Is it Healthy?

There is now even more evidence that what’s good for the environment is good for you, too! Produce that is grown organically is known to have a significantly lower environmental impact than produce grown with pesticides and fertilizers; organic farming results in healthier, more fertile soil, and promotes sustainable agriculture. But a report by the University of California at Davis Long-term Research on Agricultural Systems project now proves that organic produce offers real and immediate benefits to the people who eat it.

In 1993, the food scientists at U.C. Davis set aside ten adjacent fields in the Sacramento Valley to compare produce grown with both conventional and organic farming methods. The project is set to run for 100 years, but has already yielded results. Researchers found that organically grown tomatoes have consistently higher levels of Vitamin C and other antioxidants. For example, they had 97 percent higher levels of kaempferol and 79 percent higher levels of quercetin, both of which are flavanoids, naturally occurring compounds that are linked to reduced risks of heart disease and cancer. Researchers from other universities have found similar results with kiwi fruit, corn, marionberries, strawberries, potatoes, and grapefruit. Alyson Mitchell, a food chemist in the U.C. Davis program, suggests that avoiding chemical fertilizers and pesticides results in hardier plants that, in turn, have higher nutritional value. Plants produce the antioxidants and other phytochemicals to protect themselves against insects. We, then, reap the benefits of those antioxidants when we eat them.

But don’t lose heart if you can’t eat organic all the time. Not all fruits and vegetables benefit significantly from organic farming in terms of nutritional content (the environmental impact remains the same across the board). Red bell peppers, for example, show the same levels of nutrients in both organic and conventionally grown varieties. Once again, local produce trumps all, as produce loses nutritional value in storing and shipping. That means that the spinach you get from your local farmers’ market is much healthier for you than the spinach that was flown over from California, organic or not.

If you are on a budget, but want to reap the benefits of organic produce, here’s a buyer’s guide that will help you decide when to spring for the more expensive stuff, and when to stay on the cheaper side of the aisle:

• Tomatoes, kiwi fruit, grapefruit, corn, and berries are much more nutritious if grown organically.
• Peaches, apples, bell peppers, celery, nectarines, strawberries, raspberries, cherries, lettuce, grapes, pears, spinach, and potatoes all retain high levels of pesticides when grown conventionally. That means that all of the chemicals that go into them, go into you!
• On the other hand, onions, avocadoes, pineapples, mangoes, peas, asparagus, bananas, cabbage, broccoli, and eggplant carry the lowest percentages of pesticide residue after harvesting.

Keep in mind, too, that if you want to be healthier, eating fruits and vegetables is never a bad idea, no matter how you grow ‘em!