| If you are truly motivated to protect
| |
| | raspberries, strawberries, tomatoes, and
|
| your health and sharply reduce your risk
| |
| | Belgian endive.In fact conventionally
|
| of breast cancer as well as other
| |
| | grown strawberries, according to FDA
|
| cancers, you will want to make the effort
| |
| | inspection data, are laced with more
|
| to purchase organically produced fruits,
| |
| | endocrine-disrupting pesticides than any
|
| vegetables, and grains at every
| |
| | other food.
|
| opportunity. You will also want to
| |
| | Some pesticides, such as the soil
|
| choose, whenever possible, organic nuts,
| |
| | fumigant methyl bromide, threaten human
|
| seeds, herbs, spices, and the foods made
| |
| | and animal health in a more indirect
|
| with them. There is simply too much
| |
| | manner. Some 350 pounds of this poison
|
| evidence that indicates that the
| |
| | gas is used per acre to grow
|
| agricultural chemicals that are routinely
| |
| | strawberries. The U.S. Environmental
|
| used to treat foods are toxic to humans,
| |
| | Protection Agency classifies methyl
|
| and some are deadly.
| |
| | bromide as a “Category-1 Acute Toxin”
|
| In Chapter 6, we reviewed some of the
| |
| | (the highest risk assessment level)
|
| worst threats posed by the overuse of
| |
| | because it is known to cause severe
|
| pesticides in our country and abroad. It
| |
| | poisonings that can result in
|
| is crucial that we do what we can to
| |
| | neurological damage and reproductive
|
| avoid these toxic chemicals.
| |
| | harm. The unique hazard of this gas is
|
| Every time that you choose conventionally
| |
| | that it is a powerful destroyer of the
|
| farmed foods over organic, you are
| |
| | protective ozone. So great is methyl
|
| increasing your cumulative exposure to
| |
| | bromide’s threat to the ozone that 295
|
| chemicals and raising your risk of
| |
| | atmospheric scientists have concluded
|
| disease. If you follow a conventional
| |
| | that the most significant action that can
|
| diet, it is estimated that you will
| |
| | be taken to protect the ozone is to
|
| consume about 150 mcg of pesticides each
| |
| | eliminate all dependence upon this
|
| day.1 Yet, this does not have to be so.
| |
| | agent.11 As the ozone is further
|
| The fact of the matter is that there is
| |
| | depleted, rates of ultraviolet-induced
|
| no “acceptable level” of intake of a
| |
| | skin cancer (now striking 1 in 105
|
| toxic chemical that is a carcinogen, has
| |
| | persons) and cataract blindness continue
|
| hormone- disrupting potential, or causes
| |
| | to soar the world over.
|
| neurological damage.
| |
| | Currently the FDA manages to test only a
|
| Moreover, each time we choose
| |
| | fraction of the foods in the U.S., and
|
| conventionally grown foods over organics,
| |
| | its current analytical methods are only
|
| we are supporting the continued poisoning
| |
| | sensitive enough to detect one-third of
|
| of our nation’s soil, air, and water, a
| |
| | the more than 600 pesticides in use
|
| toxic legacy that will be a burden for
| |
| | today.
|
| generations to come.
| |
| | What Are Organic Foods? Organic foods
|
| In addition to the multitude of legal
| |
| | have been grown without the use of
|
| toxic chemicals that are routinely used
| |
| | harmful synthetic chemical pesticides,
|
| on fruits, vegetables, grains, and other
| |
| | and fertilizers. For a food to be
|
| foods, illegal chemicals (deemed so
| |
| | certified organic, it must have been
|
| presumably because the degree to which
| |
| | grown on farmland that has been free of
|
| they are toxic to humans is beyond the
| |
| | such chemicals for a minimum of three
|
| limits of tolerability) have been
| |
| | years. The mere fact that a particular
|
| detected in the American food supply. In
| |
| | process hasn’t detected a chemical
|
| a review of 14,000 records of the Food
| |
| | residue is not an indication of the
|
| and Drug Administration’s
| |
| | food’s having been grown organically.
|
| pesticide-monitoring program, researchers
| |
| | If a food is truly organic and free of
|
| at the Environmental Working Group
| |
| | harmful chemicals, it must be deemed so
|
| identified 356 illegal uses of
| |
| | by proper posting and certification
|
| pesticides.2 In their review of the data,
| |
| | stickers.
|
| they found that 24.7 percent of peaches,
| |
| | When foods are grown using conventional
|
| 15.7 percent of pears, 12.5 percent of
| |
| | farming methods, they are subjected to
|
| apple juice, and 12.4 percent of
| |
| | enormous quantities of harmful chemicals,
|
| blackberries contained illegal
| |
| | many of which have not been tested for
|
| pesticides, and 11.7 percent of green
| |
| | safety and some of which are established
|
| onions were found to have illegal
| |
| | human carcinogens. In California alone,
|
| pesticides used on them. Remember, all
| |
| | 400 million pounds of farming chemicals
|
| conventionally grown produce is subject
| |
| | are used annually. According to a report
|
| to the application of legal toxic
| |
| | by the National Academy of Sciences,
|
| pesticides.
