Article Source: msnbc.com
from:msnbc.comConsumers who opt for organic foods often believe they are improving their health, but there is currently no strong evidence that organics bring nutrition-related health benefits, a new research review finds.
You're in Easy Mode. If you prefer, you can use XHTML Mode instead. |
Scientists turn skin cells into beating heart muscle1 in 3 developmentally delayed babies untreatedFake drugs impede progress made in war on malariaAbstinence-only sex ed defies common senseSigmoidoscopy an option for colon cancer screeningDunkin Donuts going zero grams trans fat Bagged lettuce recall expands across nationBorn to run barefoot? Some end up getting injuredGet the body you want without paying the priceSeafood benefits outweigh mercury risks
Leave a Comment:
So, why the recall by Grace Foods on the Ivermectin beef?
I guess chemicals are good for you. Bring back DDT!
well great.. no reason for Big Pharma to be afraid of organics.. let us eat, plant, buy and eat more of that stuff.. afterall, no skin off of anyone's back, it's only our money we're wasting..
These articles are f u c king retarded. These a$$holes still don't get it. We eat organic because :
All of these so-called scientists need one hell of a HUMONGOUS BITCH-SLAP to their empty heads. If they're trying to tell us that it's healthier to ingest toxins, exploit animals and destroy the environment... they should all be lined up before a firing squad.
Smc - I think you could make your point without the CAPS and @#$%^ &* words. If you take the high road you come off as much more believable.
I agree, but to say organic food is sustainable is a reach. Yields are enhanced with fertilizers and some other chemicals and/or genetically modified crops. I do not like too much of it either, but we have more and more people living on less and less arable land, so we need to get every efficiency we can from the land and water we do allocate to agriculture.
I buy mostly organic too. I feel it is healthier. Whether it is or not is not the reason I buy it. I buy it as I perceive it to be healthier.
well, I came on here to blast this article but it looks like you all have done that for me ... awesome :-) I don't think anyone really buys organics because they thought they had a greater amount of nutrients. We simply don't want to consume chemicals any more.
Exactly.. I thought that was the whole point of organic..no toxins or chemicals, growth hormones etc . I never thought that organic might have extra nutritional value... I'd be happy not to be poisoned in slow motion.
You feel its healthier? How scientific.
I agree with the treatment of animals comment, but the rest are pure bunk. Ummm...pesticides that are manufactured by people are based on studying pesticides found in nature...on fruits, vegetables and plants.Yes, that's right...there are naturally occuring pesticides.
Using more land to produce less food is socially responsible? Is sustainable? since when? Deforestation on the planet is mostly from farming. Needing more land to farm is hardly environmentally friendly.
The only way it provides livelihoods for smaller farmers is so that they can charge inflated prices to people who are willing to pay for vegetables that are grown in unprocessed manure...which btw isn't necessarily healthier than the nasty chemicals.
I don't really care if you eat organic or not...your choice... but your reasons aren't sound and can't be backed up.
Science does make mistakes, but it corrects them too. Unfortunately people that bash science that they disagree with don't hold themselves to the same standard. Our science not a perfect system...there are demands for expediency for solutions and caution on the other side...That is the system and it is better than following people who have feelings or know someone who knew someone...
So I buy the one argument about animals...but the rest is almost an elitism...."I'm living a healthier,more environmentally friendly lifestyle"...when in fact, you are not.
J. Heron,
Right on. Excellent post.
And just for fun...
Fifty years ago, sex was sacred and food was ordinary. Now, it's backwards.
these articles are right on - organic is largely misrepresented and way overpriced. There is zero evidence that you will be healthier or live longer in a meaningful way eating the so called organic foods in markets. Heron is right on - except the part about "almost an elitism" - it is precisely an elitism - typical liberal "I know what's best for you because you are sheep - but I love everybody - just ignore the part about me shoving my superior opinions down your throat" BS
J. Heron,
Organic and local is a better choice than conventional. Because fossil fuels are a finite resource - per the First Law of Thermodynamics. Therefore, conventional agriculture is unsustainable. Also, the enormous amount of fuel used in conventional agriculture increases the amount of waste in the environment - per the Second Law of Thermodynamics. Conventional agriculture depends on diesel fuel being burned in heat engines; heat engines are horribly inefficient because heat is the lowest form of energy.
