You see them all over Instagram: they’re the perfect picture of health. Tanned skin, luminous smiles, perfectly proportioned bodies, accessorized with a colorful meal. They’re the organic, clean-eating bloggers. The captions read, “Click here for my organic smoothie bowl recipe!” and “Picked up some organic rainbow chard today from the farmer’s market! #supportlocalfood” and “I dropped 40 lbs and cured my IBS by switching to eating only organic food!” These buzzwords—healthy, organic, clean eating—paired with bright images of beautiful people in expensive kitchens are so appealing; however, as proud as we feel picking up an organic apple from the supermarket, are these feelings based in reality? Will eating organic foods turn us all into bronzed, beautiful, seemingly immortal health nuts (or at least reduce our chances of obesity, diabetes, and cancer)? Or are the Instagram accounts, food blogs, and Tumblr shrines all just newer forms of advertising for an overpriced placebo effect?
|
All appeal aside, the anecdotal evidence from the overwhelming number of health-conscious internet gurus means nothing if it can’t be corroborated by science. Since the organic food industry has boomed over the past few years, and along with it comes a rise in nutritional gurus, food documentaries, and healthy cookbooks, it’s essential that science keeps up to fact-check. To narrow down the overwhelming number of claims made about the power of organic food, ranging from the plausible (e.g. decreasing your risk of cancer) to the improbable (e.g. curing pre-existing cancer), the scope will be restricted to address reasonable claims made about organic produce. Claims analyzed will consist of the following: consuming organic produce reduce the risk of developing pesticide/herbicide-related illnesses, organic produce contain a higher nutrient content than non-organic produce, and organic produce tastes more delicious than traditionally-grown produce. In short, is organic food safer, healthier, and more tasty?
|
It is worth noting that within the scientific literature, there is no consensus. Like most newer fields, research about the health effects of eating organic produce is in its infancy. Consequently, there is mixed evidence and a lot of debate. All sources must be carefully examined for biases, due to the researchers’ personal beliefs, as well as the sources of funding serving as potential conflicts of interest. Additionally, the terms “healthier” and “safer” must be operationalized to avoid any bogus claims being made. To look at whether or not organic produce is “safer,” studies linking pesticide content with any sort of long-term illness, for instance, cancer, allergies, and heavy metal poisoning, will be reviewed. Addressing the claim that organic produce is “healthier,” studies assessing the nutrient content of organic produce versus non-organic produce will be evaluated. For taste, studies reviewing whether or not a sample blindly prefers the taste of organic produce to non-organic produce will be addressed. Anecdotal, non-scientific evidence, in the form of documentaries, blogs, and internet testimonials from high-profile figures, will be referenced to both contrast with and highlight the claims made about organic produce.
The EWG recommends, if you don’t/can’t buy any other organic produce, be sure to buy these twelve only if organic options are available. The twelve most contaminated fruits and vegetables of 2017 are: spinach, strawberries, apples, Nectarines, pears, peaches, grapes, cherries, Tomatoes, celery, potatoes, and sweet bell peppers. All are extremely purchased and consumed produce items, with some seen in almost every refrigerator, restaurant, school cafeteria, and university dining hall across the country. However, this in and of itself is no reason to switch to eating organic food; first, one must consider the health effects of consuming produce that has been grown on farms that use pesticides and herbicides in their farming process. Studies have shown that farm workers who have been heavily exposed to pesticides in the fields are more likely to develop certain types of cancer. A 1995 study by Kogevinas (1995), et al. found that farm workers exposed to pheonxy herbicides were significantly more likely to develop soft tissue sarcoma (P. 396-402). A 1997 review by Dich (1997), et al. indicated that The International Agency for the Review on Cancer had classified arsenic and occupationally-used insecticides as cancer-causing compounds. These studies show that workers who are spraying pesticides and working on farms, where heavy exposure to carcinogenic chemicals occurs, are at a higher risk for developing cancer. Although these studies don’t indicate whether or not consumers of the pesticide-containing produce are at a higher risk for cancer, there is a solid argument for organic farming practices here; organic farming practices, if nothing else, may reduce cancer rates in the people who work on or live near farms. This is a compelling argument in and of itself for why one might consider purchasing organic produce: even if it doesn’t directly affect the consumer, the act of purchasing organic foods does support a safer work environment for the many people who are working hard to feed their families.
