[organic food]
what's a must and what's a maybe
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What makes a food organic?
‘Organic foods are minimally processed without artificial ingredients, preservatives, or irradiation to maintain the integrity of the food,’ says the organic trade association. Essentially, something is organic when it is produced in a way that is pesticide, antibiotic, and synthetic hormone free.
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Which foods are a must?
ConsumerReports.org says that ‘apples, bell peppers, celery, cherries, imported grapes, nectarines, peaches, pears, potatoes, red raspberries, spinach, and strawberries’ are an organic must. These foods often carry the highest level of residue from chemicals and pesticides used when farming. Which fruit had the highest level of pesticides after lab testing? You may be surprised to find out it’s nectarines. Spinach ranks highest for vegetables. Additionally, meats are generally better to buy organic because you reduce the risk of exposure to harmful toxins found in the feed animals eat. Last but not least, and possibly most important, baby food is a ConsumerReports.org must for organic foods. Think about it: baby food is concentrated, condensed fruits and vegetables. If the fruits and vegetables used to make the baby food is full of pesticides, then so is the finished product, and maybe at an even more condensed level.
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Which foods are a maybe?
‘Asparagus, avocados, bananas, broccoli, cauliflower, sweet corn, kiwi, mangos, onions, papaya, pineapples, and sweet peas’ are an organic maybe reports ConsumerReports.org.
In lab testing, these foods rarely showed significant amounts of pesticides. Additionally, the same was found for foods like potato chips, pasta, cereals and canned and dried fruits.
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Which foods are not worth the extra buck?
Interestingly enough, seafood has no organic standards yet. It was found that, ‘Whether caught in the wild or farmed, fish can be labeled organic, despite the presence of contaminants such as mercury and PCBs.’ So, until a universal standard is set for seafood it is not wise to waste the money on claims of being organic.
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When does it really pay to buy organic?
If money is no object, buy organic as much as you can. However, if money is a consideration, and let’s face it, organics are often considerably more than their regular counterparts, then follow the ‘must’ list above to provide you and your family with the safest nutrition available
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To see the whole ConsumerReports.org article on organics and to get the scoop on other foods and products, go to:
consumerreports.org