Are organic foods healthier than conventional foods

About the Author Samantha
"Health is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity." - World Health Organization

Natural food in my opinion is a healthier choice.

I will share with you why I feel eating natural food will provide better long term health benefits. When I say natural food, I mean food that is not man made.

Natural food does not have chemicals, additives or growth hormones. Natural food is simply food grown organically the way nature intended.

Why are we experiencing so much sickness today, particularly in the western world? I strongly believe it is because of the lack of knowledge when it comes to proper nutrition and not incorporating natural and organic foods into our diet.

It seems as if the system is treating us like cattle, fattening us, then leading us to the slaughter. We are a society bred for disease solely to sustain the food and pharmaceutical conglomerates.

If drug companies invented a cure for disease, they would be out of business. Realize that your body is a remarkable piece of machinery. It has the capability to heal itself. But upon the first sign of pain, we reach for a prescription or non-prescription drug.

This may provide temporary relief, but does not change the cause of the problem. This is why I choose to eat natural food and live an organic lifestyle. Let me give you another example. Food manufacturers are pressed against time and have a fiduciary responsibility to its shareholders.

They need to mass-produce large quantities of their fruits and vegetables. How do they do this? They grow their fruits and vegetables faster and in huge quantities with the aid of chemicals.

So the fruits and vegetables you buy at your local supermarket are laced with toxic chemicals. Over time these toxins can make you sick.

For this reason, it is better to eat natural food that is organically grown. Are organic foods healthier than conventional ones? I think you may say yes.

In the meat industry they also need to mass produce, so they feed their livestock chemicals and growth hormones, this way the animals grow bigger and faster. Could this be the reason our children are becoming obese at an earlier age? It is quite possible. The meat industry also uses sneaky tactics to trick consumers into thinking the meat is still fresh.

You may have read recently about carbon monoxide being put into meat to keep that fresh rosy look. You can experiment by placing meat on your kitchen counter, leave it exposed for a few days and notice it will still have that "fresh" meat look. They add the carbon monoxide in small quantities through a procedure called "modified atmosphere packaging" and it's approved by the FDA. This is not natural food and the practice is deceptive. Again are organic foods healthier than conventional ones? It would seem so.

It is important to get educated when it comes to health. Today with the internet and the information age, there is no excuse. When it comes to our health, ignorance is not bliss. Ignorance can be hazardous to one's health. Have more control of your health and your diet. Learn about natural food products and how you can include them into your dietary regimen.

Organic Vegetables Safety

Julian Hall
How Safe is the Organic Food You Eat
5 Common myths surrounding organic vegetables safety

1. No nutritional difference between organic and conventional produce.

According to the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics the demand for organic foods are increasing due to consumers believing they are safer and healthier than conventional foods.

Even though there are still gaps and limits in scientific knowledge, what we do know is that fewer chemicals are used in small organic farming than conventionally grown alternatives.

It is well documented that residues remain on our conventional foods and consumed by us over decades, aids heavily to accumulating fatty tissue.

Organic food regulations prohibit hydrogenated fat, phosphoric acid, preservatives, colourings, hormones, antibiotics, GMOs and 7000 other artificial flavourings that are permitted in conventional food.

There is also the environmental issue to which the organic farming method lends its benefits. The use of drugs is restricted in organic farming which not only keeps animals healthy but results in cryptosporidium, listeria and almonella being a rare occurrence in organic foods.

There is a direct relationship between intensive cattle-rearing and E.coli which is virtually non-existent in organic beef, but kills over 200 Americans and Britons each year.

2.Consumers are paying too much for organic food?

This debate has grown since the days of comparing the price of an organic apple for a conventional apple. It seems that the 'value' of organic produce goes beyond its price tag.

Nutritionally and in relation to organic vegetables safety: In terms of dry weight and nutrients, organic food tends to have more in it Why?

Produce grown organically through modern methods of small organic farming must be done in enriched soil. The growth of a plant can be sped up by agrochemicals changing its structure to have more water in it. As a result, non-organic produce can sometimes shrink more on cooking as the water content dissipates.

Price: Average price difference is 20 per cent between organic and non-organic. However given that it can contain up to 26 per cent more dry matter (less water) could it actually be cheaper to buy organic?

Conclusion: It may still look like an apple you are actually buying less food if you don't buy organic.

3. Organic food and weight loss.

Organic butter can still make you put on weight and clog up your arteries. Organic sweets and sugar will still rot your teeth. However, certain kinds of organic food based nutrients found in vegetable broth can act as appetite suppressants as it does not contain excitotoxins. What are excitotoxin? These ingredients can cause neurological disorders by overexciting nerve cells and so causing hunger and concerns over organic vegetables safety if taken too literally.

Ingredients such as vegetable proteins, autolyzed yeast extract, MSG, yeast extract and others. This is perhaps more important in babies who can eat five times the amount of food per kg as an adult. Therefore, making sure they eat correctly and to not overeat is nowadays a growing concern. Babies in particular eat far more fruit and vegetables than most adults and are the very foods most likely to be covered in agrichemical residues.

4. The public is happy with regular, non-organic produce.

Some say that the public is happy with what's on the supermarket shelves, however various consumer surveys in Europe show many people are worried about pesticides, NPK fertilizers in small organic farming and processed food in general. In the United Kingdom a survey found 44% of all consumers were concerned about pesticides and 43% about the use of food additives (Food Standards Agency, 2003). This suggests that organic food based nutrients is something which people are taking more notice of.

5. Organic farming increases the risk of food poisoning.

The Department of Nutrition in Greece said:

"It is difficult...to weigh the risks, but what should be made clear to consumers is that 'organic' does not equal 'safe'.

Much of this was based on the theory that if we don't use 'modern' day chemical pesticides that bacteria such as E Coli could not effectively be treated on crops. However studies made by S.K. Sagoo, C.L. Little & R.T. Mitchell on the microbiological quality of organic vegetables in UK small organic farming & demand showed that: "The majority (3185 of 3200; 99*5%) of samples were found to be of satisfactory/acceptable quality whilst only 15 (0*5%) were of unsatisfactory quality. Unsatisfactory results were due to Escherichia coli and Listeria spp.....The absence of pathogens and the low incidence of E. coli indicate that overall agricultural, hygiene; harvesting and production practices were good" this seems to enhance the organic vegetables safety record.

They suggested that the growth in the organic market has reflected an increase in the associated microbiological safety and similarly, organic vegetables safety.