It seems like organic foods have been all the craze recently. As more people are looking for healthier ways of living, they are buying larger quantities of organic produce, and stores like Whole Foods are gaining high popularity. Jumping on this organic bandwagon myself, I was curious to know if the extra cost of organic foods was actually worth it.
Does buying organic really make that much of a difference?
Studies suggest that organic food does indeed offer greater health benefits than it's conventional counterparts even though the majority of produce found in grocery stores are commercially grown. Commercially grown produce often come from farms which use pesticides and a host of chemicals to control pests. Whenever we eat this produce, we invariably end up ingesting some of these pesticides. Doesn't sound super delicious, does it?
Organic products, however, are produced without any pesticides, growth
hormones, antibiotics, synthetic fertilizers and genetically modified
ingredients. Organic farmers do not use chemicals, sewage-based
fertilizers or pesticides on their plants and soil. Crops are rotated
accordingly and therefore do not deplete the soil of vital minerals.
This results in organic fruits and vegetables being greater in minerals,
enzymes and nutrients, and tasting far superior as well. Michael Pollan,
in his book,
In Defense of Food, states that,
"USDA figures show a
decline in the nutrient content of the forty-three crops it has tracked
since the 1950s. In one recent analysis, vitamin C declined by 20
percent, iron by 15 percent, riboflavin by 38 percent, calcium by 16
percent." Conventional farming practices are stripping away all the healthy nutrients for cheaper alternatives that are in turn depleting us of the nutrients we need.
Label codes (PLU codes) on produce items can help you identify which ones are organic.
- Five-digit label codes starting with the number "8" indicate that the produce is genetically modified.
- Labels with the five-digit code starting with the number "9" indicate that the produce is organically grown and not genetically modified.
A lot of conventional meat and dairy is also full of unwanted ingredients, such as antibiotics and hormones, including rBGH and IGF-I. These have several negative consequences for both the cows and the people eating the meat and dairy from those cows, although the FDA claims that it is safe. Studies have shown that cows who have been injected with rBGH, a genetically engineered hormone that makes them produce more milk, have had a number of deformed calves and increases in mastitis, a bacterial infection which causes inflammation. Producing high quantities of milk unnaturally can cause these cows to become malnourished and therefore more susceptible to disease. In addition, studies have linked higher amounts of IGF-I in humans to colon and breast cancer. Although there hasn't been a direct correlation that this was due to ingesting milk, there is cause for concern. The European Union, Japan, Australia and Canada have all banned the use of rBGH, but America has yet to do so.
And we've all recently heard all the nasty news surrounding "pink slime" (lean finely textured beef - LFTB), where poultry producers treat various beef scraps, fat and connective tissue (amongst other nasty things) with ammonia to kill bacteria. This is then added to other beef products without the necessary use of any additional labeling. AND WE EAT IT! Widespread public attention recently made this phenomenon surface, but this has been going on for years and we had no idea! Once again, the European Union and Canada have banned the use of "pink slime" in their beef products, but we Americans still get to enjoy it... Lucky us!!! Elisabeth A. Hagen, Under Secretary for Food Safety recently
stated that, "The process used to produce LFTB is safe
and has been used for a very long time. And adding LFTB to ground beef
does not make that ground beef any less safe to consume." Hmm, somehow I'm not convinced...
Compared with commercial products, organic meat and dairy not only have no added hormones, antibiotics or other drugs, but they also offer more good Omega-3 fats, antioxidants and Vitamin E. Meat and dairy products that are organic and grass-fed also have higher amounts of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) which may reduce cancer risk. And they are not made with any pink slime!!!
So, is eating organic worth the cost? In my opinion, it is absolutely worth it. Our investment in our long-term health makes it worth the cost. If we choose to not ingest ammonia and arsenic-injected foods, we are making a stand towards hopefully getting these banned in America and worldwide. But I realize that eating exclusively organic is sometimes difficult and does get expensive. I mostly try to eat organic, but it's not always accessible, especially if I am eating in restaurants. Luckily, more and more restaurants are starting to use organic produce as well. If you do buy non-organic produce, be sure to properly clean the fruits and vegetables to rid them of trace pesticides. (Don't forget to clean organic produce as well). It might be helpful to peel the non-organic fruits and vegetables as well. Even though the peel often contains the most nutrients, it also houses the most contaminants. If you can't buy all your foods organic, the ones below typically have the most pesticides and chemicals, so try to at least look for organic versions of the following:
- Apples
- Peaches
- Pears
- Bell Peppers
- Cucumbers
- Spinach
- Celery
- Strawberries
- Summer Squash
Visit the
Eat Well Guide for an online listing of organic, sustainable foods, restaurants, stores, producers and rBGH-free dairy products. Also visit
Eat Wild for a host of information regarding health benefits of grass-fed foods.
