BIOTECHNOLOGY

How is biotechnology affecting the food we eat?

How is biotechnology affecting the food we eat?

Introduction

The introduction of biotechnology -derived foods into global commerce through advances in scientific technologies has resulted in a greater scrutiny of the regulatory measures in place to ensure the continued safety of the food supply. Although the safety of foods derived through biotechnology is evaluated against the standard of safety applied to all foods in general prior to acceptance into the market, there remains a degree of uncertainty amongst some consumers and regulators regarding potential long-term effects on human health not otherwise predicted in the pre-market assessment of these foods. The standard of food safety does not and should not distinguish biotechnology -derived foods as different from any other food as this erroneously implies that pre-market safety assessment procedures inadequately address the scientific uncertainties associated with biotechnology -derived foods. In the context of safety, the pre-market assessment is designed to identify any potentially adverse or intended beneficial effects of a food or food component.(Sidhu,2000)

Demonstration of causality

One intended outcome of a PMM strategy for a food with some purported effect on human health may be the demonstration of causality. Critical to the outcome of a PMM program intended to distinguish a cause-effect relationship between the consumption of food and a specific health effect on the consumer would be consideration of a valid hypothesis supported by measurable parameters. In the absence of defined hypotheses, data mining to investigate health-related effects would likely identify random correlations not limited to the consumption of foods derived through biotechnology.(Butchko,1994)

While the safety of foods derived from biotechnology is established in the pre-market assessment and efficacy may be demonstrated in pre- or post-market clinical studies, the ability to discern unpredicted adverse or intended beneficial effects on human health is challenging given the myriad of confounding variables encountered under real-world conditions. Correlations that have not been adjusted for confounding factors may be spurious and not causally related to dietary exposure to a food derived through biotechnology.(Allgood, 2001) Certain confounding or contributing risk factors should be anticipated prior to implementing a PMM program and minimized through proper statistical design and analyses.

Chronic health effects

The association between diet and health is well recognized. Notwithstanding this fact, it is difficult to establish a causal relationship between a particular dietary component and a specific health endpoint, even when an extensive amount of research has been conducted. For example, more than 50 years of evidence has been required to support the currently accepted relationship between dietary modification and the risk of coronary heart disease (Schaefer, 2002).

The use of a PMM program to identify chronic adverse health effects not otherwise indicated by the pre-market safety assessment would be highly impractical and costly, if not scientifically questionable. This would require the prospective long-term monitoring of a specific population in the absence of a hypothetical outcome, or alternatively, the retrospective identification of potential exposure to a particular biotechnology -derived food in a group of individuals known to have a specific disease or health ...