The StarLink Corn Scare
After it was announced that a genetically modified corn not approved for human consumption, StarLink, had in fact found its way into the food supply, several people came forward to say they had suffered allergic reactions from eating StarLink contaminated food. Unfortunately, most of those claims didn’t bear out under independent testing.
In fact the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in June that it was unable to find any evidence of allergic reactions to StarLink in any of the 17 people who complained about health-related problems from StarLink. The CDC took blood samples from the consumers, but could find no evidence of a StarLink-related reaction.
One reason the CDC might not have found any evidence of such an allergic reaction is that the consumers complaining of health problems may not have actually consumed any StarLink corn. Eleven people who complained of allergic reactions to StarLink gave the Food and Drug Administration samples of food they believed had caused their reactions. After testing by the FDA, however, only one of those food products turned out to actually contain any StarLink.
The debate over whether StarLink should be approved for human consumption is just beginning, but the results of the FDA and CDC tests show how easily media reports of alleged risks can result in consumers falsely believing they are suffering an ailment as a result. Many of the people who claimed to suffer allergic reactions were profiled in media reports, though their claims should have been viewed with a healthy dose of skepticism.
Source:
No altered corn found in allergy samples. Andrew Pollack, The New York Times, July 11, 2001.
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