The main reason why we buy organic produce is that it does not have any pesticides that all conventional conventionally grown fruits and vegetables have. It’s also great to know that they taste better too. Pound for pound, these are more nutritious, studies have proven that organic products like strawberries will have more nutrients like vitamin C and antioxidant compounds compared to non-organic products.
Avoiding pesticide contamination
These pesticides though way below threshold levels according to some experts will accumulate inside your body in a process called bioaccumulation so it is important that you limit exposure. Prolonged exposure can lead to diseases such cancer, birth defects, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases.
One way of limiting exposure is by looking for produce with the least amount of pesticide content and that’s where the Environmental Working Group comes in. They publish an annual list called the dirty dozen and clean fifteen that ranks fruits and vegetables based on pesticide residue.
The infographic below which is based on the information found in the EWG website will list in detail not only the dirty dozen but also other nuggets of information that may shock you. Here’s one, did you know that a conventionally grown potato had more pesticides by weight when you compare it to other foods?
Use it as a shopping guide
You can right click, save and print this infographic so you can bring it when you do your groceries as a reference guide which items to buy organic and which ones to buy conventional – this is a great way to save while still being able to enjoy the benefits of organic. It also includes other tidbits of information like what the numbers on labels mean (no, that isn’t the barcode number) and 5 places where you can buy affordable organics.
