The good, the bad, the ugly on produce and pesticides!
Pesticides are endocrine system disruptors meaning they are chemicals that can interfere with endocrine (or hormone) systems at certain doses. We know you can’t eliminate all chemicals from your lives but we should try to minimize our exposure whenever possible.
An analysis of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s(USDA) Pesticide Data Program reported these DIRTY DOZEN items have the most pesticide residue. We know that buying organic can be expensive but swapping out even just a few of these top items for organic grown food is a step in the right direction!
1 Strawberries
2 spinach
3 Nectarines
4 Apples
5 Peaches
6 Celery
7 Grapes
8 Pears
9 Cherries
10 Tomatoes
11 Sweet bell peppers
12 Potatoes
Now for the good! This group also identifies as the “Clean 15” or items in the report with the least likelihood to contain pesticide residue so when you can’t buy organic, go for these guys.
1 Sweet corn
2 Avocados
3 Pineapples
4 Cabbage
5 Onions
6 Frozen sweet peas
7 Papayas
8 Asparagus
9 Mangoes
10 Eggplant
11 Honeydew
12 Kiwifruit
13 Cantaloupe
14 Cauliflower
15 Grapefruit
I’m not trying to scare you! Incorporating nutrient dense foods like
these insures you’re getting all those important vitamins and
minerals in your diet so we applaud you all for eating an
array of color! Just be aware of what items have a higher chance
of pesticide residue and try to buy organic whenever possible.
Cheers to health living in 2018!
With love,
Mallory