Health risks aside, the American public is constantly being bombarded by Hollywood celebrities and internet-famous bloggers touting the increased nutrient content of organic produce. They generally pair the health benefits with promises that they will make you thinner and more attractive. Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle website, Goop.com, states, in no subtle language (2016), “According to a study conducted by The Organic Center, organically farmed fruits and vegetables can increase antioxidant levels by nearly 30 percent compared with produce grown on conventional farms. Antioxidants can neutralize free radical activity, which can help in preventing skin damage, resulting in more youthful, healthy looking skin.” The scientific evidence behind these claims is not as all-encompassing. In the review by Smith-Spangler(2012), et al., the researchers found that only certain nutrients were higher in organic produce than non-organic. Even in these nutrients, the effect was not particularly robust. They found that organic produce contains higher levels of phosphorus, phenols, and trans-vaccenic acid. A study conducted by Dangour (2010), et al. found that antioxidant activity was higher in those who consumed more organic produce when compared to those who did not; however, it was not able to prove that this is due to organic produce having higher antioxidant levels themselves (P. 203-210). The authors stress the need for additional research needing to be conducted. In contrast, an article on the Mayo Clinic’s website states (2014), A recent study looked at the last 50 years' worth of scientific articles about the amount of nutrients that are measured in organic and non-organic produce. The study found that the organically and conventionally produced crop were not all that different in terms of nutritional value . They did not, however, cite which study found these results.
To conclude, while the pesticides that are used on non-organic produce are not healthy for humans and can cause a multitude of health problem, such as various forms of cancers like soft tissue sarcoma and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, the nutrient content and flavor profiles of organic produce appear to be unchanged. Pesticides have also been known to cause heart disease like Atherosclerosis, the build up of plaque in the arteries. However, besides the reduction of these very serious health risks, it doesn’t not appear that organic produce possess any additional nutritional benefits for the consumer. Additionally, organic crops tend to cost significantly more than non-organic crops because of they are less protected from their growing environment, causing a smaller yield and a hefty increase in cost for consumers.
|
Everyone has heard the term “organic” before, but what does that term really entail? Organic produce are fruits, vegetables, roots, and grains that have been grown and harvested without the use of any unnatural substances being used to protect the crops from the surrounding environmental elements that pose a threat to the crop. The Environmental Working Group (EWG), a non-profit organization, has designated a list called “The Dirty Dozen.” “The Dirty Dozen” consists of the top twelve fruits and vegetables that contain significant amounts of pesticides/herbicides in them, even after washing and processing. The EWG (2017) stated that they reviewed tests conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture, and that almost 70 percent of the non-organically grown fruits and vegetables had been detected to have some form of residues that were left behind from the use of pesticides in the farming process. The USDA found a multitude of different pesticides totaling to about 178 different ones, on the thousands of crops that were sampled in the test. Some of these pesticides and other chemicals used were even detected when the piece of produce was washed and, even some cases, peeled.
