Organic Foods: Why Consumers Are Advised to Purchase Organic

Organic foods are becoming hot and popular. However, there are many misunderstandings surrounding the topic of organic foods. This article will address those misunderstanding and show you why Organic foods are good for your health, the environment and protecting our food supplies.

Why Buy Organic?

The most popular reason for buying organic is because of the high content of pesticides in organic foods. Recently, a list of the top 12 organic foods or otherwise called the "dirty dozen" has been addressed in many magazines and other literature. These top twelve foods are the items that should be purchased organic because the high content of pesticides. However , I would suggest that there are six additional foods which should be purchased organic. These are: corn, soybean, peanuts, beet sugar (or you can purchase non-organic pure sugar cane), beets, and papaya. The reason I recommend purchasing these organic is because current organic standards include that organic products must not be genetically modified. The list I mentioned of the six foods are often genetically modified. The exception is that no one has made genetically modified peanuts. However, peanuts often cross pollinate with the genetically modified soybeans. Therefore, in a way, peanuts are still genetically changed. Genetically modified foods are foods which have a part of their DNA replaced or removed. Often the plant DNA is replaced with animal DNA which leaves many vegetarians and vegans upset. Are they eating plant or animal?

What are Bad about Pesticides?

Pesticides are carcinogens. Science has proven that although we don't know how pesticides are cancer causing, we do know for sure that eating and breathing in pesticides do increase the risk of cancer. My belief is that pesticides lower our bodies immune system which increase our susceptibility to cancer causing agents. Whether pesticides are the cancer causing agents or whether they simply lower the immune system is still unknown. However, we do know that pesticides kill bugs so is it any surprise to us that they would be bad for us to ingest.

What are Bad about Genetically Modified Food?

There are a myriad of reasons that genetically modified food is harmful or potentially harmful to us. The first is that genetically modified food has the DNA changed. Therefore, the corn that God created and intended us to eat is not the same corn that we are eating in the past 3 years. Many allergies have increased since the conception of genetically modified foods. My biology teacher told us that when a DNA strand is broken, the missing link HAS to be replaced? What happens when we ingest genetically modified foods where part of the DNA strand is missing? We have not tested genetically modified foods before they were introduced into the marketplace. Therefore, what will they do to our bodies? We don't really know.

Additionally, genetically modified food seed can cross pollinate with non-genetically modified seed up to one mile away. Therefore, this makes the other farmers organic crop genetically modified too! Now the neighbor farmer is unable to sell his organic food as "organic". The other problem is genetically modified seed only lasts one year and it can not be re-seeded. The farmer HAS to re-buy the seed plus any neighboring farmers whose fields were pollinated with the seed have to re-buy seed too. This has created a lot of lawsuits. Plus, what happens to our food crops if farmers are forced to buy seed every year? Buying organic (non-genetically modified food) helps ensure that we will continue to have food sources for years to come. You are protecting your children's food source and your children's children's food source.

Genetically modified foods are genetically modified in order to decrease pests. However, butterflies refuse to help pollinate genetically modified foods and therefore many crops are being hand pollinated (by people) now. See the additional danger to our food source? We now need HUMAN pollinators for some of our corn and soy crops! Caterpillars die if they eat genetically modified foods and so do many other pests. If it isn't safe for these creatures, is the food safe for us?

How do I avoid genetically modified foods?

Anything with Soy, Corn, Beets, Beet Sugar or Papaya could be a genetically modified food. Over 95 % of the corn we eat today is genetically modified. Check products and avoid any non-organic High Fructose Corn Syrup or Sugar. Also, non-organic popcorn may be genetically modified, non-organic corn starch, non-organic corn flake cereal and more. Check the soymilk you buy. Many soymilks are non-organic. The same is true with many soy-baed "ice cream treats. Tofutti soy ice cream is non-organic (and probably genetically modified). Also, there are two or three kinds of Silk soymilk that are organic (and therefore not genetically modified) and several kinds of silk soymilk that are non-organic. Be sure to buy the kind that says "Organic" under the title.

Avoiding genetically modified foods will help to protect our health, our children's health, future food sources and the environment. Is there any other better reasons needed to begin buying organic?