Attack of the Genetically Engineered Tomatoes
Researchers have engineered a new tomato that packs a full day’s worth of folate, a nutrient critical for healthy pregnancies and women’s health overall.
“This could potentially be beneficial worldwide,” said Andrew Hanson, a plant biochemist at the University of Florida at Gainesville who developed the tomato along with colleague Jesse Gregory. “Now that we’ve shown it works in tomatoes, we can work on applying it to cereals and crops for less developed countries where folate deficiencies are a very serious problem.”
Is this a good thing? At first glance, folate-full tomatoes have obvious benefits, but what are the risks? One concern is that increased folate in tomatoes also means increased pteridine, which is common to fruits and veggies but kind of a wild card as far as what higher levels will mean. And then there’s the whole genetically modified organism thing…
What do you think? Would you eat genetically engineered tomatoes if it meant getting your full daily recommended allowance of folate?
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POSTED IN: Body, Diet, Health, Hormones, New research, Nutrition, Pregnancy, Public policy, Women's Issues
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8 opinions for Attack of the Genetically Engineered Tomatoes
Neel
Mar 23, 2007 at 4:53 am
I still believe that eating healthy is the key. Maybe in the future genetically modified food stuffs will be the norm…but for now we could stick to regular foods until doctors tell us otherwise.
sognatrice
Mar 23, 2007 at 1:31 pm
Oh my goodness no. Here in southern Italy, you could cause a riot by even suggesting such a thing!
Although I can see the benefit of such tomatoes in developing countries with problems of folate deficiency, those of us who have access to perfectly healthy, natural food have no excuse to cut such folate corners. I agree with Neel; eating healthy is the key.
Devon Ellington
Mar 23, 2007 at 2:17 pm
Eat a well rounded diet of whole foods and you don’t need a super-veggie that might have side effects. I don’t trust genetic engineered food.
Kristen King
Mar 23, 2007 at 8:51 pm
I’m with you guys. It gives me the shivers.
kk
Eriq
Mar 27, 2007 at 5:43 pm
It would be great if everyone was able to consume 100% of their nutrients from an organic diet, but the reality is that even most Americans who have access to natural produce aren’t getting a full dose of nutrients they should becuase of their own eating habits. I think a more interesting and possibly realistic question is whether it is better to get a full dose of folate from modified produce, or to not get it at all?
sognatrice
Mar 28, 2007 at 8:31 pm
Eriq, are we assuming that Americans’ eating habits would change if only they could get all their folate from a genetically-engineered tomato? I still don’t think many people would *choose* the healthy path. The real question, IMHO, is in developing countries, where they currently have no choice, and among the poorest Americans, who, incidentally, probably couldn’t afford genetically-engineered tomatoes anyway.
Jason
Apr 23, 2007 at 8:47 pm
I welcome genetically modified foods, and think we are falling behind other parts of the world where science isn’t such a scary mystery. It’s sad when fear mongoring is used to try and manipulate public opinion. It is difficult to counter it with thoughtful logic.
While we are at it, we should be irradiating beef. It would likely save many deaths and illnesses each year. Unfortunately, it is hard to get past the word “irradiation” with most people who don’t have the patience or understanding to really consider it.
Yum, Cloned Goodness
Apr 9, 2008 at 6:41 pm
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