Is organic food more nutritious?

[David Baxter PhD]

Is organic food more nutritious?
By Jennifer Nelson, M.S., R.D. and Katherine Zeratsky, R.D.
Aug. 19, 2009

If you buy organic food because it's more nutritious, you might be dismayed to learn that it offers no nutritional advantage over conventionally grown food. At least, that was the finding of a study that reviewed more than 150 scientific articles published over the past 50 years. The study concludes that organic food and conventional food have comparable nutritional benefits.

As you might imagine, not everyone agrees with this conclusion. After all, everyone knows that not all beans look or taste alike. All natural products vary in taste, texture, color, and nutritional content, depending on the soil, growing conditions, season, farming practices and other factors such as handling and storage. The study's authors acknowledge these influences, but explain that the few differences in nutrient content between organic food and conventional food are unlikely to have an effect on public health.

What do you think? Will the findings from this study lead you to you change your food buying practices? Until now, did you choose organic food for its perceived nutritional superiority? Or do you buy organic for other reasons, such as avoiding pesticides, herbicides and hormones, or because of concerns about the environment?

References
Dangour AD, et al. Nutritional quality of organic foods: a systematic review. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2009 [Epub ahead of print].

 

[NicNak]

I usually buy frozen fruits. I have heard they are actually fresher cause they are flash frozen just after picking and then shipped frozen too.

Also they make awsome smoothies, when useing frozen fruit. Another added bonus is that I can take just enough for what I will eat and they do not spoil like fresh fruit does.

When I buy fresh fruits and veggies I try to go for home grown ones and consume them as soon as possable.

I actually never did buy organic. With my work I learned there are tons of different regulations all over the world for what constitutes organic. It is all different per country.

 

[ladylore]

I usually buy certified organic friuts and veggies. They cost a bit more but they are pesticide free. I know the nutritional value is the same, but I will pay more so there are not so many pesticides or other things in my food that I don't want in my system.

There is one for of thought that says that Spina Bifida is caused by insecticides being sprayed in the area of pregnant women. I was born with Spina Bifida - true or not - I don't want to do anymore harm to my body with pesticides and insecticides if I can help it.

 

[Banned]

I try to buy organic because of the issue of pesticides. I know it's not any healthier. I suppose I'm doing it because I think I should. I also try to buy organic shampoos and stuff, but for me, it's more important that it's not tested on animals than if its organic.

 

[Andy]

I think it is just paying more for peace of mind. Farmers way of making something that was already healthy,even more healthy, for all the extremely health conscious. I am waiting to see how they make "organic" even healthier. lol
That's just my opinion. Mind you I can't afford organic so maybe I have just convinced myself of this. lol

 

[Daniel E.]

Is Organic Food Healthier or Safer to Eat?

Is Organic Food Healthier or Safer to Eat?
by Robert Paarlberg
May 3, 2010

Robert Paarlberg is the B. F. Johnson Professor of Political Science at Wellesley College and Associate at the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Harvard University. His new book, Food Politics: What Everyone Needs To Know, carefully examines and explains the most important issues on today’s global food landscape. Politics in this area have become polarized and Paarlberg helps us map this contested terrain, challenging myths and critiquing more than a few of today’s fashionable beliefs about farming and food. In the excerpt below we learn about the organic food.
​

Many who buy organic goods believe such foods are healthier than conventional foods because they contain more nutrients. Others believe organic foods are safer to eat because they carry no pesticide residues. Nutritionists and health professionals from outside the organic community tend to question both of these beliefs.

The strongest claim of superior nutrient content has been made by the Organic Center, an institution founded in 2002 to demonstrate the benefits of organic products. In 2008, the Organic Center published a review “confirming” the nutrient superiority of plant-based organic foods, showing they contained more vitamin C and vitamin E and a higher concentration of polyphenols, such a flavonoids. This review was rebutted, however, by conventional nutritionists who showed that the Organic Center had used statistical results that were either not peer reviewed or not significant in terms of human health. Organic milk from cows raised on grass may indeed contain 50 percent more beta-carotene, but there is so little beta-carotene in milk to being with that the resulting gain is only an extra 112 micrograms of beta-carotene per quart of milk, or less that 1 percent the quantity of beta-carotene found in a single medium-size baked sweet potato.