Organic and local agriculture is sustainable because it uses less fossil fuel and therefore produces less waste. It also diversifies the local economy and allows a community to be more self-sufficient.
Modern factory farms are the result of using science to maximize profit, and it is fact that they are killing people and making them sick. Or should I use the word 'consumers' instead of 'people', like a good businessperson?
Organic food could be more affordable if it was subsidized by the government. But our government would rather subsidize e.coli infested spinach grown on factory farms.
I am fortunate to have been raised by my mother, a firm believer in organic foods and healthy choices. I made my way in the world, tossed aside all of those teachings and started to pay the price with my own health. In order to regain my healthy self I had to "go back" to what I had been taught. I feel so much better..I no longer need any RX to maintain myself, I have lost 80 pounds and I look about 15 years younger. Who wouldn't want to live and feel this way? I understand there are alot of economics in play as well as alot of ignorance. I am so greateful for what I know. The only one who can take care of you is YOU. So if you enjoy how you feel and look, then everything must be ok..if not, only you can take charge of your life. For me, personally, organic is healthier. It is the way nature intended it to be. Man has a bad habit of trying to mess with what is not broken so he can profit from it. Thanks mom!
"there is currently no strong evidence that organics bring nutrition-related health benefits"
And why would anyone think there would be?
The point is avoiding all the chemicals found in non-organically grown foods.
Actually there IS proof that organic free-range hens produce higher quality eggs.. higher protein levels, higher levels of Omega 3 FA's , etc. There's an article about it on www.organicconsumers.org
Look at the source. Not exactly unbiased.
not to mention the fact that you will get WAY less protein because you can't afford to buy them.
yeah j heron, and corporate-influenced research is unbiased too. Give me a fricken break!
This is a idiotic article. It totally contradicts an article I read just the other day on this website regarding pesticides on fruit causing ADHD!! Which is it? Just what we need in this country is media convincing people that pesticides and hormones in our food supply is a good thing- makes me wonder who is behind this obviously slanted reporting- the chemical purveyors who are paying for the advertising, no doubt.
And last Thursday unemployment suddenly rose and on Friday 34 states showed reduced unemployment. I think the idiots in the MSM do not always know what they are talking about.
From your comment, you seem to already have made up your mind on what you believe regardless of how many articles come out on either side. The difference between us is that when I actually see a valid study proving growth hormone is harmful....I will actually consider it...more than consider it actually.
Your views are as slanted as anyone reporting on this. Did the article you read come from the pro-organic industry? You know they have just as much of an interest in money as pharma...Look at how much money supplements make...they aren't regulated or proven either...bottled water...its most of all hype and perception.
maybe the article you read the other day was the idiot article - especially if it was related to ADHD - a largely fraudulent concoction designed to free parents with no backbone from guilt about their out of control children.
yeah just drug em out so you can control them.try taking away all the garbage in the food (especially artifical colors,flavors and preservatives) and see what a huge difference it makes in the behavior of your child.Know what's in your food.If you can't read it or understand it-do not eat it!!!
The message of the research is that existing studies on organic foods don't provide much information and new studies need to be structured better. It's sad to see this information twisted around by the article and headline writers to malign organic food for lack of nutritional advantage. We're buying to avoid pesticides, anyway, not for nutrition. What a sleazy way to get page views.
I would think that not consuming toxic chemicals would indeed PROVE it was better nutrition.
Toxic? Which ones, and what quantity levels are required for the chemical to be considered toxic?
I'd like to see water quality studies of Organic VS Chemically grown monocultures.
Soil degradation studies as well.
Organic sure as hell tastes better.
And I HATE eating pesticide, with a passion.
I agree-tastes WAY better!
What about natuarally occuring pesticides in nature?
oops..naturally
Many toxic substances are completely natural . Try eating peach pits !
what about them heron? of course there are naturally occurring "pesticides", but there is a difference between natural pesticides in an individual piece of fruit versus the pesticides being sprayed over the crops (which seeps into many aquifers).
