T16:13:25.608-08:00Better Know a Farmer: No-Till Guru Bill Crabtree
In this issue of “Better Know a Farmer”, I contacted Bill Crabtree to learn about “no-till farming”. If you’re saying to yourself, “No-till? What are you waiting for? Till when? It doesn’t make sense” then you’re not alone. Bill has an awesome website which highlights his expertise in this field (get it?? Field? Because he’s also a farmer? Amazing pun!!). He lives in Western Australia (WA), but biochicagmohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08412055084884920116noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4982462349404057820.post-25967978195015096312015-10-20T20:27:00.000-07:002015-10-20T20:27:53.103-07:00Could someone please explain to me what's a Conflict of Interest?A few weeks ago, I wrote about how several GMO researchers and/or advocates have had their emails seized under Freedom of Information Acts (FOIA). These requests come from US Right to Know (USRTK), who is being heavily funded by the Organic Consumers Association (OCA). The OCA is one of the strongest voices opposing GMOs (it also happens to oppose vaccines, too). The emails from one BioChicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11197270850533749252noreply@blogger.com1