12 Foods You Don't Have to Buy Organic
- From: rpautrey2 <rpautrey2@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 18 Aug 2008 13:35:20 -0700 (PDT)
12 Foods You Don't Have to Buy Organic
The Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit organization that
advocates for policies that protect global and individual health,
produces the Shoppers' Guide to Pesticides in Produce. It is based on
the results of nearly 43,000 pesticide tests.
Organic fruits and vegetables are by definition grown without the use
of pesticides. But some find the expense of organic foods
prohibitive.
Of the 43 different fruit and vegetable categories in the Guide to
Pesticides, the following twelve foods had the lowest pesticide load
when conventionally grown. Consequently, they are the safest
conventionally grown crops to consume:
Broccoli
Eggplant
Cabbage
Banana
Kiwi
Asparagus
Sweet peas (frozen)
Mango
Pineapple
Sweet corn (frozen)
Avocado
Onion
Sources:
DrWeil.com July 30, 2008
FoodNews.org Printable Shopper’s Guide
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Dr. Mercola's Comments:
The biggest study ever into organic food – a four-year EU funded
project called the Quality Low Input Food (QLIF) project – found that
organic food is FAR more nutritious than ordinary produce, and can
help improve your health and longevity. You’re likely to hear more
about this again, once they publish their findings in full, which is
expected to occur by the end of this year.
This study may have considerable impact, as its findings may even
overturn government advice – at least in the U.K. – which currently
states that eating organic food is no more than a lifestyle choice.
For example, this study found that:
Organic fruit and vegetables contain up to 40 percent more
antioxidants
Organic produce had higher levels of beneficial minerals like iron and
zinc
Milk from organic herds contained up to 90 percent more antioxidants
The researchers even went so far as to say that eating organic foods
can help to increase the nutrient intake of people who don’t eat the
recommended five servings of fruits and vegetables a day.
Food grown in healthier soil, with natural fertilizers and no
chemicals, simply has to be more nutritious. It is common knowledge --
though knowledge that is greatly suppressed in the United States. But
science is catching up, making suppression of this fact more difficult
to sustain.
A 2003 study in the Journal of Agricultural Food Chemistry, for
example, found that organic foods are better for fighting cancer. And
in 2005, scientists found that, compared to rats that ate conventional
diets, organically fed rats experienced various health benefits,
including:
Improved immune system status
Better sleeping habits
Less weight and were slimmer than rats fed other diets
Higher vitamin E content in their blood (for organically fed rats)
Does this mean that you should ditch all of your conventional produce
and meat, and only buy certified organic foods? Well, yes … and no.
What Should You Buy Organic?
Aside from the fact that organic food contains higher levels of vital
nutrients, organic foods are also lower in other residues and
compounds that are seriously detrimental to your health, such as
herbicide- and pesticide residues.
Additionally, the use of pesticides and herbicides in conventional
farming practices contaminates groundwater, ruins the soil structure
and promotes erosion. They’ve also been linked to the mysterious
“colony collapse disorder” that threatens pollinating honeybees around
the world. With that in mind, buying or growing as much organic food
as possible is not only best for your health, but for the health of
the entire planet.
That said, however, certain fruits and vegetables are subjected to far
heavier pesticide use than others. And with food prices rising, many
are looking for ways to buy the healthiest foods possible at the
lowest cost. One such way would be to focus on purchasing certain
organic items, while “settling” for others that are conventionally-
grown.
This is where the EWG study of pesticide residue on produce really
helps.
Of the 43 different fruit and vegetable categories tested, these 12
fruits and vegetables had the highest pesticide load, making them the
most important to buy or grow organic:
Peaches
Apples
Sweet bell peppers
Celery
Nectarines
Strawberries
Cherries
Lettuce
Grapes (imported)
Pears
Spinach
Potatoes
Conventionally-grown strawberries, in particular, were found to be
highly toxic due to a poisonous blend of pesticides in a previous 2007
EU study as well.
But be VERY careful as the list above is for fruits and vegetables.
Non-organic meats have far higher concentrations of pesticides than
all of the fruits and vegetables. And the highest concentration of
pesticides is actually in non-organic butter.
So if you can only buy one organic food item it should be butter. Next
priority would be meats and once those are addressed, you will want to
focus on the fruit and vegetable list above.
Locally-grown organics are your absolute best bet, but bear in mind
that many times buying locally-grown food is your best choice even if
it’s grown conventionally, as the environmental impact of shipping
organic produce across the globe can cancel out many its benefits.
Organic farming standards are also questionable in many parts of the
world.
These Conventionally-Grown Foods are Low in Pesticide Residue -- But
Watch Out For GMO Varieties!
While you may have heard about the most common GMO food sources, such
as corn, many people are clueless about JUST HOW MUCH of your produce
is now available in GMO varieties. And, perhaps even worse, just how
many deliberate GMO field trials are actually going on, all across the
world.
A perfect example of the repercussions of this practice can be seen in
Hawaii, where non-GMO papaya seed supplies are now so seriously
contaminated by GMO seeds that at least 50 percent of organic seeds
test positive for GMO!
That means you have a greater than 50/50 chance of buying GMO even
when buying organic Hawaiian papaya…
Although the U.S. does not require GMOs to be labeled, you can still
find out whether or not your produce is genetically engineered, by
looking at its PLU code. For example:
A conventionally grown product carries a 4-digit PLU code (Ex:
conventionally grown banana: 4011)
An organic product carries a 5-digit code, starting with the number 9:
(Ex: organic banana: 94011)
A genetically engineered (GE or GMO) product has a 5-digit code,
starting with the number 8: (Ex: GE banana: 84011)
Here are a few other fruits that are LOW in pesticide residue, and
therefore good candidates to purchase as conventionally-grown,
however, double-check to make sure you’re not buying a GMO variety.
Avocado – A new GMO avocado variety is scheduled to be introduced this
year that is immune to “stress” and pests, per an Indian state report
published in March, 2008.
Bananas – The first GMO banana with extra genes that increase its
levels of pro-vitamin A and iron is being unleashed in Australian
field trials this year. At Cornell University, researchers are also
working to develop a banana that carries the hepatitis B vaccine.
Pineapple -- GMO pineapples, designed to produce greater levels of
proteins, vitamins and sugars may already be on the market. Australia
applied for pineapple into environment all the way back in 2002. The
pineapple is called “Smooth Cayenne,” which has delayed flowering and
herbicide resistance. It also contains the tobacco acetolactate
synthase gene (suRB) from Nicotiana tabacum.
Kiwi -- The transgenic variety of kiwi fruit is the Actinidia
deliciosa from Italy.
Remember, if you can't afford to purchase all organic food, at least
aim to buy produce that has a lower toxic load and is non-GMO. For
tips on where to find organic foods, and how to stretch your dollar
when shopping for organic, please read through my Related Articles
below.
Related Articles:
How to Shop for Organic Foods Without Breaking Your Budget
Your Family Could be Eating Organic Food for the Same Price as
Processed Foods -- or Less
The Rise of the Eat Locally Locavore
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