Based on some things that I have been writing about lately and reading in the news, it got me thinking.

There is complete acceptance, tolerance, and even encouragement in our country for people to eat conventionally-grown food, which has been sprayed with synthetic pesticides.

And make no mistake about it. Food sprayed with these pesticides is food sprayed with poison. Period.

If you drank enough of it, you would die.

Here are some troubling examples that should alarm people. Read more »

Yesterday, I responded to a blog post that the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute put up on its site called “Are Organic Foods Better for You?“, and I heard back from them this morning.

Dana-Farber’s post (which has since been modified – see picture of the original post below) said that “there is no scientific evidence that eating organic foods increases health benefits”.

Not only is this a false statement, but it insinuated that eating conventionally-grown, pesticide-laden foods is just the same as eating organic food. Furthermore, it goes against what the President’s Cancer Panel (PDF File) says – that we should eat foods that have been grown without the use of pesticides.

I lashed out at Dana-Farber and called the post “factually incorrect and morally reprehensible.”

A few hours ago, I got an email from Michael Buller, the Director of Creative & Editorial Services at Dana-Farber, who said the following: Read more »

(PLEASE NOTE: DANA-FARBER HAS SINCE REVISED THE BLOG POST THAT I DISCUSS HERE – TO SEE A PICTURE OF THE ORIGINAL POST, GO TO MY POST WRITTEN ON 7/17/12)

A close friend of mine sent me a link to a post on the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute blog the other day, and reading it made me incredibly angry.

Having grown up in Boston and aware that Dana-Farber is one of the leading cancer hospitals in the world, I am fully aware that criticizing this renowned institution is pretty much heresy.

But I feel obligated to do it anyway because the blog post is factually incorrect and morally reprehensible.

The post is titled “Are Organic Foods Better For You?” and goes on to say that “there is no scientific evidence that eating organic foods increases health benefits.” This is completely and utterly false.

Here are a just a few examples:

– Research done at Washington State University found that organic strawberries had significantly higher antioxidant activity and concentrations of ascorbic acid and phenolic compounds.
Read more »

Sorry to give you GMO-related stories two days in a row (I do my best to space them out), but there is important news that I needed to share with you as soon as possible.

As you probably know, Congress is now debating, drafting and cutting backroom deals regarding the Farm Bill. Since this massive policy initiative and spending bill is only passed once every four years, the stakes are enormous.

Through their massive lobbying efforts, chemical companies have inserted dangerous riders into the House version of the Farm Bill that would hijack the federal regulatory process for new genetically-engineered crops.

If the provisions pass, new GE-crops could be fast-tracked to the marketplace without evaluation by federal agencies. It is essential that federal agencies thoroughly assess the safety of GE-crops before they’re introduced to store shelves and our homes.

The proposed riders in the Farm Bill include: Read more »

TO WATCH THE FULL MOVIE, SEE THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST

If you’re like me, you think of Hawaii as this pristine and gorgeous state where you’d love to own a retirement home.

After seeing the YouTube documentary called “Stop Monsanto From Poisoning Hawaii: Genetic Engineering Chemical Warfare”, I think you’ll change your mind pretty quickly.

As it turns out, Hawaii has been the global center for open-field testing for genetically-modified organisms (GMOs). Over 5,000 tests have been conducted by companies such as Monsanto, Dow, Dupont, Syngenta and BASF, and toxic chemicals get sprayed on an almost daily basis.

Furthermore, GMOs contaminate the local organic farms, which make it difficult, if not impossible, for people to grow or consume non-GMO food. Read more »

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) just announced its revised version of the “Dirty Dozen”  – the 12 most pesticide-laden fruits and vegetables that people should avoid.

Interestingly enough, there has been an outcry calling for the EWG to cease publishing its Dirty Dozen List. I’ll get to this absurd demand in a minute.

Let’s first talk about the Dirty Dozen, and there are a few things to keep in mind:

1) In case you are shopping and can’t remember what is on the list, the basic rule of thumb is this: the fruits or vegetables that have nothing to be peeled off (no skin) generally have the most pesticides.

2) If money is tight and not everyone in the household can eat all organic, kids are the absolute priority. Their bodies are still developing and are very susceptible to the toxic dangers that synthetic pesticides present.

3) If you think that washing with water or scrubbing the fruits with a produce wash is going to take off the pesticides, do not be fooled. The pesticide is already deep inside of the cells of the food, and no wash is going to remove the chemicals. Read more »

As you may already know, we have a very serious crisis going on with bees.

It is referred to as the colony collapse disorder (CCD) and is something that should be on everyone’s radar screen.

Why should we care about CCD?

Bees play an essential role in our food supply – they pollinate our plants. Without bees, it is estimated that we will have four years to live. Right now, the bee population is shrinking by 30% each year.

What’s causing CCD?

Many people believe that CCD is a result of all of the toxic chemicals that we spray on our crops and the huge amount of GMOs that we plant, which provide for no biodiversity.

In an effort to support the bees, Whole Foods has launched a great initiative to educate consumers about this problem and to help raise funds in order to reverse their disappearance.  For the months of June and July, Whole Foods is offering its shoppers the following: Read more »