Is Organic Food Better For You?

What’s the deal with organic food? Is organic food better for you? Is it worth the cost? Recently, there was quite an uproar about a certain high-fiber food which erupted on Instagram, which called into question a bigger discussion on organic foods. Additionally, over the years, I’ve read a multitude of articles and listened to a variety of opinions on organic food, yet I’ve always wondered – is organic food really that great?

Given my mission statement of straightening out the facts, I was determined to find out whether or not organic foods are actually better for you or not, or if we’ve fallen prey to clever marketing, and a lack of consensus from experts.

What is Organic Food?

The term “organic is given to foods that are produced in a certain way. Most foods that have been grown or farmed without the use of artificial chemicals, hormones, GMOs, or antibiotics are referred to as organic. Now, a common misconception is that organic foods are grown without any pesticides – this is a myth. In fact, organic foods use pesticides, just not man made pesticides.

As Alix Turoff, MS, RD, CDN, CPT explains, “certified organic food must be grown without synthetic pesticides but natural pesticides can be used.” She cautions that natural, however, doesn’t always mean better or safer and that often times, organic farmers have to use more pesticides because the types of pesticides they use are less effective.

Is Organic Food Better Than Conventional Foods?

While I like to think of myself as an avid health and fitness researcher, at the end of the day, I am not a registered dietitian nor do I have a PhD in a related health, nutrition or agTech subject. As such, I turned to Tanya Zuckerbrot MS, RD, creator of the F-Factor Diet to see what she had to say. In an email interview, Zuckerbrot let me know that “there’s no evidence that organically grown food is nutritionally superior to conventionally grown food; how a fruit or vegetable is grown does not alter its nutrient content.”

Keri Gans, RDN, Author, The Small Change Diet opinion is that “organic is strictly a preference at this point more to do with farming practices than health benefits.” So why do so many people still assume that organic food is better for us, without even thinking to research further, or challenge this notion? Over the past few years, I have seen a huge increase in the number of organic foods that have stocked shelves in our supermarkets. Which is great! We are lucky to live in a country that allows us the opportunity to choose whether or not we want to buy organic food. What does bother me, is the slow rise of organic foods being seen as the only avenue for a healthy life. So what is being said about organic food? Well, organic foods are frequently touted as being more nutritious, containing less pesticides, and being GMO (genetically modified organisms) free.

Sounds pretty great, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, for a lot of people, buying organic isn’t a practical choice. According to Feeding America , in 2013 over 45.3 million people were in poverty. Although organic foods can be cheaper if they are locally grown and in season, Zuckerbrot has said “buying organic is expensive, and organic produce may have a shorter shelf life since preservatives and waxes are not used.” A state indicator report on fruits and vegetables that was released by the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion in 2013 showed that adults in the United States ate fruit about 1.1 times per day and vegetables only about 1.6 times per day.

While how much you need to eat is determined by your own unique dietary needs, it is safe to say that this is nowhere near enough the amount of fruits and vegetables that most nutrition experts recommend! For many Americans, the mere thought of making a homemade dinner chock full of vegetables is unrealistic and daunting, let alone whether or not the produce used for the meal was farmed using organic or conventional means.

Is Organic Food More Nutritious Than Conventional Food?

Let’s take a look at whether or not organically grown food is more nutritious than conventionally grown food. A 2014 stated that organic fruits and vegetables are more nutritious than conventionally grown kinds. It caused quite a furor at the time despite the fact that the study did not conduct any new experiments or trials to reach this conclusion. Instead, the article was a systematic review and meta-analysis which analyzed 343 studies.

The study has been said to offer “little new information and is not very convincing in making a claim that organic food is somehow better for you,” stated Dr. Aaron Carroll, a professor of pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine. Plus, there have been countless other studies that have said that there is really no difference such as this one from 2017.

Additionally, Turoff adds that while “there have been some studies that have found certain organic food to be marginally more nutritious than their organic counterparts…the difference is not big enough to choose one over the other.”

It’s helpful to hear expert commentary on the nutritional aspects of organic food – but what about pesticides? As mentioned above, you may be surprised to learn that organic farmers still use pesticides and chemicals, but ones which are derived from natural sources as opposed to being manufactured. Don’t be fooled by the word natural – just because it is a pesticide is naturally derived does not necessarily mean that it is safe. Associating the word natural with safe is a dangerous assumption and absolutely not true. For example, poison ivy is a natural substance. But is it safe? I think not.

However, organic food does have less trace amounts of pesticides but the impact of this on human health is still unclear. Additionally, a study conducted by Stanford researchers found that the pesticides found in conventionally grown food were almost always under the allowed safety limits. At the end of the day, the dose makes the poison and conventionally grown food would not be sold if it was truly unsafe for consumption.

So, What Should I Do?

 As a recommendation for those who are worried about pesticides, Zuckerbrot offers this advice: “a good way to minimize exposure [to pesticides] is to eat a wide variety of fruits and vegetables since each is grown differently”.

And then, there’s the huge argument surrounding GMOs and certified organic food which is said to be GMO free. GMOs have received a bad reputation, but does the hype support the facts?

Tune in next week to see the conclusion over organic vs. non-organic and why GMOs have received such a bad rep …

What are your thoughts on organic food and conventionally grown food?

Honestly yours,
Alice

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Disclaimer: This article was originally published in 2014 in an online publication called Fiterazzi. As Fiterazzi is no longer in publication, I wanted to update this article so that it was still relevant and re-purpose it on my blog.