Originally published December 19 2014
Scientists and media are grossly misleading public on the influence of genes in human behavior
by Jonathan Benson, staff writer
(NaturalNews) The way that practically every disease, health condition and even behavior is blamed on "faulty genetics" these days has thwarted the way that people process scientific information, according to a new study. Researchers from the University of Montreal in Canada found that, when presented with popular scientific articles on genetics and their role in human health, many people added their own preconceived beliefs into the findings, usually blaming everything deviant on bad genetics.
The team, led by Alexandre Morin-Chasse, tracked 1,500 Americans who were presented with various scientific articles on genopolitics, human genetics and emerging research into these and other related fields. Participants were shown articles specifically about research into a particular gene and its effects on one of three traits: breast cancer, political ideology (liberal or conservative) or the tendency to go into debt.
After viewing the material, participants were asked to rate the influence of genetics on various inherent biological traits, including hair color and height, as well as behavioral tendencies such as violence and alcoholism. These factors may or may not have been included in the presented materials, but participants were still asked to choose a percentage score between 0% to 100%, with 100% being completely genetic, for all of them.
Based on this assessment, the research team found that many people believed political persuasion to have some roots in genetics, after reading an article on the subject. Participants also tended to lump other behavioral characteristics and orientations, including sexual orientation, into the genetic category even though the scientific evidence they were presented with made no such claims.
Regardless of whether or not the participants were evaluating articles that dealt specifically with cancer genetics articles covering recent findings from behavioral genetics research, the results were still the same.
"The results indicate that both treatments inadvertently contribute to increasing subjects' impression that genetics also influence other orientations, skills, and behaviors that are at best loosely related to the content of the news," wrote Morin-Chasse.
"This finding highlights an important paradox: The dissemination of news about behavioral genetics unintentionally induces unfounded beliefs that are not supported by the scientific evidence presented, therefore going against the educational purpose of science reporting."
Mainstream media thwarts scientific truths to cover up true causes of disease: pharmaceuticals, GMOs, vaccines and more
Not surprisingly, the mainstream media's sensationalistic treatment of many scientific articles serves one common goal: to condition the public into believing that rising rates of autism, obesity and other modern conditions are a result of bad genetics. In truth, many of these conditions and more are the direct result of biotechnology (genetically modified organisms), pharmaceuticals, vaccines, nutrition, nanotechnology and now even synthetic biology.
If genetic changes are responsible for a particular disease, chances are they may have been brought about by pharmaceuticals or vaccines. Research conducted by Howard B. Urnovitz into the relationship between vaccines and diseases like Gulf War Syndrome and cancer revealed that foreign materials injected into the body can cause genetic damage and potentially lead to permanent changes in a person's genetic memory.
"Generally, science reporters' first goal is to inform the public about scientific developments," added the Morin-Chasse. "However, this practice is not disinterested; some news is purposely written in a manner intended to catch the public's attention with startling results in order to increase or to maintain market shares."
Sources:
http://www.alphagalileo.org
http://bioscience.oxfordjournals.org
http://vactruth.com
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