Why Is Eating Organic Food Important?

Most consumers really do not understand why organic food is important, and many of them really do not even knows what an organic label implies. All that most shoppers know is that organic food costs more in the grocery store, and they may pass it up because they hope to stretch their grocery budgets. Since food prices have been rising lately, this is easy to understand. However, eating organic food may be important for your health.

What Is Organic Food?

Of course, all food is really organic. That means that it comes from living things, and that is exactly what our meat, dairy products, produce, and grain come from. However, an organic label means something else.

This label implies that the food has been grown or raised with organic farming practices. That means that food has been either fed or fertilized with organic materials too. No harsh chemicals, artificial hormones, or antibiotics have been used to either keep away pests or make livestock grow faster and avoid diseases.

Is Organic Food Healthier?

Nobody debates that the price of organic food is higher. However, a debate rages about the health benefits of organic vs. non-organic food.

According to an article in Psychology Today, eating organic food may substantially lower the risk of many types of cancer. For example, hormones given to livestock may not increase their risk of cancer because they do not live long enough to develop it. An average chicken raised for meat only lives a few months.

However, you probably expect to keep your body for many decades. An analysis of the research strongly suggests that an organic diet will reduce exposure to pesticide residues and antibiotic-resistant bacteria as well as artificial hormones.

Most people would rather not ingest excess chemicals that are designed to kill insects. They also don’t want to consume extra antibiotics or hormones in their food. A lot of people would probably tell you that is simply common sense, but they still won’t buy organic food.

Critics say that there is absolutely no evidence that organic food has significantly more nutritional value than non-organic food. However, that argument misses the point. The argument should not be about what organic meat, poultry, or grains contain, but it should be about what they do not contain. They do not contain chemical pesticides, artificial hormones, and additional antibiotics.

Some organic food advocates say that organic food is also healthier, and they would like the conservative scientists to explain what they mean by “significantly.” Analysis has demonstrated that organic food has an average of a 12 percent higher level of nutrients than non-organically grown or raised food. Spread over multiple servings a day, this might be significant.

Additionally, organic produce has higher levels of natural antioxidants. These nutrients help human cells protect themselves from cancer and problems of aging.

Is Organic Food Better?

There is no doubt that organic food costs more. Advocates of chemicals, hormones, and multiple antibiotics say that their practices help keep food prices lower. However, advocates of organic farming insist that non-organic food is not really cheaper if it risks consumer’s health.

Are Organic Foods Really Superior?

Some people think the benefits of organic food are debatable, while others swear by their wholesome goodness. So what’s being served at your house tonight? Are you enjoying the advantages of organic food, or are you still debating the issues?

Higher Standards In Quality

In 1990 The Organic Food Production Act was adopted, and it means that any item given the “Organic” label must meet certain standards of quality and production. The highest grade of organic guarantees that nothing poisonous was used in growing or processing the food. While there are measures in place for non-organic foods, they are fairly murky and more open to the personal interpretation of the manufacturer or grower.

Cleaner Groundwater

When food is grown according to the organic standard, there aren’t all the chemicals being washed over produce that can end up contaminating ground water and other sources. Also, organic soil can actually act as a better filter for the water that flows through it, picking up more carbon than regular dirt that has been exposed to a variety of harmful chemicals.

Increased Choices At The Supermarket And Beyond

With the advent of organics, consumers now have a lot more choices available to them, from tomatoes to cotton sheets. Companies have caught on to the demands, and are now making many things in a much better way. These days, people don’t have to buy fish caught by a boat with no standards of health or decency. They can look for an organic label and be assured that improved methods and higher quality prevailed.

Being Kind To Animals

The organic philosophy insists that wildlife be respectfully treated and always taken into consideration, even when farms are expanding. This regard for nature protects the environment and the produce, leaving both your digestive tract and conscience free from a lot of unnecessary debris.

Fewer Modified Genes

While scientists on each side of the GMO (Genetically Modified Organism) debate continue to squabble over how much or how little the process of altering genes can impact the end user (you), these products continue to flood the market. Much of the time, people don’t even realize what they are buying unless they know what little numbers represent on the packaging. Organic foods are never modified at the nucleic level, simply because it just isn’t natural.

Organic food is unquestionably a superior and higher performing product for consumers, as well as better for the environment. If the featured dish on your dining table tonight isn’t organic, then exactly what is it?

Is Organic Food The Right Choice?

There is a lot of attention being given to organic food. Some people try to only eat organic and others think it is basically hogwash. It’s sort of black and white choice for many.

Organic food has only become so popular because much of our food nowadays contains GMO — genetically modified ingredients as well as unhealthy pesticides. Added to that the ground, having been treated with all sorts of chemical fertilizers over the years and is often totally leached of nutrients.

To grow anything organic, the soil needs to be free of chemicals for seven years and obviously no artificial fertilizers can be used to grow organic produce. This means that nothing toxic can enter your body if you grow or buy organic foods.

While we can think of great tasting organic tomatoes, zucchini, carrots and potatoes, it is also prudent to choose organic grains. Grains are widely produced in huge fields. Over the years the area has got larger and the machinery used to plant and harvest accommodate these gigantic fields. Because we choose to grow one crop over a large area, we need to use chemical fertilizers freely because the crops lack any variety of other plants that could work in harmony to prevent much of the disease this mono-culture is subject to. This means that wheat for example is now genetically modified and still grows in nutrient-arm soil with the aid of chemicals. Books like Wheat Belly paint a grim picture of what our association with this important crop has come to. Why do we continue to think that consuming products doused in chemicals will not affect our health?

It is no wonder, in our present culture of fast and processed food which uses many chemicals (including an overabundance of sugar, that many people have simply had enough of this lifestyle. They want to go back to how it was in their grandparents’ era where food was individually produced and chemicals and toxins weren’t in the picture. Already we are being told that the present generation of children will be the first no to outlive their parents’ generation. These children have grown up with fast foods, microwaves and often never even realize that the milk or hamburgers they consume come from a cow.

We are rapidly becoming an artificial culture, wearing clothes that are sprayed with chemicals, using skin care and make up made from petroleum products, and eating food that has no long got anything much to do with nature.

Every parent wants only the best for their children. They should start with organic food.