12 Foods You Must Buy Organic. ~ Jessica Hoffman & Debra Boutin

Please "like" our facebook pages: Main Page
Yoga / Love / Food / Wellness / Spirituality / Family / Culture / Green / Society / Work
Enjoy the top 10 blogs of the week free in our e-newsletter.

Via elephantjournal.com

on Mar 15, 2012

12 Foods You Must Buy Organic. ~ Jessica Hoffman & Debra Boutin

The Dirty Dozen Pesticide List: Why it Matters to Eat Organic.

This article is adapted from the Bastyr University Blog.

Pesticides and fungicides are sprayed on crops as a way to protect our food supply from bugs and pests. However, pesticides don’t simply wash off. These pesticides and fungicides penetrate our foods, and as we eat these foods we also are ingesting these harmful products.

The easiest way to avoid pesticides and fungicides is to choose organic fruits and vegetables. But if buying all organic puts too much of strain on your pocketbook, the safest place to start is with the “Dirty Dozen” list of produce containing the highest levels of pesticides.

Many of the items on the list contain multiple pesticides, some with as many as 60 different types. Although we are exposed to hundreds of pesticides a day, making some simple changes to your diet—such as not buying food off the Dirty Dozen list or buying the organic version—can reduce your exposure to pesticides and reduce health risks.

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) compiles a list of the fruits and vegetables with the highest amounts of pesticides and fungicides to help consumers make informed decisions about when to buy organic.

The 2011 Dirty Dozen list:

Apples
Celery
Strawberries
Peaches
Spinach
Imported nectarines
Imported grapes
Sweet bell pepper
Potatoes
Domestic blueberries
Lettuce
Kale/collard greens

For more information on pesticide health risks, visit the Environmental Protection Agency website, which provides human risk assessment informational fact sheets on pesticides/fungicides in alphabetical order.

Jessica Hoffman, dietetic intern, and Debra A. Boutin, MS, RD, chair and dietetic internship director, Department of Nutrition and Exercise Science at Bastyr University.

Incorrect source, offensive, or found a typo? Or do you want to write for Elephant?

elephant journal is dedicated to "bringing together those working (and playing) to create enlightened society." We're about anything that helps us to live a good life that's also good for others, and our planet. >>> Founded as a print magazine in 2002, we went national in 2005 and then (because mainstream magazine distribution is wildly inefficient from an eco-responsible point of view) transitioned online in 2009. >>> elephant's been named to 30 top new media lists, and was voted #1 in the US on twitter's Shorty Awards for #green content...two years running. >>> Get involved: > Subscribe to our free Best of the Week e-newsletter. > Follow us on Twitter Fan us on Facebook. > Write: send article or query. > Advertise. > Pay for what you read, help indie journalism survive and thrive. Questions? info elephantjournal com

theawakenedlife says:

March 16, 2012 at 01:00

Thanks for informing. Featured on Elephant FB page: https://www.facebook.com/elephantjournal

Cheers,
Jeannie Page

Jill Barth says:

March 16, 2012 at 07:12

We posted this to the Elephant Green Facebook page. Thanks for sharing!

Jill Barth, Green Editor
Join us! Like Elephant Green on Facebook

4 Things to Do to Keep your Liver Happy . ~ Lela Altman | elephant journal says:

March 16, 2012 at 09:00

[...] Nonorganic foods in general, but especially meats, poultry, eggs and [...]

Check Out The ‘Dirty Dozen’ List Of Foods You Must Buy Organic says:

March 19, 2012 at 13:27

[...] Here’s The 2011 Dirty Dozen List: [...]

@MeditateThis says:

March 20, 2012 at 15:51

The better informed we are, the better choices we can make before buying food. http://meditate-this.blogspot.com/2010/12/when-to…

Bob Weisenberg says:

March 21, 2012 at 08:23

Just posted to "Featured Today" on Elephant Health & Wellness homepage.

Bob W. Associate Publisher
facebook, twitter, linkedIn
Yoga Demystified, Gita in a Nutshell

Linda V Lewis says:

March 21, 2012 at 10:14

Wow! I always thought you could wash off the pesticides on fruit–or above ground food. So I thought prioritizing carrots and potatoes, etc. was the main reason to buy organic because of their being in the ground and absorbing the poisons.

Mel says:

March 23, 2012 at 23:25

If organic foods are unavailable or too expensive for your budget you can try: Dr.Parcells food bath. Using Clorox (which is not chlorine) it is sodium hypochlorite,and breaks down into salt & water. The formula: Use 1 teaspoon of Clorox to 1 gallon of purified water. Soak for the specified amount of time then place them in clear water for 10 minutes. Dry & Store. The recommendations are Leafy Veggies 15 minutes. Root & Thick skinned 30 Thin Skinned-Berries,Plums,Peachs Etc 30 minutes.

Rosanna Boutwell says:

March 24, 2012 at 03:00

I cannot vouch for it’s environmental friendliness, but in my experience Caldesene powder is 3-4 times more effective on diaper rash than Desitin, and it is less of a mess. It’s in a pink “shaker” bottle like baby powder but round. I think the active incredient is zinc.Report this comment as spam or abuse

Megan McCarver says:

March 26, 2012 at 10:54

Thanks for the share. I added to my facebook follwers grapes, eggs, tofu (including soy products) and All dairy.

Neti Kriya, Lotus & How to Quit Smoking. ~ Tatieva | elephant journal says:

March 26, 2012 at 16:45

[...] [...]

periodistia says:

March 28, 2012 at 06:43

Hi, I'm an Spanish journalist.
Thanks for your interesting article, whic I mention in my personal blog, in a post about organic food, written in Spanish: http://periodistia.blogspot.com.es/2012/03/alimen…

Who's Hungry? Urban Foraging in Denver Just Got Easier. ~ Oz Osborn | elephant journal says:

April 7, 2012 at 13:54

[...] “Paint chips, pesticides, motor oil spills and even car wash runoff can affect the quality of the sources you pick [...]

Top 10 Foods for Better Sex. | elephant journal says:

April 25, 2012 at 04:58

[...] Food is a world, sex is a planet and you’re the story. All of your parts are created equal. So, whether you choose to be a sex machine or a nun/monk, or a sexy intellectual, or… (the options are limitless)—as long as you remain human—your sexuality is a fact, and, like all facts, it needs to be nurtured. [...]

How to Buy Tolerable Products. | elephant journal says:

May 4, 2012 at 07:51

[...] begin and end with one company. Again, from The Cornucopia Institute: Federal law requires that organic food products be produced promoting ecological sustainability, without the toxic inputs and genetically [...]

Eight Healthiest Vegan Foods | elephant journal says:

May 14, 2012 at 14:29

[...] are many healthy foods on Earth, but the following foods are the highest in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Including these [...]

Eight Ways to Make Healthy Eating Affordable. | elephant journal says:

June 15, 2012 at 21:08

[...] Get to know the “dirty dozen” and the “clean [...]

Eight Ways to Make Healthy Eating Affordable : Living Green Magazine says:

June 20, 2012 at 06:10

Green Goddess Smoothie. ~Karla Rodas | elephant journal says:

March 7, 2013 at 06:13

[...] For the best quality and benefits, use organic produce. [...]