The most significant claim made about organic food is that it is healthier for the people consuming it. It seems logical to think so, considering the link between farm workers’ rates of cancer and pesticide exposure, as well as the EWG’s findings about pesticide content within certain fruits and vegetables. However, this is where the controversy comes into play. The short answer: there’s just not enough research to come to a solid conclusion. A blog post, written by Stephanie Watson (2012), on the Harvard Medical School website, as well as an article on the Mayo Clinic’s website, give ambiguous answers concerning the safety profile of organic foods. Watson’s blog post states, Organic produce did have somewhat of an edge in the food safety area, with about a 30% lower score of left over chemical traces than non-organically farmed produce. typically, pesticide levels in both organic and non-organic produce were found to be within the green for what was considered safe to be consumed. We still do not clearly understand just what the consumption of pesticides and their residues will do to the consumers’ health. Watson’s interview with Dr. Michelle Hauser, nutritional educator, chef, and doctor at Harvard Medical School, yielded the following response, There has not been enough research done on the subject of pesticide contact to strongly suggest a trend for their effects on the consumers health, specifically in kids and in pregnant women. This isn’t to say that there isn’t any credible evidence at all; merely, more research needs to be conducted to draw a sweeping, valid conclusion. That being said, there are noteworthy studies concerning the possible health effects of non-organic produce. A recent study by Curl (2015), et al. found a correlation between the more organic food that is consumed by an individual, the less they are at risk for developing heart disease. In a multi-ethnic analysis, the researchers assessed pesticide exposure from dietary choices and urinary dialkylphosphate (DAP) levels, a biomarker for atherosclerosis (the accumulation of plaque on artery walls). The results suggest that participants who consumed more organic produce had noticeably lower DAP levels than people who consumed less organic vegetables and fruit. The researchers concluded that increased levels of pesticide consumption over a lifetime can increase the risk for developing atherosclerosis. A study conducted by Smith-Spangler(2012), et al. found that consuming solely organic foods for a week reduces the amount of detectable pesticide residue in children’s urine, although admitted that the study was not long-term enough to assess any differences in health(348). Ultimately, despite what health bloggers may claim, there is not enough evidence to show that organic produce definitively leads to a decrease in cancer rates, heart disease, allergies, or autoimmune diseases. More long-term studies will need to be conducted in order to draw any valid conclusions. As far as is known right now, organic food contains lower levels of pesticides, preliminary evidence suggests that consuming more organic produce can reduce the risk of certain diseases, and heavy exposure to farming chemicals that are used on non-organic crops does increase the risk for certain types of cancers.
Finally, most people have, at some point, overheard somebody in the supermarket saying, “I swear, the organic grapes just taste better!” Gwyneth Paltrow addresses this claim on Goop.com as well, stating (2016), “In organic soil, The releases of nitrogen is slow into plants, and they grow at their own, natural pace but when that soil has been covered with chemical pesticides and fertilizers the soil becomes super-charged with nitrogen, which makes the various types of produce grow at a much more rapid rate, giving the plants less time and energy to develop nutrients with in the plant. The is excess of nitrogen makes the plants soak up more water then they naturally would (ever had a bland, watery tomato on an airport salad, or tasteless melon chunk in a fast-food fruit cup? That’s why). However, YouTube videos produced by vloggers and e-news site like Buzzfeed, (2015) show in a blind taste-test that most people cannot tell the difference between organic and non-organic produce. It was a 50/50 split for most subjects, and was more reliant on chance than actual flavor. For those that could taste a difference, they said that the organic produce actually didn’t taste as good as the conventional produce. They were quite shocked to learn that the less juicy, less flavorful option was organic; they had assumed it would’ve been the other way around. This idea that organic produce will be better tasting than non-organic is simple the placebo effect. Ben Locwin, a writer for The Genetic Literacy project said “Several studies have shown that cheaper wine put into bottles labeled of more expensive wine will be rated higher by wine tasters” (2014). This same principle applies with organic produce, albeit in a slightly different way. Just as the less expensive budget wine, when put into an expensive bottle, was thought to be better, organic produce is priced higher and associated with health and luxury. As a result, people who believe that organic produce is more flavorful are actually falling victim to the placebo effect. While scientists don’t traditionally conduct taste-testing research, the medium of YouTube videos allows the average person to see a semi-scientific demonstration of a popular claim. This medium is more entertaining, memorable, and accessible than a published scientific study. As a result, the information, while not as reliable, is more easily dispersed.
|