Organic Food – Organic Fruits & Vegetables

Organic Crops have higher nutrition
According to some studies, the today's conventional farmed fruits and vegetables contain much lesser vitamin and minerals, as compared to 50 years ago. For examples,

• An average potato has lost all of its vitamin A, more than half of its vitamin C, iron and riboflavin, quarter of its calcium.
• Broccoli loses almost two-third of its calcium and one-third of its iron.

On the other hands, a study had indicated that organic crops contained significantly more vitamin C, iron, magnesium and phosphorus as well as significantly less nitrates than conventional crops. In addition, there were non-significant trends showing less protein but of a better quality and a higher content of nutritionally significant minerals with lower amounts of some heavy metals in organic crops compared to conventional ones.

In a French study on the nutrient qualities of twelve foods grown in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France, the organic foods had showed increased quantities of vitamins A, B, C and E. Furthermore, elements such as zinc, minerals such as calcium, and fibre were also increased.

Conventional Farmed Crops Potential Harmful to Health
There is a strong association between exposure to chemical agricultural herbicide and breast cancer.

• Atrazine, a common ingredient in herbicides, is found causing breast cancer in rats, chromosomal breakdown in the ovaries of hamsters, and hind-limb deformities in frogs.
• A Finnish study also showed that women with high level of a lindane-like (lindane, an agricultural insecticide) residue in their breasts would have ten times more likely to have breast cancer than women with lower levels.

A study by the University of Washington found that children with primarily organic diets had significantly lower organophosphorus pesticide exposure than did children with primarily conventional diets. Their finding showed that children who consumed primarily organic produce exhibit lower pesticide metabolite levels in their urine than children who consumed conventional produce. It is consistent with known agricultural practice because organic foods are grown without pesticides. Therefore, consumption of organic produce represents a relatively simple way for parents to reduce their children’s pesticide exposure.

Determining the safety of a conventional farming method is not always easy and may take a very long time. For example, some of the pesticides widely used in the past, such as DDT, were found to have caused serious heath problems in children. This did not become evident until 30 years later after the substance was banned for environmental reasons. This means that we may not see the full effects of the new, subtler poisons conventional farmers used on their crops for a long time.

Organically Farmed Crops Better for Health
A study by Scottish scientists found that organic vegetable soups contain almost six times as much salicylic acid as non-organic vegetable soups. Salicylic acid helps fight hardening of the arteries and bowel cancer and is the main ingredient in aspirin. It is produced naturally in plants as a defence against stress and disease. Due to the widely use of pesticides in conventional farming, plants don’t have to resist bugs and therefore, they generate less salicylic acid. As a result, they pass less on to us. The same scientists found vegetarian Buddhist monks had significantly higher concentrations of salicylic acid in their blood as compared to meat-eaters.

Tips for Parents
If you are not sure how to go organic, perhaps, you can try starting with foods that will have the greatest impact.

You may download A Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce list from the Environmental Working Group at www.foodnews.org. It provides a guide to the fruits and vegetables that have the highest and lowest levels of pesticides and helps you to figure out which types of fruits or vegetables you should begin with so as to protect your children's or family's health.

Let's Learn & Experience Organics for Better Personal Health & Our Planet Wellness