n o u r i s h

What You Need to Know About Organic Produce

14 Jul 2010 Leave a Comment

by Christine Scarcello in Nutrition, Research, Wellness/Health Tags: Organic

Inspired by a recent article from MSNBC/Prevention, I wanted to write today about organic fruits and vegetables. Often given a bad reputation for high prices and “too good to be true” health claims, choosing to eat organic foods is a personal preference… but one that you should consider in light of current agricultural issues. Keep in mind that this article is based on my opinion of organic foods and a preference for not putting chemicals into my body.

Before the invention and use of pesticides, all food was technically organic. There were no fertilizers, spray pesticides, or genetic modification in our food supply. However, today that is not the case. With the onset of the industrial revolution and booming population, the need for these products was necessary to ensure food supply. One bad year or crop cycle could bring havoc, especially if on a large scale. Farmers and food suppliers depended on things like fertilizers and pesticides to make sure that their crops grew and were free of pests that could destroy their crops.

In the 1960s, a few leaders in conservation began to notice how devestating these chemicals were to people and to the environment. One of the first leaders in the field for organic foods was Rachel Carson, who published Silent Spring in 1962, which detailed the harmful nature of DDT. The first woman biologist hired for the US Bureau of Fisheries, Carson knew her stuff and argued against the use of DDT in our food supply.

DDT was a very strong chemical that can stay in the body for several years, stored in a person’s fat. Though DDT was banned in 1972 by the EPA, traces of it are still found in persons today! Nowadays, pesticides that are used are as potent as DDT if not stronger, but have a much shorter half-life and don’t remain in the body nearly as long. But what you have to remember is that these pesticides are still chemicals, and by eating food containing them you are ingesting them, too.

Your best bet is to avoid what people in the food and nutrition industry call “the dirty dozen,” which are the top 12 fruits and vegetables that contain the highest amount of pesticides. This is bascially due to their porous skin which absrobs the pesticide and is more likely to remain there despite a thorough washing. The following is the list of the updated 2010 dirty dozen, in order of most contaminated: celery, peaches, strawberries, apples, blueberries, nectarines, bell peppers, spinach, kale, cherries, potatoes, and grapes. Kind of disappointing, isn’t it?!! All of these are great sources of nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and powerful antioxidants, yet nonorganic versions are crippled by abundant pesticides on their skin.

Speaking of nutrients, let’s segue into the MSNBC/Prevention article I mentioned at the beginning. This article was devestating for me to read! It basically points out that researchers have found that fruits and vegetables are losing their nutrient power over the last 30 years! I invite you to read the article in its entirety on your own, but I wanted to highlight some reasearch that was discovered. Researchers in the US analyzed produce and found that  43 fruits and vegetables from 1950 to 1999 reported reductions in vitamins, minerals, and protein! One example given is broccoli, which in 1950 had 130 mg of calcium, but today contains barely 48 mg.

In investigating why this has happened, researches found that in efforts to grow produce faster and bigger – through the use of pesticides, fertilizers, and selective breeding – produce is unable to synthesize nutrients or absorb them from the soil. Furthermore, plants have their own defense mechanisms for combating pests and hardship, and when put through that kind of stress they release more phytochemicals. The use of fertilizers and pesticides has allowed plants to avoid that stress and phytochemical production. Another report mentions that organic tomatoes have 30% more phytochemicals than conventionally grown tomatoes!

There are many studies that prove that some organic companies are too good to be true. For example, organic farms too close to conventional farms will absorb the pesticides and fertilizers through soil, wind, and water flow/irrigation. Sometimes these things cannot be helped. If you are interested in purchasing organic food, make sure you do so from a reliable source and look for the appropriate USDA Organic labels. For mixed foods and convenience or boxed items, read the ingredients label to determine how much of the product is certified as organic.

The last thing I want to do is scare you about the fruits and vegetables that you are eating. Fruits and vegetables are excellent sources of many vitamins, minerals, and important antioxidants that we need to fight diseases like cancer and improve our immunity. However, if you want to make a small difference in what kind of produce you buy, buy organic for the dirty dozen. Since these are the fruits and vegetables with the highest concentrations of pesticides, choosing organic for these foods will make a huge difference in the amount of chemicals that you are consuming. Or go one step further and plant your own organic garden in the backyard!!