Well heron, it's the same difference between the natural oil seeps that occur in the oceans continually, and what's happening in the gulf coast TODAY.
Do you get it now?
Evolution doesn't cope well with "mass" events.
If you ask me-there is an agenda behind this article.
Think about the money corporations make from pesticides, fertilizers, antibiotics, and hormones...imagine the power they have. Monsanto, anyone? Not surprising then that they would try to "disprove" the advantages of eating organic-wouldn't want anyone else getting a slice of the pie. I wonder who funded this "study" ROFLMAO......
I've done plenty of research on this topic for my 400-level Natural Foods class, and you hit the nail on the head. It's these damn corporations who had all of this excess chemicals lying around after WWII, and then the government pushed this onto farmers. The big player in this, Earl Butz, who, I might add, had stock in these chemical companies and made a tone of dough. To bad he never answered any of the questions asked of him in the documentary "King Corn."
Most likely Monsanto or Bayer.
yeah, and the organic industry doesn't make any money...Whole foods?
Hypocrits.
Be wary Roger...documentaries are excellent tools of providing information but also connecting the dots where they shouldn't be connected. They can make educated people feel like they know everything about a subject without showing the whole truth.
yeah, and the organic industry doesn't make any money...Whole foods?
irrelevant.
keep buying into the corporate propaganda heron, the hilarity continues...
We've had this discussion before, I seem to recall.
It's not so much the extra nutrition, but the AVOIDANCE of a GREATER amount of chemicals that coats or seaps into the food.
The less chemicals I ingest the better. I don't want to grow a 3rd ear or 2nd head by the time I'm 70!!!
HA! Everyone is saying the same thing!!!
yeah because there is so much proof that people are dropping dead from eating regular supermarket vegetables. Oh wait..there isn't.
You people just want to justify your paranoia and suspicion of evil corperate america manipulating you while denying that the organic industry is a corperation manipulating you.
Eating organic has always been about what you are NOT ingesting, namely pesticides, etc. I've never met one individual who claims organic food is more nutritional, just free of chemicals. So who sponsored this study - the Pesticide Manufactures of America? Oh, and our gullible press bought this hook, line and sinker. After all, it took them 4 weeks not to believe BP anymore.
And who says you are healthier because you eat organic vegetables? organic food Manufacturers of America? It goes both ways...you are just as gullible.
This artcle says that organic foods do not necessarily provide greater nutrition.
The article last week discussed an association between ADHD and the consumption of conventionally-grown fruits, because conventionally grown fruits contain more pesticide residue than organics.
The two articles are comparing...apples and oranges.
Some people may buy organic because they think organic produce has greater nutritional value - the article discusses a new study that says there is no proof that organic produce is more nutrious.
The study released last week provided new and useful information. The reason that children's health experts are recommending that parents buy organic fruit and vegetables is to avoid pesticide residue on produce, because the residue contains hazardous chemicals that can affect children at even low levels.
(The reason children are more sensitive to pesticide residue is because, for their weight, they consume more fruits and vegetables, and because their developing brains are more easily affected by chemicals.)
Children's health experts would probably have no comment on the "more nutritious?" study, because it doesn't say anything all that new. The new information is that there is an association between ADHD and the amount of pesticides found in childrens' urine - kids' who had higher pesticides residue had a greater risk for ADHD. The relationship between ADHD and pesticide residue was so strong that children's health experts encouraged parents to buy organic in order to avoid pesticides where possible. (The study found pesticide residue on 28% of frozen blueberries tested.)
That's new information, and is good to know. We can't prevent every harm, and it's crazy-making to even try. But pesticides are nuero-toxins - "nerve poisons." They are designed to affect the brains of pests. But scientists are learning that there are unanticipated affects on humans as well, and especially on the devloping brains of babies and children. Are pesticides tested before they're put on the marketplace? Not necessarily, and chances are, they're not. So this is news we can use.
I think you misunderstood the post above regarding the comparison of those articles.
