Roadmap to Health and Vitality

Part 2: Where Does our Food Come From?

Yesterday we started to research the factors that affect our health and vitality. In part one of our investigation we discussed the importance of choosing the right foods and eliminating foods that are over processed and contain many toxic chemicals that are hazardous to our health in the long run.  Now that we got rid of all the “bad” foods, the second factor we need to take a serious look at is where our food comes from.

What’s on Our Produce

There are a lot of opposing viewpoints regarding the benefits of conventionally vs. organically grown foods, but the fact remains that most of these fruits and vegetables are sprayed with a vast amount of pesticides. In her article titled “What’s the Difference?” Julie Sevrens Lyons refers to a document published by the Consumers Union saying that according to data gathered by the USDA,

“chemical residues on some conventionally grown fruits and vegetables ‘would frequently expose a young child to a dose greater than the U.S. government’s official estimate of the ‘safe’ daily intake of those pesticides.’”

According to this document people should be concerned about the risk of pesticides in store bought, conventionally grown produce, because they have found traces of as many as 14 different chemicals on some of them (San Jose Mercury News). We may be eating the right foods, but still could be introducing harmful toxins to our bodies in the form of pesticides. Moreover, many of our fruits and vegetables are grown in tired, nutrient depleted soils. They are already lacking essential minerals and vitamins when they are picked, which happens weeks before they ripen, losing even more nutrients (and taste) by the time they make it on our dinner table. Our best option is to buy seasonal produce, from local farmers, or if that is not possible, spend the extra money on organic versions of the fruits and vegetables that are most prone to pesticide contamination.

Is our Meat Safe

The concern does not stop with produce. Our conventionally raised animals are pumped full of various steroids, growth hormones and antibiotics to help them grow fast and prevent diseases. Dr. Ali Khan of the CDC in his congressional testimony pointed out that based on their data, using antibiotics in food animals increases the antibiotic resistance in humans. He advised that farmers should restrict the use of medicine to the times when the animals are sick, and not as a preventative measure (July 14, 2010). The jury is still out on the link between rBGH, the hormone given to dairy cows to produce more milk, and early onset of puberty in children. Many experts see a direct correlation between young children displaying secondary sex characteristics and the growth hormone that is present in regular milk, which they consume daily. Based on this information buying organic meat, dairy and even eggs is a better option in order to remove harmful substances from our diet. To get a better picture of the common practices of the food industry, we recommend that you find a copy of the documentary called Food Inc.

In our next segment we will be exploring the dangers lurking in our food preparation, storage and cooking practices.