ENGINEERED PHYTONUTRIENTS

By: Dr. Linda Posh MS SLP ND

PHYTONUTRIENT GENETIC ENGINEERING: The great debate over the
safety of our food being genetically engineered. Have a look
here for some useful information and a few questions about
engineering for phytonutrients. Research studies worldwide have
recently begun to uncover the wide array of phytonutrients
contained in fruits and vegetables. This factor alone make it
even more important than we thought that you include a variety
of fruits and vegetables as part of your daily diet.

Phytonutrients offer many benefits with regard to human health,
some known and some yet unknown. Did you know the widely touted
"vitamin" called folic acid is actually a phytonutrient? On the
cusp of the millennium, there is no doubt that the next decade
or so is going to burst wide open with many more undiscovered
virtues of the phytonutrient rich foods that Americans do not
eat enough of.

Given the current dietary government guidelines, phytonutrients
are not considered essential nutrients. Nevertheless, a flood of
anti-aging research is beginning to demonstrate, and quite
provocatively, the potential anti-aging characteristics of some
of these mysterious plant compounds. It has been suggested that
diseases such as cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer's, may
plague the middle aged and elderly due to our limited knowledge
of these all important, plant specific nutrients. For example,
it has been proposed that certain flavinoids found in
blueberries may actually reverse nerve cell aging.

The study of phytonutrients has provided the impetus for both
plant and nutritional scientists to work together as a team to
uncover even more important knowledge. This makes perfect sense
because fresh produce is the only currently known source of
these valuable and mysterious nutrients. The sad part is that
only a small handful of visionary scientists are researching how
to improve the nutritional quality of these lovely green
edibles. The majority of research to date has been dedicated to
increasing crop yields by making stronger, hardier plants that
will be able to ward off being damaged by disease, pesticides,
etc.

Genetic engineering has already been able to produce tomatoes
with up to three times more lycopene. Lycopene is the cancer
reducing red pigment found in tomatoes. These modified tomatoes
are able to maintain maximum nutrition 3 times longer (shelf
life) than their " regular" counterparts. Autar K. Matoo and
colleagues of the ARS vegetable laboratory inserted a gene that
retards plant aging along with a promoter that is triggered by
ripening. The engineered tomatoes were thus proven to be able to
accumulate more lycopene and other antioxidants during the
longer ripening stage. It is felt that this novel approach
should work with other fruits and vegetables.

Environmental factors also appear to make a difference.
Cantaloupe melons, grown at the ARS Subtropical Agricultural
Research Center in Weslaco Texas, differed in beta carotene
levels by as much as 500 percent. The differences in these
levels depended on the soil, the cultivar and the size of the
fruit. Gene E. Lester, head research scientist and his
colleagues, are embarking on a project to understand post
harvest storage factors as well as the environmental and genetic
factors that affect phytontrient levels and the quality thereof.

It seems that specialized plant breeding will be central to
putting produce with enhanced phytonutrient levels on the dinner
table. It is now well known that broccoli contains rich sources
of certain compounds that may inhibit cancer. It is felt that
there is good potential for increasing the anti-cancer power of
this wondrous vegetable. Mark W. Farnham, of the ARS vegetable
research lab at Charleston South Carolina, has found that the
purported anti-cancer precursor glucoraphanin exhibits a 30 fold
increase in the inbred broccoli lines.

While we should all feel grateful that such wondrous research is
beginning to unfold, a question remains ... some food for
thought. Although genetic engineered fruits and vegetables are
beginning to demonstrate without a doubt, that we can produce
plants that are packed with additional health supporting active
compounds, what is the overall risk? Are these plants as Mother
Nature intended them to be? Does and will altering the genetic
potential of plant life bring forth a plethora of problems yet
unseen? To date, we simply don't know.

About the author:
Dr. Linda Posh MS SLP ND, has been in the lab developing whole
food nutritional supplements. Nutra-Resources Body Balance Liquid Vitamin Website
donates all profits to Health Care for those in need. visit http://www.Nutra-Resources.
com