The 10 Most Contaminated Fruits and Vegetables

Everyone has heard reports from one source or another on the dangers of pesticide exposure. According to the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, a causative relationship has been established between low level pesticide exposure and Parkinson's disease. Another study warns that the fruits and vegetables today have less nutritional value than those that were grown before modern farming methods became commonplace. Many tune out the reports of pesticides in food as you would background noise reasoning that pesticides are everywhere and can't be avoided. Yet, if you are like most people you go to the grocery store and carefully select fruits and vegetables, avoiding bruised spots and unattractive produce. You leave skins on fruits whenever you can for the nutritional value and try to eat five servings a day for the health benefits. One reasonably easy way to control exposure to unhealthy chemicals is to buy organic produce when necessary. You might wonder, how do I decide which items to buy organic and which ones are okay to pick up anywhere? Here is a list of the top 10 most pesticide laden produce. Buy these organic.

1) peaches
2) apples
3) sweet bell peppers
4) celery
5) nectarines
6) strawberries
7) cherries
8) kale
9) lettuce
10) imported grapes

Out of these, peaches are the most contaminated. Domestic grapes are number 41 on the list.

Supermarkets usually have a limited selection of organic produce. It takes a little extra legwork to find chemical free produce. Good sources are: specialty stores, co-ops, and farmer's markets. Organics can be pricey, so it makes sense to prioritize purchases and only buy organic for fruits and vegetables on the 10 worst list.

The least contaminated are:
1) Avocado
2) Sweet Corn
3) Pineapples
4) Mango
5) Sweet Peas
6) Asparagus
7) Kiwi
8) Bananas
9) Cabbage
10) Broccoli
11) Eggplant
12) Onions

These are probably okay to buy non-organic. Whether purchasing organic or non organic it is prudent to wash your food carefully, remove the skins whenever you can, and eat a varied diet.

If this isn't enough to convince you here are few more reasons to go organic.

It helps keep our farm workers healthy. The pesticide heavy, intensive farming methods are the cause of respiratory and other health problems. They are the ones applying the pesticides and most likely getting a large exposure.

Organic produce tastes better. I never would have believed until I tried them myself, but the difference in flavor is marked.

You will be supporting the use of heirloom varieties of fruits and vegetables. These are the kind our grandparents planted. They may not have the disease resistance of the modern varieties but it would be a shame to lose the genetic variety of great tasting fruits and vegetables.

Finally, for the best value buy organic in season and take advantage of that empty space in your freezer. You will have a supply of your own freshly preserved, tasty and healthy produce.

organicfoodee.com

environmental working guide

Journal of Occupational and Environmental medicine