## Risks and misinformation

It is obvious that GMO technology comes with several risks and potential dangers. In particular, the planting of GMO plants of the first generation led to increased use of various types of toxic sprays in the past (mostly Roundup), which got into the soil and damaged the surrounding ecosystem. It is also possible that the introduction of some GMOs into the wild could compromise natural biodiversity, as these organisms could interbreed freely with wild individuals of the same species, and the offspring of these organisms could displace wild species from their natural environment. Another risk is that if one organism produces proteins that are typical of a completely different type of organism, it could cause unexpected allergic reactions during consumption (if used as food). However, excessive concerns about allergic reactions are generally misplaced for a simple reason – all GMO foods are very strictly tested by agencies responsible for food safety at the state level, as well as at the level of the European Union (in case of most European states). Theoretically, it is also possible that the use of various pest resistance genes might lead to the creation of conditions in which we would select (since only those would survive) extremely resistant types of pathogens. This concern exists, but experimental data do not indicate such a situation anywhere in the world. It is therefore reasonable to use GMO technologies with caution, while continuously controlling the state of biodiversity, pathogens, and other important factors in the environment. Unfortunately, in addition to these (to various degrees) real risks, GMO technology is met with a lot of misinformation, hoaxes and conspiracy theories suggesting that genetically modified organisms can modify human DNA (which they cannot), are less healthy as a food, or contain fewer beneficial substances than their unmodified variants (which does not make sense, since they are designed to produce extra substances in addition to everything that the standard organism normally produces), or they cause diseases (which they do not). It is therefore important for each of us to draw information about GMOs (and other topics as well) from reliable sources and avoid being misled by inaccurate or distorted pieces of information (to find out how to deal with conspiracies and hoaxes in genetics, read chapter 18 - The most common hoaxes in genetics).