Pesticides on produce are associated with ADHD in kids...soooo...we can conclude that we should eat organic produce to avoid harmful pesticides, correct?
But then, we hear that organic food isn't healthier because it does not have any more nutritional value than conventionally grown produce? Well, I thought we were all in agreement-see statement above-that the reason organic is better is because of a lack of chemicals and not because anyone claimed it had a higher nutrition content?
I think the real issues here are, where did this claim that organic food had a higher nutrition content come from? Who was this study funded by?
Perhaps there are people out there that eat organically because they misleadingly believe it has more nutrition-not everyone is well informed. But if you ask the people that are at the center of the fight for organic food, the hardcore supporters-they will all tell you that organic is better because no chemicals are used and that the chemicals seep into our food and thus, our bodies.
I have a taken a few holistic nursing classes taught by one of those hardcore supporters of organic food-and in one of them we watched a video about a study that had been done (I would have to review my notes to see if I could find the name of this video) but these researchers were drawing blood from test subjects to detect how many man made chemicals could be found. What they found, was that there were HUNDREDS in everyone's blood. This stuff doesn't just dissipate either, it stays there. Even worse, we study a chemical alone to see how harmful it is-no studies have been done to see how harmful they are when combined with other chemicals. Imagine how many possible combinations you could make from hundreds of chemicals-each with the possibility of being more harmful than any one chemical. (I hope you can take away from this, that what I learned in that class, is that the reason behind organic food is CHEMICALS)
I think this article is absolutely false when it is a given that non-organic produce is loaded with pesticides, which do find their way into our bodies. Does anyone think for one moment that these chemicals don't affect us?
This article focuses on nutrition and devotes one sentence to the real value of organic foods.
"Organic foods are made without the use of conventional pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, antibiotics or hormones — which could potentially reap benefits for people's health and the environment."
It is a poorly writen article. They interchange 'healthier' and 'nutritional benefits' when eating organic food compared to eating other foods. What makes organic foods healthier is the lack of pesticides and other chemical poisons found in the other foods.
I agree with much of the outrage presented in previous comments. No one suggests that organic foods have more nutrition, or vitamins and minerals, but rather that organic foods lack pesticides and other chemicals that have been linked (by several studies) to diseases and disorders.
This article's is implying that "healthy" solely means more nutrients. This is nonsensical given that it is actually healthier to put foods into our bodies that are clean than it is those that contain chemicals that our bodies are not designed to digest and make use of.
Come on, how about a little bit of distinction for the sake of your readers? It is a shame that so many people will read this article and think that buying organic is a waste.
Organic, I think not, for there are so many chemicals in the dirt it will take hundreds of years for them to be gone. Some of the chemicals from the past are not diluted with the rain, they just stay in the soil and then get into the food supply. So, Organic does not exist.
You pull this on EVERY vine that has anything to do w/organics. Go rain on someone else's parade will ya ? You're nothing but a frigging contrary killjoy.
Honesty is the answer. If you choose to ignore it, it will come back and haunt you.
People eat organic foods to avoid pesticides.
There is no reason to think organic foods would have greater nutritional value than their conventionally raised counterparts if the genetic strains of the plants producing them and the conditions under which they are raised are the same.
Organic producers often select plant varieties that are more resistant to pests and diseases in order to grow attractive produce economically. The difference in nutritional value is a function of the genetics of the plant and the conditions under which they are grown (water, soil, fertilizers, etc.) not the presence or absence of pesticides.
shut up, stupid study. for one i'm not buying organic for solely nutrition. it's the soul satisfaction that i'm not eating no more pesticides and hormones forced feed to me by the food industry giants. whoever did this study is getting paid by the non-organic industry.
just shut up. no i'm buying organic cause it's more nutrutional. shut up.
you can keep saying the no more nutritious bit, i'm not stupid you are just trying to irritate me.
Well you sound pretty irritated Walter.
LOL.
haha, that was funny
One advantage of many 'organic' foods is that they taste so bad that you don't eat as much :)
Maybe some taste bad, but have you ever tasted a tiny wild strawberry?
