Is Organic Food Healthier?
丘延亮
Is Organic Food Healthier?
I support the organic movement and started buying organic food as soon as organic alternatives were available to me. I will gladly pay more for an organically produced food item.
For the sake of full disclosure--I’m involved with an organic
product that recently earned the organic seal. The long process made me even
more respectful of the certifying agencies and the seal.
As I studied the
subject more carefully, I became more and more convinced that eating and
buying organic isn’t just about maintaining your own health; it’s about
political change and doing something for the greater good.
I
think that the first, selfish motivation is quite clear. Conventional
food is grown using a multitude of chemical fertilizers, pesticides and
herbicides. We now know that these remain in the food, and are absorbed
by and present in our body. Although conventional growers and food producers
make every effort to convince us that these chemicals are safe and harmless in
these amounts, common sense says that they definitely add nothing good
to our health, and we’re probably better off without them.
Personally, I don’t want to be part of this experiment. We live
in an environment that has hundreds of new, man-made chemicals. It will be very
hard to prove that any single one of them is a direct cause of disease, as they
probably do not have very high toxicity, but overall, this experiment is not
going well so far. Despite major advancements in medical care, the rates of many
chronic diseases are on the rise, and there is some concern that chronic,
repeated chemical exposure contributes to that. While it’s impossible to avoid
exposure altogether, I think that directly ingesting contaminants on a regular
basis isn’t a good idea.
Organic farming
practices
In order to look at the bigger picture of what
“choosing organic” means, we have to understand organic practices. The certified
organic label on a food means that the producers of the food followed several
rules:
o They do not use synthetic pesticides, herbicides, or
fertilizers to grow crops.
o They do not fertilize with sewage sludge.
o Food is not irradiated or genetically modified.
o Organic farmers are required by the National Organic Standards to minimize soil erosion.
o Soil fertility is maintained through practices such as crop rotation, cover crops, and use of composted material (which is basically recycling farm waste into soil nutrients).
o Animals cannot be fed the byproducts of other animals.
o Animals are given access to the outdoors and treated
more humanely (I read several reports that make me believe that the
humane treatment of animals is an aspect that needs more attention).
We
can easily see how important these practices are to the environment:
o An
organic farm doesn’t contribute to the growing problem of chemical
fertilizers’ run-off contaminating our rivers, lakes, oceans and
drinking water. This contamination is persistent, and affects us -- as well as
wildlife.
o An organic farm doesn’t contribute to our worrying dependence on foreign dwindling oil supplies (fertilizers are fossil fuel products).
o Farm workers on organic farms aren’t subjected to a work environment heavily contaminated by pesticides.
o Soil fertility is maintained for future
generations.
o An organic farm recycles its waste, and
doesn’t fill landfills with hazardous waste.
o An organic farm promotes biodiversity.
o Organic practices lead to crops that are more
resistant to drought and pests, and probably are more complex
in phytochemical composition. (Phytochemicals are chemical compounds
derived from plants and fruits; there is evidence from epidemiological studies
that phytochemicals in fruits and vegetables can significantly reduce the risk
of disease.)
And as defined by the USDA National Organic Standards Board
(NOSB):
"Organic agriculture is an ecological production management system that promotes and enhances biodiversity, biological cycles and soil biological activity. It is based on minimal use of off-farm inputs and on management practices that restore, maintain and enhance ecological harmony.”
What does the organic seal mean?
The organic seal was introduced in 2002, and assures that
products labeled as organic meet stringent standards established by the U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA). Under the USDA regulations, In order for a
product to be labeled as “organic” and gain the organic seal it must
contain a minimum of 95% organic ingredients.
The certification
is a very arduous process.
Growers seeking certification have to study
the organic standards. Farm facilities and production methods must comply with
the standards. Extensive paperwork must document farm history and current
practices, and usually must include results of soil and water tests. A written
annual production plan must be submitted, detailing every aspect of farming:
Seed sources, field and crop locations, fertilization and pest control
activities, harvest methods, storage locations, etc.
Annual on-farm inspections are part of the certification process, with a physical tour, examination of records, and an oral interview. Also, short-notice or surprise inspections can be made, and specific tests (e.g., soil, water, plant tissue) may be requested. For first-time farm certification, the soil must meet basic requirements of being free from use of prohibited substances (synthetic chemicals, etc.) for three years.
Certification for food producers is similar. Every aspect of the
production, including ingredients, transport, processing and packaging are
examined and need to adhere to strict standards.
The organic seal is
earned with a lot of effort. The certifiers take their job very seriously, and
for that, they have gained the public’s trust.
Do our choices
matter?
By choosing organic food, consumers send the message to food growers and manufacturers that organic practices are important. The growth of the organic segment has been so dramatic because more and more people are demanding these products. And whether producers sign on to organic practices for ideological or financial and marketing reasons, the result is the same -- less degradation to our environment and a healthier planet.
So, yes, our choices matter a great deal.
