GMOs – what moms should know

I had the opportunity to speak about GMO’s this week.  Here are some notes, links and documents to share.

As I mentioned, you as moms have an enormous sphere of influence!  Most of us get information from various media but we also get it through our friends and families.  So please share what you have learned.  Everyone should know what is in their foods.

You vote every time you go to the grocery store, so even though proposition 37 might have been defeated (narrowly), you can still send a message to food producers.

The majority of diseases nowadays are lifestyle diseases (degenerative) vs the infectious disease of a century ago.  That means they are largely preventable.

Remember these critical points:

1. You have a right to know  so you can make an informed choice.
2. Testing has not been done accurately – Co’s not allowing their seeds to be used in non-industry testing – why?  FDA currently does not REQUIRE manufacturers to test for safety.
3. Other nations around the world either ban or require labeling – See Map

What are GMO’s?  Non-GMO-Project-FAQ-TriFold-US-June-2012

What are the risks?     gmoharmfuleffects

Who owns organic?   OrganicT30J09

Solutions  – What to look for to avoid GMOs?

Organic is best way –

remember you can “pay the farmer now or pay the pharmecist later”

Keep in mind that GMO’s are in at least 80% of conventional processed foods (as defined as having an ingredient label).

The USDA has three “categories of organic:”

1. 100 percent Organic: Made with 100 percent organic ingredients

2. Organic: Made with at least 95 percent organic ingredients

3. “Made With Organic Ingredients:” Made with a minimum of 70 percent organic ingredients with strict restrictions on the remaining 30 percent including no GMOs (genetically modified organisms)

Products with fewer than 70 percent organic ingredients may list organically produced ingredients on the side panel, but may not make any organic claims on the front of the package.

Of course – foods with out labels are best!  Fruits and veggies have codes –

If your produce has 4 digits, it means that it was “conventionally grown, but not organic”.

If it has 5 digits, and begins with a 9, it means that the produce was organically grown.

A 5 digit code that begins with an 8 indicates that the produce was genetically modified.

At least ½ your intake should be from vegetables and fruit. Strive to move in this direction.    But let’s face it in today’s world, most  look for convenience foods and that means have labels.

Boycott those companies that sell “organic” but are against labeling:

• Kellogg’s (Kashi, Bear Naked, Morningstar Farms)
• General Mills (Muir Glen, Cascadian Farm, Larabar)
• Dean Foods (Horizon, Silk, White Wave)
• Smucker’s (R.W. Knudsen, Santa Cruz Organic)
• Coca-Cola (Honest Tea, Odwalla)
• Safeway (“O” Organics); Kraft (Boca Burgers and Back to Nature)
• Con-Agra (Orville Redenbacher’s Organic, Hunt’s Organic, Lightlife)
• PepsiCo (Naked Juice, Tostito’s Organic, Tropicana Organic).

Some companies that have organic brands have heavily contributed to defeat Proposition 37 in CA.  Cos Defeat Prop 37

You can also look for Non GMO project verified.  Here is their label.

Check out this iPhone app – Shopnogmo.  I found some more here to check out.

I also promised you some tips for a stressfree holiday season:

1.  You know this already – get plenty of rest
2. Drink lots of water to stay hydrated
3. Don’t forget your skin care routine – 3 minutes in morning and 3 minutes in the evening – isn’t it worth it (contact me for great skincare products)
4. Watch your sugar intake!  Substitute healthier desserts to eliminate temptation
5. Watch low fat items – usually means added more sugars
   1. The recommended sugar intake for adult women is 5 teaspoons (20 grams) of sugar per day, for adult men, it’s 9 teaspoons (36 grams) daily, and for children, it’s 3 teaspoons (12 grams) a day.
   2. Care now means you don’t have to worry about weight management in January – but if you do (contact me for great weight management products)

Leave you with this quote:

“A major cause of the Roman Empire’s decline, after six centuries of world dominance was its replacement of stone aqueducts by lead pipes for the transport and supply of drinking water. Roman engineers, the best in the world, turned their fellow citizens into cripples. Today our own “best and brightest,” with the best of intentions, achieve the same end through childhood vaccination programmes yielding the modern scourges of hyperactivity, learning disabilities, autism, appetite disorders, and impulsive violence.”–Harris Coulter

I would say the same thing in today’s world about GMO’s.  So learn about your foods and then make an educated choice – you vote every time you open your wallet!

Sources:    GMO Myths and Truths       Non-GMO-Communications-Toolkit-v1

Genetic Roulette by Jeffrey Smith, Institute for Responsible Technology

To learn more about GMO’s, please visit:

Non-GMO Project

Institute for Responsible Technology

Of course, just search on GMO or genetic engineering, and you’ll find plenty of information out there.

If you want to follow health and wellness issues, please subscribe to my blog – over on the right.  Also my business page can be found on Facebook as http://facebook.com/jpgreendream.  You do not have to be on Facebook to see this page.

If you look around this blog, I’ve already posted some info but most of the links and issues I’ve been following are posted on my FB business page up til recently.  I will be updating this blog regularly with updates on these issues.  Be sure to check out my must-read and must-watch lists.

One of the questions was the location of Monsanto offices.  Monsanto is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, in the United States – http://www.monsanto.com/Pages/default.aspx

Forgot to mention another of my favorite phrases – “Follow the money.”  When you do, it becomes painfully obvious what’s really going on.