We haven't had a good discussion about this, so I decided it's high time to start one. For several years now, I have been concerned about the quality of the food I eat and serve my family and friends.

But now with GMOs (short for genetically modified organisms) it gets even harder to know what you are eating -- since more and more we're becoming aware that it's not just processed packaged foods we need to avoid: Now we also need to watch staples -- those are basic things you buy in the grocery store.

I think we all know that at least 80% of processed packaged foods are genetically modified and contain DNA manipulated ingredients.

This really bothers me, since to my knowledge, there has not been one human clinical trial to determine if genetically modified foods (GMOs) are safe -- or what effects they may be having on our health.

And worse, these GMOs do not have to be labeled as such. As we've seen the big food manufacturers such as Monsanto continue to lobby Washington to avoid what should be our basic right to know what's in our food.

Many holistic MDs and scientist are warning against the dangers of eating GMO foods and most countries in Europe have already banned GMO foods. In fact, there are some countries which will not accept aid form the US in the form of food, as a result of this situation.

We know for sure that most GMO foods have been highly sprayed with pesticides and herbicides. And by just using our innate intelligence we can know that "it's not nice to fool Mother Nature," as that old commercial used to tell us.

I highly recommend you do your best to avoid buying and eating GMO foods, of course.

But more importantly, next time Congress votes on whether or not GMO status has to be declared on all food labels, be sure that you have advised your representatives how you want them to vote.

And until then, here's how to avoid MOST GMO Foods:

1. Most fruits and vegetables have a PLU sticker on them. I'm sure you remember having to remove these stickers with a 4 -5 digit number when washing your fruits and veggies.

Here's help to decode what those numbers mean:

[a] Numbers starting with an 8 are GMO crops, 9 indicates organically grown and a 3 or 4 indicates conventionally grown with chemical fertilizers and pesticides.

[b]Meanwhile, the following foods are rarely modified, so are generally safe to eat: onions, mushrooms, cabbage, sweet potatoes, avocados, peas, asparagus, eggplant, pineapples, mangoes,kiwi, cantaloupe, watermelon and grapefruit.
2. The following are most likely GMO unless specified as organic. Apples, peaches, strawberries, necterines, grapes, blueberries, sweet corn, cherries, hot peppers, zucchini, squash, cucumbers, lettuce, spinach, potatoes, celery, bell pepper, kale/collard greens and green beans.

3. The best way to avoid GMO food is to buy all organic and limit your restaurant meals.

4. Finally there's a new term we also need to watch for: GEO or genetically engineered organism. This is an organism whose genetic material has been altered...

Of course, those of you who grow your own veggies and raise your own chickens are on the right track. But even with the chickens, you need to be aware of what's in the fed you use...

Here's another article on GMO foods in our grocery stores. This one is from a 2012 issue of the venerable ol' Mother Earth News, haven't heard of them for literally decades.

I am reading more and more studies on the effects of GMOs on lab animals, and on bees, and on weeds. Seems the plants that are modified for use with Roundup are causing superweeds that are becoming resistant to Roundup; kinda like the superbugs that are resistant to antibiotics. We are creating monsters in our own world while killing off bees, who pollinate the majority of our food crops, which means we will have to hand-pollinate crops if we want to eat.

The implications of what you mention Yonuh are mind-boggling. Hand-pollinating crops? Hard to imagine farmers/growers with significant acreages doing that....

GMOS, GEOs: When I was a kid, my dad said, "They're killing people with food additives." And that was several decades ago!

Jabber, your Dad was a very smart man -- and clearly ahead of his time with regard to his understanding of food safety.

Thank you, Anne. As I look back at my childhood, I'm in awe of how smart my maternal grandparents and parents actually were.
I've had people tell me that my adoptive mom would've been running a huge corporation, had she lived in this generation.
And I believe it.