Shop wisely

With the growing awareness of food safety and health and the shrinking bank accounts from this somewhat stagnant economy, it’s important for the consumer to shop wisely. As a health conscious eater and shopper, I would love to purchase everything organic produce, however my wallet doesn’t quite support those desires. Now that I have finally accepted the importance of organic foods I question whether all food need to be organic. I was sharing my dilemma with a fellow nutritionist and learned that although it is better to eat organic, everything does not HAVE to be organic; there are some wise choices that can save a ton and still be nourishing. Because some fruits and vegetables have thicker skins or are peeled, they are less susceptible to residual pesticide and are relatively safe even when conventionally grown. Research done by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) revealed 15 foods that have the lowest pesticide load.

These are:

• Onions
  
• Avocados
  
• Sweet Corn
  
• Pineapples
  
• Mangoes
  
• Sweet Peas
  
• Asparagus
  
• Kiwi
  
• Cabbage
  
• Eggplant
  
• Cantaloupe (Domestic)
  
• Watermelon
  
• Grapefruit
  
• Sweet Potatoes
  
• Honeydew Melon
  

On the contrary there are some foods that you should absolutely consider buying organic due to the high pesticide load. These are:

• Celery
  
• Peaches
  
• Strawberries
  
• Apples
  
• Blueberries (Domestic)
  
• Nectarines
  
• Sweet Bell Peppers
  
• Spinach
  
• Collard Greens/Kale
  
• Cherries
  
• Potatoes
  
• Grapes (Imported)
  

Ideally you would want to buy everything organic since contamination occurs not only on the food but also in the soil, however if you had to choose then follow the suggestions above. For a complete list of pesticide content visit http://foodnews.org/

 

Any questions?

Nutritionize

Ritu Riyat