There's more intense flavor in that one tiny berry than in flat of commercially grown ones.
Same with apples. They are ugly though.
Totally disagree with you unless the stuff I buy at Costco is organic. :)
please read a couple of informational articles about organic farming and then you may understand how and why organic farming is different and healthier than drinking milk from cows that never see grass and as calfs are given blood plasma instead of mother's milk.When people try to change what is natural it always alters the end result in a negative way. if after reading and understanding organic farming you are still against organic farming then i say when you get cancer please don't cry how did i get this? but please do not try to sway others that are trying to lead a healthy life.
thank you peyton. people like heron are dedicated consumers that will follow corporations to the end of the earth. Its really pathetic.
OK so you, the author of this article, feel free to eat your pesticide laden fruit and veg with reckless abandon. The air, soil and water is not poisoned by these toxic chemicals right? No! Every so often a 'damage control' article like this one comes out. Maybe people are starting to think about what they're eating and the impact on the earth. And you've got to put the blindfold back on. Keep the agrichem business going.
Organic pure vegetarian foods are good for our bodies, animals and the earth. This is the way we can save ourselves and our earth.
Organic does not mean pesticide free, it just means that the pesticides have to be plant based instead of synthetic. There is an interesting article on a study that shows the plant-based pesticides are as carcinogenic as the synthetic, and that they might not be as eco-friendly as everyone thinks. http://www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~lhom/organictext.html.
The very publishing of articles like this is damaging because it's shortsightedness may mislead many uninformed people to make ecologically unhealthy choices. This article misses the point: the use of chemical fertilizers, herbicides, & pesticides pollute our water & destroy our soil. Chemical agriculture is thus inherently unsustainable. We vote against this practice by buying organics because we support clean water & healthy soil.
Nice to meet you John.
People.....people.....people.......get it through your heads. These articles are written by JOURNALISTS. Check out the curriculum at any school of journalism. Journalism is a career field for dough heads and career do-gooders. It is almost totally unreasonable to expect any sort of quality information from these morons.
Well yes, I agree most journalists are. I am sure there must be some journalists out there with integrity. Of course, they are probably unemployed.
Where on earth do they come up with these insane conclusions based on what has to be voodoo science? Anyone who believes that a product grown in soil that's been bombarded with pesticides that were once used for chemical warfare, genetically altered to included all kinds of hormones for larger growth, coloration, shelf life, and then the plant itself also sprayed constantly with additional pesticides and growth inducing chemicals is going to be anywhere near as healthy as a product grown in naturally healthy, fertile soils with no additional chemicals dumped on it, is a complete idiot. This crap is the reason the Western Diet is considered the worst in the world, and why we are the most unhealthy, obese, heart attack and cancer prone population on the planet. We have been lied to and deceived by the government, the regulatory agencies (FDA, USDA, AHA) who all work for the food industry, and mostly by the despicable and ruthless advertising of the food industry itself. Wake up people, they've destroyed our food sources and made us guinea pigs for these untested processed, genetically altered and chemically laced foods (most of it referred to as "food like substance" because it's not real food) since the 1970s.
These are the same people that are trying to tell pet owners that PURE LABORATORY CREATED CRAP like Science Diet is better for their pets than a biologically appropriate natural raw diet.
I say PHUCK 'EM all !!
Nick Jury-you are right on! Wonderfully stated.You stated it perfectly.:)
The benefits of organic aren't nutritional. They are the lack of POISON in the foods. Idiots!!
the benefits of organic are allowing small farmers to make exorbitant profits on food.....wait - don't we hate big corporations when they do that?
hmmmm. small farms versus corporations.... Ill take small business over corporations any day. comparing the two is pathetic and a fallacy.
Well, there is one side effect if all food was grown organically and naturally and that is one third of the world population would die of starvation.
Guess that could be the biggest environmental benefit.
the so called "green revolution" isn't. Humanity has already reached to unsustainable levels though god forbid anybody bring up the subject of population control.
Yeah this article didn't even address the real reason why people buy organic, including myself. I buy so i don't have chemicals and pesticides in my food. I support local farmers etc. This article was useless.