If you think you’re getting accurate science from Fox News’ Sunday Housecall, you may want to think again. A segment they did recently, featuring hosts Dr. Marc Siegel, associate professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center, and Dr. David Samadi, Chairman of Urology and Chief of Robotic Surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital, discussing the genetically modified apples approved by the USDA, got it all wrong.
Dr. Samadi pointed out a supposed link between GMOs and obesity, cancer and diabetes, a link that has neither empirical nor evidentiary basis, nor any rationale whatsoever to mention, absent either some agenda or complete ignorance of the subject. Then, the discussion veered into a conversation about strawberries the size of baseballs and salmon that has been engineered to make it more orange. The minor details they are overlooking are that GMO strawberries do not exist and GMO salmon has not been approved the FDA. Furthermore, AquaBounty’s GMO salmon, which has not yet been approved, was not engineered to look more orange, but rather to accelerate growth.
ACSH’s Dr. Gil Ross had this comment: “I guess it’s understandable that Dr. Samadi, whose expertise is in robotic prostate surgery, knows next to nothing about the science of genetic engineering. But why he, or for that matter Dr. Siegel, is given a pedestal on FoxNews from which to opine to susceptible viewers on matters they are ignorant of, escapes me. I’d think the Fox network can afford to get some real experts on to discuss important controversial subjects.”
Related on the SLP
For scientifically sound information on GMOs and agriculture, see ACSH’s publications on the subject available here. But if you want a few laughs, make sure to watch this segment.
Read full, original blog: For a scientifically unsound discussion about GMOs, watch Fox News’ Sunday Housecall
