What substances do we avoid by eating organic food?

 

Synthetic Pesticides: By far the largest group of contaminants to be largely prohibited from organically grown foods are synthetic pesticides, which are found virtually everywhere else in the food supply. Several hundred different chemicals and several thousand brand-name pesticide products are legally used in commercial food production. The Environmental Protection Agency has classified dozens of pesticides as potential carcinogens (cancer-causing agents). These pesticides can affect much more than the crops on which they are directly sprayed. A 1996 study by the Environmental Working Group found 96% of all water samples taken from 748 towns across the U.S. contained the pesticide atrazine, and at least 20 different chemical pesticides are routinely present in municipal tap water across the U.S. Many of these pesticide residues found in tap water started out in the form of crop sprays to help control infestation of food crops.

Heavy metals: The toxic metals cadmium, lead, and mercury can enter the food supply through industrial pollution of soil and groundwater and through machinery used in food processing and packaging. Cadmium exposure, which can be concentrated in plant tissues at levels higher than those in soil, has been linked to increased risk of lung, prostate and testicular cancers. Despite a well-documented negative impact on health - especially health of young children - lead residues can be found in many foods, including canned foods, which may still contain lead solder. Even low levels of lead intake can be harmful and have been associated with impaired neurobehavioral development, decreased stature and growth, and impaired hearing.

Solvents: Used to dissolve food components and produce food additives, solvents are found in a wide variety of commercially processed foods. Excessive exposure to solvents such as benzene and toluene has been linked to increased risk of several types of cancer. Excessive exposure to benzene has also been lined to increased risk of rheumatoid arthritis.

While food is by no means our only source of exposure to potentially harmful synthetic chemicals or heavy metals, food is something that passes continuously through our bodies, meal after meal, day after day, and year after year. It's this constant exposure to food that makes its quality so very important in our health.