Report finds genetically modified crops fail to increase yields let alone solve hunger, soil erosion and chemical-use issues

Genetic engineering has failed to increase the yield of any food crop but has vastly increased the use of chemicals and the growth of "superweeds", according to a report by 20 Indian, south-east Asian, African and Latin American food and conservation groups representing millions of people.

The so-called miracle crops, which were first sold in the US about 20 years ago and which are now grown in 29 countries on about 1.5bn hectares (3.7bn acres) of land, have been billed as potential solutions to food crises, climate change and soil erosion, but the assessment finds that they have not lived up to their promises.

The report claims that hunger has reached "epic proportions" since the technology was developed. Besides this, only two GM "traits" have been developed on any significant scale, despite investments of tens of billions of dollars, and benefits such as drought resistance and salt tolerance have yet to materialise on any scale.

Most worrisome, say the authors of the Global Citizens' Report on the State of GMOs, is the greatly increased use of synthetic chemicals, used to control pests despite biotech companies' justification that GM-engineered crops would reduce insecticide use.

Dozens of crops genetically engineered to survive herbicide spray are being used in Australian food without the knowledge of consumers.

Food Standards Australia New Zealand has approved 43 varieties of genetically modified canola, corn, potato, rice, soybean and sugarbeet for human consumption.

But food items do not have to be labelled as GM if the ingredients are highly processed into oils, starches or sugars.

Meat, milk or eggs produced from animals fed GM crops do not have to be labelled either.

Food Standards has given the green light to a new strain of GM canola and is considering a new application for GM soybeans to be used in Australian food.

In a phenomenon that reminds some experts of the crack-baby epidemic of the 1980s and 1990s, hospitals across the country are reporting a startling increase in the number of babies born addicted to opioid painkillers like Oxycontin (oxycodone).

In 2009, reports the Wall Street Journal, about 13,000 babies were diagnosed as having painkiller withdrawal symptoms - the condition is sometimes referred to as "neonatal abstinence syndrome." The number of babies born with the condition tripled between 2000 and 2009, found a study published this year in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

Another study published last year in JAMA found the number of accidental opioid overdoses in the United States increased from 3,000 in 1999 to 12,000 by 2007.

"It's heartbreaking," Erin Weatherwax, a neonatal nurse at Sarasota Memorial Hospital in Florida, told the Wall Street Journal. Florida has long been recognized as the epicenter of the nation's prescription drug problem, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Most people have viewed bones as inanimate structures within the body that merely play a role in providing structural integrity to the body. New research is revealing just how dynamic bone structure is to the nervous, immune and endocrine system. A bone released hormone is now considered by researchers one of the foremost players in controlling blood sugar and inflammation.

Poor blood sugar signaling leads to the formation of advanced glycolytic enzymes (AGE's). AGE's are created through non-enzymatic formation of sugar molecules and amino acids. AGE's are produced in abundance when blood sugar is chronically elevated. These AGE's induce significant free radical damage that damage bone collagen.

Fat Cells Release Hormones

Fat cells release a few hormones to help regulate energy metabolism. The most well-known hormone released by fat cells is leptin. Leptin receptors reside in the hypothalamus and respond by initiating the feeling of satiety. As fat cells begin to grow (while we eat a meal) they release leptin. When enough leptin interacts with the hypothalamic receptor it stops the feelings of hunger. Additionally, leptin interaction with the hypothalamus also initiates the use of fat as an energy source.

Healthy leptin sensitivity in the hypothalamus is related to healthy longevity, cognitive function, lean body mass and bone mass. Poor leptin signaling is associated with obesity, brain degeneration, osteoporosis/osteomalacia and accelerated aging. Poor leptin signaling is also associated with insulin resistance and elevated inflammatory conditions within the body.

Bones are Not the Inanimate Structures

The bones used to be thought of as inanimate structures within the body. However, new research performed by Columbia University have found that the skeleton plays an important role in the communication processes involved in energy metabolism.

An important signaling protein, osteocalcin, is produced by the bone building osteoblast cells. Osteocalcin is known to increase bone density by helping to funnel calcium and other minerals into the bone matrix. Other authors compare the function of osteocalcin to a vacuum that sucks calcium from the bloodstream and into the bone matrix.

New research has also now indicated that osteocalcin directs the pancreas to produce more insulin and induces fat cells to release the hormone adiponectin. Adiponectin acts upon cells to increase insulin receptor activity and therefore improves insulin sensitivity.

As part of the Year in Review series, MedPage Today reporters are revisiting major news stories and following up with an analysis of the impact of the original report, as well as subsequent news on the topic. Here's what's happened with the West Nile virus outbreak since we published the first 2012 piece on the surge in the numbers of infections.