Most certified health professionals find no evidence that organic foods are healthier to eat. According to the Mayo Clinic, “No conclusive evidence shows that organic food is more nutritious than is conventionally grown food.” European experts agree. Claire Williamson from the British Nutrition Foundation says, “From a nutritional perspective, there is currently not enough evidence to recommend organic foods over conventionally produced foods.” In 2009, the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition published a study, commissioned by the British Food Standards Agency, of 162 scientific papers published in the past 50 years on the health and diet benefits of organically grown foods and found no evidence of benefit. The director of the study concluded, “Our review indicates that there is currently no evidence to support the selection of organically over conventionally-produced on the basis of nutritional superiority.” The acidity of organic produce was found to be higher, which enhanced taste and sensory perception, but there was no difference for health.

The claim that organic food is safer due to lower pesticide residues is also suspect in the eyes of most health professionals. The Mayo Clinic says, “Some people buy organic food to limit their exposure to [pesticide] residues. Most experts agree, however, that the amount of pesticides found on fruits and vegetables poses a very small health risk.” Residues on food can be a significant problem in many developing countries, where the spraying of pesticides is poorly regulated and where fruits and vegetables are often sold unwashed, straight from the field. Yet in advanced industrial countries, such as the United States, this risk is seldom encountered. In 2003, the Food and Drug Administration analyzed several thousand samples of domestic and imported foods in the U.S. market-place and found that only 0.4 percent of the domestic samples and only 0.5 percent of the imported samples had detectable chemical residues that exceeded regulatory tolerance levels.

What are the tolerance levels? The United Nations, through the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO), has established acceptable daily intake (ADI) levels for each separate pesticide. The ADI level is set conservatively at 1/100 of an exposure level that still does not cause toxicity in laboratory animals. Moreover, actual residue levels in the United States on conventional foods are well below the ADI level. For example, when FDA surveyed the highest exposures to 38 chemicals in the diets of various population subgroups, it found that for 4 of these 38 chemicals estimated exposures were less than 5 percent of the ADI level. For the other 34 chemicals, estimated exposures were even lower, at less than 1 percent of the ADI level. Carl K. Winter and Sarah F. Davis, food scientists at the University of California-Davis and the Institute of Food Technologies, conclude from these data, “[T]he marginal benefits of reducing human exposure to pesticides in the diet through increased consumption of organic produce appear to be insignificant.”

It is true that conventional foods are sometimes not safe to consume, but organically grown foods can also carry risks. In 2006, bagged fresh spinach from a California farm in its final year of converting to organic certification was the source of E. coli infections in the United States that killed at least three and sickened hundreds. In 2009, there were nine documented fatal episodes of salmonella poisoning from peanut butter and ground peanut products traced to peanut plants in Texas and Georgia, both of which had organic certification.

 

[Daniel E.]

Preparation Tips for Fresh Produce
FDA.gov

When preparing any fresh produce, begin with clean hands. Wash your hands for 20 seconds with warm water and soap before and after preparation.

• Cut away any damaged or bruised areas on fresh fruits and vegetables before preparing and/or eating. Produce that looks rotten should be discarded.
• All produce should be thoroughly washed before eating. This includes produce grown conventionally or organically at home, or produce that is purchased from a grocery store or farmer's market. Wash fruits and vegetables under running water just before eating, cutting or cooking.
• Even if you plan to peel the produce before eating, it is still important to wash it first.
• Washing fruits and vegetables with soap or detergent or using commercial produce washes is not recommended.
• Scrub firm produce, such as melons and cucumbers, with a clean produce brush.
• Drying produce with a clean cloth towel or paper towel may further reduce bacteria that may be present.