Don\'t Put That Dirty Thing In Your Mouth: When Organic Is Important

How do you know when you should be buying organic foods if you can’t or don’t want to buy all of your food organic? I’m a <a href=\”/alex-michaud/\” class=\”ui-editor-link-external\”>therapist– not a dietician</a>– and while I have done a fair amount of reading in regards to food, that’s not my area of expertise. There are some things that I do know very well, however.
Our food can have a tremendous impact on our bodies and we already live hard enough. Why not treat it a little bit better starting today? I’m going to help you do just that by sharing with you two lists that were shared with me early in my career: the “Clean Fifteen” and the “Dirty Dozen”.
The Dirty Dozen
Let’s begin with the Dirty Dozen, a list of foods that you should buy organically. Why, you ask? Because these foods are shown to have the highest rate of pesticide residue left on them at the time of purchase (when buying them non-organic).
<ol>
<li>Apples</li>
<li>Celery</li>
<li>Cherry Tomatoes</li>
<li>Cucumber</li>
<li>Grapes</li>
<li>Hot Peppers</li>
<li>Nectarines</li>
<li>Peaches</li>
<li>Potatoes</li>
<li>Spinach</li>
<li>Strawberries</li>
<li>Sweet Bell Peppers</li>
</ol>
Two others have been added as of 2013: Collards & Kale, and Squash/Zucchini
What you may notice about all of these things is that these are fruits and vegetables that we typically eat the skin of, or eat in their whole form. More on that in a minute.
 
The Clean Fifteen
The Clean Fifteen are things that are generally safe to purchase non-organically or “conventionally”.
<ol>
<li>Asparagus</li>
<li>Avocado</li>
<li>Cabbage</li>
<li>Cantaloupe</li>
<li>Corn</li>
<li>Eggplant</li>
<li>Grapefruit</li>
<li>Kiwi</li>
<li>Mangoes</li>
<li>Mushrooms</li>
<li>Onions</li>
<li>Papayas</li>
<li>Pineapples</li>
<li>Sweet Peas (frozen)</li>
<li>Sweet Potatoes</li>
</ol>
While not exclusively true in this group, many of them have exteriors or coverings that we don’t eat and protect the edible parts from the pesticides. This is generally a pretty good rule to follow; if they have a shell or exterior that you don’t eat, it’s safer to buy conventionally but if you’re eating the whole thing, buy organic.
This list of information is put out by the Environmental Working Group. According to their website, “The Shopper’s Guide™ is based on laboratory tests done by the USDA Pesticide Testing Program and the Food and Drug Administration. Most data come from USDA tests, which include a large number of food crops and pesticide residues.”. The Environmental Working Group is a neutral, non-partisan organization dedicated to environmental health research and advocacy including the promotion of individuals to eat more vegetables and fruit.
To learn more about them, you can visit their website: <a href=\”http://www.ewg.org/about-us\”>http://www.ewg.org/about-us</a>
Help yourself today by treating your body better. Switch some of your intake to organic and spare yourself from some of the chemicals.
 By <a href=\”https://plus.google.com/105182342113293066704?rel=author\”>Alex Michaud</a>. Counseling Denver for a better life.