If organic
produce seems expensive, bear in mind that conventional foods have many
hidden costs; the expenses associated with personal health and
environmental degradation, for example, just weren't factored in when you bought
them. We (and our children) will pay those costs later. With the prices of
fossil fuels rising, we’ll also see conventional crops costing more (remember,
conventional foods use fertilizers that are made from fossil fuels).
When you consider all the issues from a broad perspective, non-organic food is really just too expensive to even consider.
Is organic food always healthy food?
Organic doesn’t automatically mean “ready to eat now” or even necessarily “good for you”.
A common misconception I’ve encountered is that organic produce
doesn’t need to be washed. Organic produce does need to be
washed – and washed thoroughly. While organic food isn't sprayed
with chemicals, microbial life is teeming between the leaves. Wildlife
visit the fields and can contaminate produce in any number of ways. All produce
is handled by many human hands that aren’t necessarily free of harmful bacteria
and it’s more than likely that produce has been in contact with many surfaces
that aren’t designed to be free of disease-causing germs.
Organic candy,
organic soda or organic French fries, while still a tiny bit better because
they’re free of pesticides, are still (organic) junk food, and should be eaten
infrequently. So you do need to read the labels on organic foods
carefully. If the food is full of sugars, fats, salt or calories, it’s a
dessert, and shouldn’t be viewed as a “health food” (whatever
that means).
“Organic” is not a panacea for all of life’s ills. While it would be nice if organic food folded the laundry and grew hair on bald spots, all kidding aside, it’s vitally important that we understand and apply the limits of what can be expected from organic food.
The organic seal promises that the food has been farmed according to the organic standards -- which are better for you and for the environment. But it doesn’t mean the food itself can’t be junk.
Dr. Ayala
Read more from Dr.
Ayala at http://herbalwater.typepad.com/
Follow Dr. Ayala on Twitter
Related: parenting, organic seal, organic, obesity, nutrition, healthy living, health, food, family, eating, calories
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From the Community…
Posted by ricky125 2 hours 23 minutes ago
Report Abuseok... so, your answer is NO. Organic foods are not any healthier. As a doctor interested in science, you should plainly state this. The articles' title is very misleading, it should read "Why I like organic farming practices".
Posted by DougC 2 hours 20 minutes ago
Report AbuseSorry I think this organic movement is just downright foolish. I was just pricing ribeye steak at Whole Foods Inc.(16.99/lb) and at Sams club(5.89/lb). The difference in price: almost 3X!!! Grass fed for triple the cash, what a joke. Not to mention the substantial decrease in grain yield from going organic. Do you think all the starving people of Africa and Asia would rather starve than eat our standard grain and vegetables? I think not. If the two are the same price go ahead, but paying ludicrous premiums for the same (and sometimes worse) products just does not make good sense. Just FYI I am a RN and have a 1000 acre farm which we make a great premium off of the organic craze so it is good for our business, just not good for the world.
Posted by Lee 2 hours 14 minutes ago
Report AbuseAccording to the Mayo Clinic there is no additional health benefit to organically grown food. If the organic movement took over society my guess is that there would pretty much be mass famine as organic fruits and vegetables tend to go bad faster!
That being said, I too buy organic when it's comparably priced, but I don't look at it as making a statement, that's kind of goofy.
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Posted by Daniel 2 hours 7 minutes ago
Report AbuseAs long as we demand cheap food the Organic movement will flounder. We in the US spend a smaller amount of our after tax income on food than anyone else in the world. Therefore we have more money for the finer things in Life such as nice homes, vacations, cars etc. Increasing the cost of our food by "organic practices" will only lead to a lower standard of living for all americans.
Posted by Chuck 2 hours ago
Report AbuseThe more you find out is the fact that the American way of life is unsustainable, bad for the planet, bad for Americans, bad for all people. Promoting greed and intolerance, while looking down on individuality and self expression. The people that are the happiest on the planet are the most taxed, America in our so free and untaxed society are some of the most miserable people in the industrialized world.
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Posted by sanchuk@... 1 hour 58 minutes ago
Report AbuseI am no advocate of organic farming, but let me add this...I was drinking an organic beer last week and when i looked in the empties case yesterday i saw a pretty gross thing...the organic beer bottle was 1/4 filled with dead flies and magotts...the other beer bottles (name brands) were pretty much left alone...does that tell you anything?
for those of you that are slaming this article (doctor) i ask you to take the equivical amount of pestisides from a full days amount of food, put it on a spoon and eat it...some doctor you are to advocate that, which you obviously are doing. By the way...that was the 1st ORGANIC product I ever bought
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Posted by Lee 1 hour 32 minutes ago
Report AbuseChuck...last I checked, 40% of my income was going to taxes. So I would hardly say I am untaxed...and for the record..I'm pretty damn happy! Now pass me a Big Mac!!
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Posted by dahjb@... 1 hour 8 minutes ago
Report AbuseTHANK YOU FOR THIS SORELY NEEDED FACTUAL ARTICLE!
WAKE UP PEOPLE...CONSUME CLEAN...KEEP THE MALADIES AT BAY!!
david aaron, friends & family