During the summer, the CDC realized that this year was on track to be one of the worst for West Nile virus infections, and as reported cases continue to be tallied the reason for the resurgence remains unclear.

As of Dec. 11, the official case count was 5,387, the second highest total since the mosquito-borne virus first emerged in New York in 1999. There were 9,862 total cases reported in 2003, a number padded by excessive testing in one state that year.

Human infections have now been identified in all 48 contiguous states and the District of Columbia, with the hardest hit being Texas (32%), California (8%), and Louisiana (6%).

Potentially fatal bird flu viruses can spread on the wind, a hitherto suspected but unproven route of transmission.

Usually, people catch bird flu through close physical contact with each other or, much more commonly, with infected poultry.

The newly identified capacity for wind to spread it opens up a potential route by which the viruses can spread between farms.

We already know the U.S. government doesn't care enough about us to tell us whether we are eating genetically modified organisms - they've maintained their right to keep that fact from us, knowing that if we are armed with the knowledge, we might take down the huge GMO industry with the power of our purchasing dollar. In fact, just during the holiday break the FDA quietly pushed through GMO salmon toward the final acceptance process. But, what else do we not know?

If you believe GMO labeling is the only way the U.S. is flying under the radar with potentially dangerous food, you are sadly mistaken. In addition to the GMO-labeling controversy and the obvious promotion of Big Pharma over preventative, natural health, much of our food is given doses of the same stuff that destroyed Hiroshima and continues to wreak havoc on Fukushima - radiation.

It's done in the name of food safety and preservation. Zapping foods with gamma-radiation is used as a method for sterilization, ridding food of harmful contaminants that may have arisen in potentially unsanitary mass-farming practices. It is also said to delay perishability, making the food last longer so it can be sent all over the world, increasing food globalization. But more than that, food radiation could be having unknown effects on our health.

Margaret Lamkin doesn't visit her grandchildren much anymore. She never flies. She avoids wearing dresses. And she worries about infections and odors.

Three years ago, at age 87, Lamkin was forced to wear a colostomy bag for the rest of her life after a virulent meat-borne pathogen destroyed her large colon and nearly killed her.

What made her so sick? A medium-rare steak she ate nine days earlier at an Applebee's restaurant.

Lamkin, like most consumers today, didn't know she had ordered a steak that had been run through a mechanical tenderizer. In a lawsuit, Lamkin said her steak came from National Steak Processors Inc., which claimed it got the contaminated meat from a U.S. plant run by Brazilian-based JBS - the biggest beef packer in the world.

"You trust people, trust that nothing is going to happen," said Lamkin, who feels lucky to be alive at 90, "but they (beef companies) are mass-producing this and shoveling it into us."

The Kansas City Star investigated what the industry calls "bladed" or "needled" beef, and found the process exposes Americans to a higher risk of E. coli poisoning than cuts of meat that have not been tenderized.

The process has been around for decades, but while exact figures are difficult to come by, USDA surveys show that more than 90 percent of beef producers are now using it.

Mechanically tenderized meat is increasingly found in grocery stores, and a vast amount is sold to family-style restaurants, hotels and group homes.

The American Meat Institute, an industry lobbying group, has defended the product as safe, but institute officials recently said they can't comment further until they see the results of a pending risk assessment by the meat safety division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Although blading and injecting marinades into meat add value for the beef industry, that also can drive pathogens - including the E. coli O157:H7 that destroyed Lamkin's colon - deeper into the meat.

Winter flu has reached epidemic levels in many regions of France.

According to GPs' network Sentinelles-Inserm, there were 130,000 new cases in the past week - 204 cases per 100,000 population.

The south-west is one of the worst-hit areas, along with Champagne region and the Nord department.

The epidemic level for seasonal flu is set at 174 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants.

Last winter the government says only about half of people in at-risk groups were vaccinated against seasonal flu - the level fell 26% since winter 2009-2010.

According to the UK Health Protection Agency (HPA), over a million people have contracted the norovirus this winter, which is nearly double the number from this time last year.

The norovirus is a winter vomiting bug that struck earlier than usual this year and cases this time around are running at a level normally seen about a month later into the season.

Figures show that 1.018 million have been hit with the vomiting virus this winter so far, according to HPA.

Laboratory tests by HPA confirmed 3,538 cases of norovirus this season, up from 3,046 cases last week.

The latest figures are 83 percent higher than the number of cases reported at this point last year when there were 1,934 cases.

While most work on samples from homes and hospitals, officials are working on a ratio of one laboratory case that could yield 288 more cases among people who do not need medical treatment and are not tested.

There were 70 hospital outbreaks reported during the two weeks up to December 23, compared to 61 in the previous fortnight, bringing the total of outbreaks for the season to 538.