Buying organic foods is healthier. Eating organic protects you from harmful chemicals like pesticides. But even though organic is healthier, it is not cheap! Here are some tips on when to go “green” and when to save your “green” and buy conventional foods.
Fruits and vegetables with a thin skin that is difficult to remove, or that you usually eat, should definitely be organic. These fruits and vegetables have high levels of pesticides even after washing. Produce with thicker skins has a better barrier to pesticides and when you throw the peel in the trash, the chemicals go with it. Make sure to scrub all fruits and vegetables before eating or peeling them because cutting them can bring any chemicals on the skin into the flesh.
Buy organic: apples, peaches, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, cherries, grapes, pears, nectarines, peppers, celery, potatoes, and carrots.
Buy conventional: avocados, eggplants, pineapples, bananas, corn, kiwi, mangoes, papaya, sweet peas, oranges, grapefruit, and squash.
Leafy greens are particularly susceptible to pests, so they are usually grown with high levels of pesticides. Since it is too difficult to scrub all of the chemicals off of every leaf of a head of lettuce, leafy greens should be organic. Other vegetables, like broccoli, either don’t retain pesticides very well or don’t need a lot to begin with, so it’s OK to go conventional.
Buy organic: all lettuces and greens such as kale, collards, mustard, swiss chard, and spinach.
Buy conventional: broccoli, cabbage, asparagus, cauliflower, eggplant, melons, and sweet potatoes.
Milk: Although many of the hormones and antibiotics used in conventional milk production are washed out before we drink it, the process isn’t perfect and some make it through. Organic milk also has higher levels of Omega-3 fatty acids, which help keep our hearts healthy.
Buy organic: milk, yogurt, cheese.
Fish: Since fish grow in the ocean, it is impossible to know if they contain pesticides, so the USDA has no guidelines for certifying organic seafood.
Buy conventional: fish, other seafood.
Maid Brigade House Cleaning Services cares about the health of you and your family. For more information on healthy green living and green cleaning, please log on to greencleancertified.com or maidbrigade.com. For more information on “Household Cleaning Products and Breast Cancer”, please watch our video at www.greencleancertified.com/greentv.