| |
| | chemical pesticides may cause an
|
| Pesticide Karma Some of the more deadly
| |
| | additional 1.4 million cases of cancer in
|
| pesticides that have been banned from use
| |
| | this generation of Americans.
|
| within the United States are still
| |
| | Not Just Safe – Nutritious Studies have
|
| manufactured in the U.S. and then
| |
| | shown that foods grown organically have a
|
| exported for use in foreign countries.
| |
| | greater nutritional value than
|
| The bulk of them end up being applied to
| |
| | conventionally grown foods. At Rutgers
|
| crops in South and Central America.
| |
| | University, researchers studied the
|
| Between 1992 and 1994, over 45 million
| |
| | mineral quality of conventional produce
|
| pounds of restricted pesticides known to
| |
| | and organic produce and discovered that,
|
| have “very high toxicities and
| |
| | on average, the organically grown foods
|
| environmental hazards” were exported
| |
| | had an 87 percent higher content of
|
| for use outside the United States.3 Since
| |
| | magnesium, potassium, manganese, iron,
|
| 1944, the U.S. has exported nine tons of
| |
| | and copper. Organic tomatoes were found
|
| U.S.-banned pesticides and some 40
| |
| | to yield 500% more calcium than
|
| million pounds of pesticides that are
| |
| | conventional tomatoes.
|
| known hormone disruptors.4 In addition to
| |
| | How To Know It’s Organic Of the 28
|
| the disturbing fact that we are knowingly
| |
| | states that have organic farming
|
| manufacturing a chemical that poses a
| |
| | regulations, only 16 currently require
|
| severe threat to humans, animals, and the
| |
| | certification. In these states, farmers
|
| environment, is the imminent return of
| |
| | of organic foods must be certified by
|
| this toxic cargo on the very fruits and
| |
| | either the state or a private
|
| vegetables that we increasingly import to
| |
| | certification agency that has been
|
| U.S. markets. To allow this is to
| |
| | accredited by the U.S. Department of
|
| sanction the slow poisoning of Americans,
| |
| | Agriculture.
|
| as long as the poison is being applied
| |
| | Certified organic foods will usually have
|
| outside U.S. borders. As an example,
| |
| | a sign nearby indicating that they are
|
| chlordane, a pesticide banned in the U.S.
| |
| | organic. Some fruits and vegetables bear
|
| but exported from the U.S. all over the
| |
| | a small certification sticker as proof.
|
| world, has been detected on fish, rice,
| |
| | If you are buying from a farmer’s
|
| mushrooms, squash, and beef that is
| |
| | market, the definition can sometimes
|
| imported into the U.S.5 While some
| |
| | become blurry. In this case, ask the
|
| supermarket chains have attempted to
| |
| | vendors for some official documentation
|
| assure their customers that their produce
| |
| | that the foods they are selling are
|
| is free of “detectable residues,”
| |
| | indeed organic.
|
| random samplings confirm that such
| |
| | Some markets may provide food designated
|
| promises simply cannot be kept. For
| |
| | as “transitional.” This term applies
|
| example, Richard Wiles of the Washington,
| |
| | during the period leading up to
|
| D.C. based Environmental Working Group,
| |
| | certification. Although synthetic
|
| examined data for a three-year period and
| |
| | pesticides are typically not used on such
|
| found that over 80 percent of peach,
| |
| | produce, the soil it is grown in has not
|
| apple, and celery samples contained
| |
| | been pesticide-free for the required
|
| residues of one or more pesticides. As
| |
| | three-year period for certification. So
|
| many as eight different pesticides were
| |
| | while the produce may not yet have the
|
| detected on a single apple. Among the
| |
| | stamp of approval, it should be safer
|
| detected residues, 12 known carcinogens,
| |
| | than any conventional produce.
|
| 17 neurotoxins, and 11 pesticides that
| |
| | Some foods are more vulnerable to pests
|
| interfere with the endocrine and
| |
| | than others and, consequently, tend to
|
| reproductive systems were identified. A
| |
| | receive a greater degree of pesticide
|
| more recent Food and Drug Administration
| |
| | applications. The graph on (see page 28)
|
| (FDA) study found pesticide residues in
| |
| | depicts the degree to which common foods
|
| 48 percent of the random samples of
| |
| | are treated with pesticides relative to
|
| fruits and vegetables.
| |
| | strawberries, which are considered to be
|
| Moreover, the latest research indicates
| |
| | the most pesticide-contaminated of fruits
|
| that a number of the most commonly used
| |
| | and vegetables. In addition to having the
|
| pesticides have endocrine-disrupting
| |
| | greatest numbers of different residues
|
| properties, and among populations where
| |
| | detected (up to 30 different pesticides
|
| there is the most extreme exposure to
| |
| | have been detected on strawberry
|
| such chemicals through groundwater,
| |
| | samples), in a recent survey,
|
| breast cancer rates are very high.8 For
| |
| | strawberries were found to have the
|
| example, Vinclozolin, an anti-androgenic
| |
| | greatest residues of endocrine-disrupting
|
| pesticide is commonly used on cucumbers,
| |
| | chemicals.
|
| grapes, lettuce, onions, bell peppers,
| |
| |
|
