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Better Choices

5 Reasons to Eat Organic Apples

In a previous post, I wrote that milk is the most important organic product that a family can buy.

But milk is by no means the only item that people should be concerned about.

The worst offender on the Environmental Working Group’s Dirty Dozen list are apples.

Forbes magazine recently did an excellent piece talking about five reasons to eat organic apples, and I wanted to share the highlights with you and provide commentary. To read the full article, click here.

Reason #1 – The average conventionally grown apple has more pesticide residue on it than any other fruit or vegetable.

Data from the Environmental Working Group showed that 98% of 700 apples tested had pesticides on them and that 48 different pesticides appeared. WOW!!!!

48 different pesticides are being used on apples. This I did not know.

Reason #2: We are not quite sure what some of those pesticides do to humans or the environment.

Well, I’d say we have a decent idea what these pesticides are doing to humans and the environment. And it’s not good.

The Forbes article cites a pesticide called Paraquat that is regularly sprayed on apples. Paraquat is made by Syngenta and is under scrutiny for a possible link to Parkinson’s diseases,

Interestingly enough, Syngenta also makes a toxic herbicide called Atrazine, which has been found in 94% of our water supply.

The Pesticide Action Network reports that Atrazine has been linked to endocrine disruption, reproductive problems, and cancer.

Furthermore, Professor Tyrone Hayes, Endocrinologist at the University of California, reported from his research that frogs exposed to Atrazine were turning into hermaphrodites.

To learn more about how chemicals are ruining our water supply, I strongly recommend that you watch the documentary called Flow – trailer is below.

Reason #3: Farm owners and workers like to live and work in safe environments too.

Unfortunately, we don’t think enough about the health of farm workers when deciding to buy organic or not. Yet, this must become a consideration.

Many of these people have no alternative but to work in these highly toxic fields because they must feed their families. This comes with serious consequences, however.

According to research published in the Environment Health Perspectives, pregnant women who are exposed to organophosphate pesticides have a very, very high probability of having kids who suffer from ADHD.

Reason #4: Apples are one of the country’s favorite fruits – and eating more organic apples could immediately impact farming.

Apples are the third most consumed fruit in the U.S. and account for over 350,000 acres. Yet, only 6% of the apples we grow are organic.

If we can alter our consumption habits, we can make a serious dent in the amount of pesticides being sprayed on our land and we’ll encourage conventional farmers to switch to organic.

There is no force more powerful than using the basic principles of supply and demand to enact change.

Reason #5: Organic apples don’t cost an arm and a leg, and are a great snack.

I agree with this one wholeheartedly.

One complaint that I hear all of the time is that organic is too expensive. Yet an at average price of $1.50 per pound, organic apples are great way to keep the body healthy.

And the health benefits of apples are numerous. It has been reported that the phytonutrients in apples can help regulate blood sugar, and apples also can play an important role in preventing heart disease.

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Living Maxwell

Better Choices

10 Organic Foods You’ll Always Find in My Kitchen

For someone who loves organic food so much and cooks so often, my refrigerator is surprisingly empty. How could this be?

Well, I go food shopping A LOT and pretty much only buy whatever I need for the next meal that I’ll be eating. I have the good fortune of being able to do this because an amazing organic market is literally less a one minute walk from my apartment.

Plus, I LOVE going food shopping and making multiple trips to the market in one day is not exactly a burden. Staring at all of the amazing fruits and vegetables in the produce section is one of my favorite things to do.

Even though I do tend to “buy on-demand”, you’ll pretty much always find these 10 organic foods in my kitchen:

COCONUT OIL I am a huge fan of coconut oil.  Not only is it high in lauric acid and great to use after a workout but it is one of the few oils that you can safely heat and cook with. (Olive oil is not one of them.)

Aside from using organic coconut oil in my smoothies, I use it as a moisturizer as well.

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Living Maxwell

Better Choices

Another Reason to Support Organic – It Will More Effectively Feed the World During the Global Drought

When people get into a debate about whether organic food is worth it or not, the first issue that always comes up is price.

While organic can cost a little more, there are numerous ways to make it less expensive, such as buying in the bulk bins or purchasing directly from local organic farmers.

Yet, what is often missing in this discussion is how organic is so much better for the planet.

And this is something that absolutely must be part of the narrative as to why organic is the superior choice, particularly because the global food system is responsible for 44-57% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

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Better Choices

Another Reason to Eat Organic — The Water Supply in the Midwest is Becoming a Serious Health Risk

I got a comment from someone the other day who said “Why should we care about GMOs (genetically-modified organisms)? Let them grow what they want. It doesn’t impact the people who eat organic.”

Unfortunately, this individual could not have been more wrong.

GMOs impact everyone, including people who eat 100% organic, and a recent study from the Pesticide Action Network confirms this.

Water sampling results from communities across four Midwestern states — Illinois, Nebraska, Iowa and Minnesota — indicate Atrazine is present in drinking water at levels well above those linked to birth defects and low birth weight.

WHAT IS ATRAZINE AND WHY YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT IT

Present in 94% of our water supply, Atrazine is a toxic weed killer and 76 million pounds of it is dumped onto our farms each year, mostly for corn.

And the health effects of Atrazine?

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livingmaxwell: a guide to organic food & drink