People commonly visit the nearest stores for monthly grocery shopping and while buying some fresh fruits, one definitely comes across the same fruits that have different labeling! One is Organic, and another is conventional. Again, it’s easy to get confused to looking at their price tags. Organic food costs some extra, whereas the conventional one has a comparatively budget-friendly price tag. Many people tend to believe that to be healthier, organic food is a safer option to buy!!
Even searching on the internet, numerous reports are already there on google, which contains so many facts about organic foods. So, are these organic foods worth the money for maintaining a heart-healthy life? Well, let’s find out!!
What is Organic Food?
When we talk about organic foods that means, food should be grown without using any kind of artificial chemicals, risky hormones, unnecessary antibiotics, or GMOs. You can buy organic foods like fruit, vegetables, grains, dairy products, and meat. And to produce all these organic goods, organic animals must be raised in an environment that allows for their normal behaviors, fed organic food, and forage.
Sometimes when turning on the TV, you may see some famous headlines in advertisements that state, ‘Our product can be ideal for health, as animals are grown in a stress-free environment.’ Like these types of headlines, precise directions need to be followed by the farmer when it comes to organic livestock. For example, chickens should not be kept in a cage, or cows are not allowed to be held in feedlots. They should be roaming freely.
Apart from this, animals are also not given any growth hormones, steroids, or antibiotics. However, vaccines may be administered to the animals to prevent illness. In contrast, the traditional farming scenario is different. Cattles are given growth hormones throughout the farming process to make them grow quicker, and non-organic GMO materials are used for feeding.
Benefits of Organic Food
People in today’s fast-paced world are torn between sticking to a budget and eating the right foods. However, when organizing a healthy plate, you may become confused about the more advantageous value of organic vs. other inorganic items. So, what is the difference between organic and traditional food? Do experts find organic food to be efficient to follow?
1. Health Facts
Despite the fact that we live in an era of medical progress, don’t you ever feel why people are dying due to following an improper diet? Well, concerning this issue in advance, the organic farming movement was introduced at the beginning of 1940. Experts claim that including certain organic foods in your everyday diet can help you avoid disease.
You may have asked how? Scientists have explored many studies and marked organic food at the top due to its high health value after assessing the nutritional amounts of organic meat and milk, which contains 50% more omega-3 fatty acids and less saturated fat than conventionally produced items.
Apart from that, for beautification or slowing down ageing, who doesn’t favour a natural source that is high in antioxidants? The good news is that scientists have discovered a more significant source of it. It’s none other than organic onion that has 20% greater antioxidant content than conventionally cultivated onions.
2. Less Toxicity
Many of us confront situations in our everyday lives; after getting an illness like flu or fever, we take medicines that don’t function as well as they used to. And, despite your doctor’s advice to check for antibiotic resistance, your body has already developed resistance to a particular drug. This problem is so severe that each year in the United States, at least 2.8 million individuals become infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and more than 35,000 people die. But why are you worried about antibiotic resistance while consuming food? Let’s tell you a reality.
Antibiotics are commonly provided to traditional livestock bred for human consumption to promote growth and feed efficiency rather than treat illnesses or prevent diseases. It can be passed to us inadvertently through direct contact with animals or by eating store items. Many of these devastating details were unknown until the report was published to review chicken sold in Maryland retail stores!!
It was found that all of the Salmonella bacteria detected on the conventional chicken were resistant to five or more antibiotics. In contrast, none of the germs were found in organically raised chicken that was resistant to antibiotics. Thus, you can rely on organic meals since organic live stokes do not include any dangerous antibiotics for growth promotion.
Besides that, pesticides, such as organophosphates and carbamates, harm the neurological system. Others may cause skin or eye irritation. Some pesticides have been linked to cancer or may have an effect on the body’s hormone or endocrine system. On that topic, consider the interview of Kendra Klein in New Internationalist, who is a senior scientist from Friends of the Earth US.
According to Kendra Klein, by revealing the terrible reality of pesticides, switching to an organic diet can significantly reduce pesticide build-up in our systems by up to 70% in just six days. And backend factor that makes organic goods more sustainable is- fertilization techniques, where organically grown crops were less likely to contain detectable levels of pesticides and were 48 percent less likely to test positive for cadmium, a toxic heavy metal that accumulates in the liver and kidneys.
3. Good for Mother Earth
After witnessing the devastation caused by covid, people have become more concerned about their health and wish to move to more eco-friendly products. Therefore this again links to saving the mother planet from the collision of greenhouse gases. To achieve this significant goal, consuming organic foods is considered a great choice.
Organic agricultural approaches have the potential to minimize pollution, preserve water, reduce soil erosion, boost soil fertility, and use less energy. Aside from that, organic farming encourages beneficial soil fungus, which results in better crops with higher plant growth, vigour, and yield. Furthermore, in terms of carbon emissions, organic agriculture helps to mitigate the greenhouse effect and global warming by sequestering carbon in the soil.
In fact, while preserving water purifications, well-managed organic systems with superior nutrient retentive properties minimize the danger of groundwater contamination significantly. Yet, don’t judge a book by its cover. So, just because a product is labeled “organic,” it does not imply that all items are organic.
Once certified, manufacturers can use the official USDA organic seal. Even the USDA has established labeling guidelines for producers. As a result, when shopping, you may notice organic items labeled with phrases like “100% organic,” “produced with organic,” or “organic components.”
How to Choose the Correct One?
Before choosing an organic one, registered dietitian Kathy McManus recommends the dirty dozen list published by the Environmental Working Group. By reviewing, organic lovers can choose the right one as this website contains USDA findings of conventionally grown foods most likely to cover pesticide residues.
The Takeaway
Apparently, who wants to welcome health risks in their daily lives? Like you, everyone’s dream is to have a healthy life. In exchange for a few additional dollars, eating organic food may serve as a form of armour, safeguarding both you and the world from the devastation of pesticides. So, what is your opinion about organic food? Do you prefer having this on your diet list?
