It's still uncertain if genetically modified food is dangerous for our health, but a new study suggests that even if GM food isn’t directly making us sick, it might be causing us to gain weight.

For the study, researchers from the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science examined how rats and salmon respond to GM food. The rats that were fed GM corn (genetically modified for pest resistance) slowly got fatter than those who hadn’t been fed GM corn over a 90-day period. They also ate more and grew faster. The same effects could be seen when the rats were fed fish that had eaten GM corn.

In another part of the study, researchers fed GM food to salmon and compared them to salmon that ate non-GM food. Not only did the salmon fed GM food get bigger and eat more, they also developed a different intestinal microstructure, lost some of their protein-digesting ability, and ended up with immune system changes.

As you can imagine, the results have researchers curious on whether these same effects will apply to humans fed GM food. Its worth noting that not all GM food is created for the purpose of looking more appetizing; some help to correct nutritional deficiencies which could potentially help people steer clear of obesity. But seeing as we don't know which is which, we could still be ingesting GM food every day without really knowing what it's doing to our bodies. So here's hoping that these researchers are able to figure it out soon.

via Science Nordic