Produce & Pesticides:
Fruits and Veggies You Should Buy Organic
When you head to your local grocery store, think twice before you purchase conventionally grown strawberries, cherries, spinach, tomatoes and more. New reports from the Environmental Working Group, show that these foods are most likely to be contaminated with synthetic pesticide residue. Pesticides in and on produce is not a theory, it is fact and it is urgent that we spread the news and keep ourselves safe from their toxic effects.
What Are the Effects of Pesticides
Pesticides are chemicals used to protect crops from insects, fungi and diseases. But pesticides can be toxic to humans. When you eat something that has toxins on it, you ingest it and then it goes into your blood stream and is distributed throughout your body. Some pesticides have been known to have negative health effects like cancer, reproduction issues, autoimmune disorders, nervous system problems, and more. There are even scientific links to ADD and learning problems in children.
Like anything else, chemicals can have different effects on us. The effects are dependent on the amount we consume or get exposed to, how our immune systems reacts, and so on but one truth is that we will all experience negative side effects from toxic pesticides. Even low levels of pesticide exposure is harmful to humans so we must also be cautious of what we are putting in our children’s mouths since they have a lower body mass and are in the process of growing and developing all the time.
Dirty Fruits and Veggies
Apples were the top title holder of most pesticides on a fruit for over five years, but for the second year in a row, strawberries are the most contaminated fruit. Strawberries were found to contain over 20 different pesticides.
Here is a list of the most contaminated produce:
Strawberries, Spinach, Nectarines, Apples, Pears, Peaches Cherries, Grapes, Celery, Potatoes, Tomatoes, and Sweet Bell Peppers
Clean Fruits and Veggies
We can’t all afford to eat organically since the costs are higher, so it is good to know which produce is clean and safe to buy.
Here is a list of produce that are safe to buy non-organic:
Cauliflower, Onions, Cantaloupe, Kiwi, Honeydew, Asparagus, Avocados (the cleanest fruit), Pineapple, Cabbage, Sweet Peas, Papaya, Eggplant, and Mango.
So the next time you head out to get your fresh food, think about possibly shopping organic on the dirty dozen list of fruits and vegetables. Or hit up your local farmers market for some organic produce!
You can read more on the EWG’s 2017 Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen list! This is a list that contains the most and least pesticides found on foods. They U.S. Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug tested more than 36,000 samples from 48 types of grown produce.
