GMOs: Are they a regulatory or food safety issue?

GMOs: Are They a Regulatory or Food Safety Issue?

GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS (GMOs): FOOD SECURITY OR THREAT TO FOOD SAFETY

Biotechnology is a vital issue that impacts all of us. Development of genetically modified organisms is one of the highest achievements of this technology. It is being released throughout our environment and deployed with superficial or no risk assessments about its matchless powers to harm life. Within the next few years, many types of transgenic commodities will be ready for commercialization...

Toxic Christmas and New Year Holiday Plants...or Are They?

Background: Poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima), holly (Ilex opaca) and mistletoe (Phoradendron flavescens) adorn homes during the Christmas and New Year holiday season and create the potential for curious children to sample their colorful leaves and enticing berries. This study was aimed to review the American Association of Poison Control Centers National Poison Data System (AAPCC NPDS) to des...

Food Safety Risk Analysis: A Global Issue

In the past, control of human health hazards in fresh food of animal origin has generally depended on traditional principles of hygiene, with few attempts to draw quantitative associations between hygiene activities and their outcomes in terms of human health. However, “modernization” of food hygiene programs for fresh foods of animal origin is now a commercial and regulatory goal in a number o...

Synthetic or Food-Derived Vitamin C—Are They Equally Bioavailable?

Vitamin C (ascorbate) is an essential water-soluble micronutrient in humans and is obtained through the diet, primarily from fruits and vegetables. In vivo, vitamin C acts as a cofactor for numerous biosynthetic enzymes required for the synthesis of amino acid-derived macromolecules, neurotransmitters, and neuropeptide hormones, and is also a cofactor for various hydroxylases involved in the re...