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16 healthyfoodguide.com.auOrganic food is served up with a health and
nutrition halo priced in. How do the claims
stack up against conventional produce?T
he organic food industry
is big business. Fuelled by
strong consumer demand
based on health, environmental
and ethical concerns, it is very
much on-trend to ‘go organic’.
To choose organic produce
as a result of its nutritional
superiority would be a great
move. The problem is there
is not a lot of strong scientific
evidence to say that it actually
offers that advantage.
Nutrient levels in foods vary
for all sorts of reasons. Growing
region, rainfall, time of year for
harvest and storage time after
harvest all drastically affect
nutrient levels. We still need
a lot of research work to get a
clear picture of whether organic
food has more nutritional value
than its conventional cousin.SCIENCE UPDATE
Dr Tim Crowe is an Advanced
Accredited Practising Dietitian and
nutrition research scientist. Connect
with him at thinkingnutrition.com.au
Photo: iStock.What the science says
A systematic review published in 2012 concluded
there was a lack of strong evidence that organic
foods were significantly more nutritious than
conventional foods. Nor could the review find any
extra health benefits or protection against allergic
disease or bacterial infection from eating organic.
Fast forward to 2014, when a review discovered
organic crops did have higher levels of antioxidants
than conventional ones. However, most of the other
nutrients tested for showed no difference. When you
consider organic produce’s price premium, eating a
little more conventional produce in the first place
could easily make up for the antioxidant difference.Worried about pesticides?
When consumers choose organic food, the absence
of synthetic pesticides is often high on their health
radar. Too much of any pesticide residue on food is
harmful. Thankfully, levels in Australia are monitored
and kept within very safe levels. Washing and peeling
food before eating can reduce residues even more.
But surely, you might say, it’s better to choose
organic and be pesticide free? Not so fast. Organic
food is only free from synthetic pesticides. Although
certified organic, such produce can still be grown
with the use of naturally occurring pesticides, like
pyrethrins, light oils, copper and sulphur — and
even some types of pesticide-producing bacteria.
All these natural pesticides are just as harmful to
us in high enough doses as synthetic pesticidesIS ORGANIC FOOD
healthier?