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Health & Fitness

The Big O

Should we eat organic or not? What exactly does organic mean, and the top fruits and veggies you should always buy organic!

To eat organic or not eat organic, that is the question.  Well not really – if price and convenience of shopping were not a consideration I’m assuming we would all eat organic.  At least those of us that have eaten organic and recognize the importance/benefit!  I love organics, crave organics and honestly cannot walk into a local, organic grocery store without experiencing a little bit of the Big O!!  The colors, the smells – everything is alive, fresh, and brimming with nutrients.  You should eat how you want to look and feel – bright, enthusiastic and crisp.  Fill half your plate with fruits and vegetables at each meal and eat them first!!

According to Live the Organic Life.com the definition of “Organic” refers to food grown without synthetic pesticides, insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, hormones, fertilizers or other synthetic or toxic substances.  No artificial flavors or colors have been added. Organic food does not include foods that have been irradiated or Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs).
Organic food is produced by farmers who focus on using reusable resources and to conserve the soil and water so to ensure environmental quality for future generations.
Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones.
Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides, petroleum-based fertilizers, or sewage sludge-based fertilizers, bio-engineering, or ionizing radiation.

We recognize that eating organic may be more inconvenient and costly than running to your corner grocer or big box store and stocking up.  But the benefits far outweigh the costs - especially on the “Dirty Dozen”.  This is made up of the 12 fruits and vegetables that are the most contaminated with pesticides - which are bad for all of us but can be most harmful to pregnant women and children.   The top 5 offenders include apples, celery, strawberries, peaches and spinach.  As a general rule I always recommend to patients to try to buy organic products if you consume the skin of the fruit or vegetable.  I also suggest buying organic butter and organic/free range animal products as well since hormones and chemicals are stored in the fats of the animals we are consuming.

On a lighter and cheaper note to compliment the Dirty Dozen we also have the Clean Fifteen.  These are the produce with the least amount of chemicals and pesticides.  The top contenders are onion, sweet corn*, pineapple, avocado and asparagus.  The Clean Fifteen do not need to be organic.  However - most sweet corn is genetically modified (GMO) so I would personally recommend buying organic sweet corn if you’re looking to stay away from GMO.

The full list of both the dirty dozen and clean fifteen can be found at http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/summary/.  Print it out and put it with your shopping list.  Try to eat 5-10 servings of fruits and vegetables daily, an apple a day won’t keep the doctor away but if you tell her you’re eating 5-10 she’ll be ecstatic!!

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