MONTREAL — An Israeli scientist defended the genetic engineering of food for human consumption as a means of improving the production and nutrition of plants, as well as reducing the need for pesticides.
Weizmann professor Gad Galili [Howard Kay photo]
Seen at the Weizmann Science Canada program on nutrition and health
are, from left, co-chairs Debra Mayers and Carole Zuckerman, Joe
Schwarcz, Weizmann professor Gad Galili, Shawna Goodman-Sone, Dr.
Richard Béliveau and Susan Stern. [Howard Kay photo]
MONTREAL —An Israeli scientist defended the genetic engineering of food for human consumption as a means of improving the production and nutrition of plants, as well as reducing the need for pesticides.
Gad Galili, head of the Mel Dobrin Centre for Nutrition at the Weizmann Institute of Science, said no health risks have been associated with genetically modified (GM) crops after more than 10 years of commercial production on some 120 million hectares of land.
He was a guest speaker at a panel discussion on nutrition and health, sponsored by Weizmann Science Canada and designed for women.
Galili was less definite in taking a position on whether GM foods will prove to be safe over the longer term.
“There is not a simple answer. Who can predict? We don’t know the long-term effects,” he acknowledged.
Despite his defence, Galili counselled the public to raise its concerns about GM foods, not to stop them, but to ensure that they are developed in a way that means the benefits outweigh any hazards.
Galili, chair of the department of plant science, urged that the controversial issue of GM foods be put into perspective. The development of these engineered crops can alleviate world hunger and malnutrition, he maintained.
Breeding is not the solution because natural genes cannot be transferred between different plant species, he said. Usually, only one or two genes are added to a plant in any scientific intervention.
He also noted that fruits and vegetables marketed as organic are not necessarily any safer than regular produce, because they can harbour bacteria like salmonella if they are fertilized with manure.
The program’s moderator, chemist Joe Schwarcz, director of McGill University’s Office for Science and Society, noted that “unfortunately,” the only GM foods in Canada are soy, corn and canola.
Generally, Galili encouraged the consumption of more and a greater variety of plant-based foods for the many different antioxidants they contain. Plants produce these compounds to protect themselves from threats coming from their environment. In humans, antioxidants counter the damaging free radicals produced in the body by oxygen, and they contribute to illness and aging, he said.
Humans have about 800 compounds per cell, while plants typically have 20,000 compounds per cell, and only a fraction of them are fully understood. “And there are probably many thousand more that we do not know about,” he said.
Much more research is needed to also understand the metabolism that produces these compounds and the genes that regulate their production, he said.
At Weizmann, he said, scientists have isolated a gene in a tomato that can be suppressed to improve its vitamin B-1 (thiamin) content. What happens is that the gene does not recognize the vitamin that is present, so it sends a signal for more to be produced.
Specific antioxidants that Galili believes make a major contribution to health are lycopene, found in tomatoes; revesterol, found in red grapes; and capacasin found in hot peppers. His highest recommendation went to pomegranates, a fruit popular in Israel.
Galili was joined by Dr. Richard Béliveau, author of the bestselling book Foods That Fight Cancer, who holds the chair in cancer prevention and treatment at the Université du Québec à Montréal, and chef and cooking instructor Shawna Goodman-Sone.
Béliveau said almost everyone over age 40 has microscopic tumours in their body, and diet is a major factor in whether they become “clinically relevant.” Heredity is much less significant in getting cancer than is commonly thought, he said, and is a factor in less than 15 per cent of cases.
Maintaining a healthy body weight is also key in cancer prevention, he said.
He strongly urges the consumption of a variety of vegetables and fruits, at least five servings a day, and seven for those over 50, as well as other plant foods like green tea, ginger and spices. Of course, one must also avoid or cut back on foods that can contribute to the development of cancer. Among these, he includes red meat. No more than a pound a week should be eaten, he said.
Goodman-Stone demonstrated how some “super-foods” can be incorporated into meals.
She helped design the luncheon menu, which included chickpea hummus, a red cabbage and grapefruit slaw, edamame (fresh soybeans), and a barley and lentil pilaf. There were also plenty of vegetables, and the animal protein –chicken – served more as a condiment than as the main feature of the plate.
Dessert was also healthy, consisting of a bittersweet chocolate shell filled with berries. The beverage during the meal was pomegranate juice, and green tea or coffee were served afterward.
Proceeds were earmarked for Weizmann’s new Women in Science Award, intended to encourage more women to pursue academic careers in the sciences and to help them advance to the senior ranks.
“The number of women and men completing graduate degrees in the sciences is close to even,” said Susan Stern, Montreal executive director of Weizmann Science Canada, “but in Israel, as in the rest of the world, relatively few women end up on the track to academic advancement, and their representation on the higher levels of academic faculties is abysmally low.”
The first award, sponsored by Montrealers Mike and Valeria Rosenbloom, will be given to a postdoctoral candidate next year. The awards are worth $20,000 a year, for two years.