NOVEMBER 2017HEALTHY FOOD GUIDE 17
(although their levels in organic
foods are very low to undetectable).
To put pesticides in context, over
99 percent of the pesticides eaten
in a typical diet are naturally present
in the food to start with, not added
by farmers. And of these pesticides,
half will cause cancer in rats if given
in high enough doses. But there’s
no need to be alarmed, as these
very low doses of natural pesticides
on foods may explain some of the
health benefits of fruit and vegies.
They can stimulate your immune
system by placing a very mild level
of stress on the body.Does organic really
taste better?
Consumers often cite the taste of
organic foods as a key reason for
buying them. However taste is a
very personal experience — and it’s
strongly influenced by expectation.
The taste claims unravel when
organic food is put to the blind
taste test against conventional
produce of similar quality. People
can’t tell the difference. That doesn’t
mean that a freshly picked organic
apple won’t taste better than a
conventional one sitting sadly out in
storage for weeks — but when you
compare ‘apples with apples’ the
only taste difference is in a person’s
mind, based on their expectations.Making sense of it all
In terms of health, there’s little to
separate organic and conventional
produce. The main difference is the
price. The biggest food health issue
we face in Australia is how little fruit
and vegies we’re eating in the first
place. If we address this by eating
more of these foods, any ‘organic
versus conventional’ debate will
fade away into insignificance.