Natural Organic Foods

Individuals can reverse disease, reduce high blood pressure, lose unwanted weight, lower your cholesterol levels, prevent heart disease and cancer, and improve your health - all without relying on drugs and fad diets. The importance of good nutrition is emphasized in Dr. Fuhrman's dietary program, Eat To Live. (Figure 1) Reduce high blood pressure, reverse diabetes and dramatically lower cholesterol without drugs. Dr. Fuhrman offers advanced nutritional advice based on scientific research. To learn more go to Dr. Fuhrman web-site For Superior Health and Your Ideal Weight at: http://www.drfuhrman.com

Dr. Fuhrman's dietary program, Eat To Live. (Figure 1)

When people buy organic, individuals do minimize their pesticide exposure, and they are also minimizing the amount of these pesticides that their environment is exposed to. Organic farming is clearly the more environmentally-friendly choice to make. According to the USDA, organic farming“integrat[es] cultural, biological, and mechanical practices that foster cycling of resources, promote ecological balance, and conserve biodiversity.”Supporting organic agriculture will increase the demand for organic produce and decrease the percentage of farmland (and farm workers) exposed to potentially harmful agricultural chemicals.

Organic produce usually has more nutrients – especially minerals and antioxidant nutrients – than conventional produce. Organic apples, plums, blueberries, grapes, strawberries, and corn have all been shown to have higher antioxidant capacities than their conventional counterparts. Organic strawberries were even found to have more anti-cancer activity than conventional strawberries! Scientists have theorized that when the plants are grown without pesticides, they are forced to deal with the stress of insects, which causes them to produce more antioxidant compounds, which are beneficial to humans.² Buying organic is a wise choice – organic foods taste better, and organic agriculture protects farmers and our environment.

The Environmental Protection Agency reports that the majority of pesticides now in use are probable or possible cancer causes. Studies of farm workers who work with pesticides suggest a link between pesticide use and brain cancer, Parkinson’s disease, multiple myeloma, leukemia, lymphoma and cancers of the stomach and prostate.³ Organophosphate exposure (organophosphate pesticides are used on several crops including corn, apples, pears, grapes, berries, and peaches) are associated with ADHD, behavior problems, and neurodevelopmental deficits in children.⁴ A number of pesticides may have damaging effects on the brain that contribute to Parkinson’s disease, including paraquat, which is used on a variety of vegetable crops, and organochlorines.^5,6 Exposure to organochlorines occurs primarily via fatty foods like meat, dairy, and fish.⁷

The individual’s that are concerned about pesticides and chemicals, keep in mind animal products, such as dairy, fish and beef, contain the most toxic pesticide residues. Because cows and steers eat large amounts of tainted feed, certain pesticides and dangerous chemicals are found in higher concentrations in animal foods. By centering the diet on unrefined plant foods individuals will automatically reduce their exposure to the majority of dangerous chemicals. (Figure 2)

References

¹U.S. Department of Agriculture. http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/nop

²Grinder-Pedersen L, Rasmussen SE, Bügel S, et al. Effect of diets based on foods from conventional versus organic production on intake and excretion of flavonoids and markers of antioxidative defense in humans. J Agric Food Chem. 2003 Sep 10;51(19):5671-6. Olsson ME et al. Antioxidant levels and inhibition of cancer cell proliferation in vitro by extracts from organically and conventionally cultivated strawberries. J Agric Food Chem. 2006 Feb 22;54(4):1248-55.

³Sanderson WT et al. Pesticide prioritization for a brain cancer case-control study. Environ Res. 1997;74 (2): 133-144.⁴Bouchard MF, Bellinger DC, Wright RO, et al. Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Urinary Metabolites of Organophosphate Pesticides. Pediatrics 2010;125:e1270–e1277⁵Dinis-Oliveira RJ et al. Paraquat exposure as an etiological factor of Parkinson's disease. Neurotoxicology. 2006 Dec;27(6):1110-22.
⁶Fleming L. Parkinson's disease and brain levels of organochlorine pesticides. Ann Neurol. 1994 Jul;36(1):100-3.
⁷United States Center for Disease Control Third National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals: Organochlorine Pesticides

Organic Produce verse Conventional Produce (Figure 2)

From: http://www.drfuhrman.com/library/organicvsconventional.aspx

This Article was by Michelle at People's Natural Living