The Health Benefits Of Organic Food

These days, more and more people are becoming conscious about their health, and this is becoming apparent in the growing interest in organic food versus non-organic, or conventionally produced food.

Common sense dictates that organic food is better than non-organic food, giving people more health benefits and allowing them to live better lives.

What is Organic Food?

Benefits of Organic Food

Organic fruits and vegetables are grown without chemical pesticides, on land that has had no chemicals applied to it either. Organic meat comes from animals that have had no antibiotics or steroids in their feed, no by-products from slaughter, and are allowed to graze in chemical-free pastures, hay, and grain. And dairy products can be considered organic when they grow on chemical-free farms.

Furthermore, according to the United States Department of Agriculture, there are four categories of organic food, which are:

  1. 100% organic—containing 100% only organically grown ingredients
  1. Organic—containing 95% or more organically grown ingredients
  1. Made of natural ingredients—containing 70% or more organically grown ingredients
  1. Have some organic ingredients—containing less than 70% organically grown ingredients

Two Examples of Organic Food, and their Benefits

Obviously, there are many types of organic food aside from dairy, meat and produce, in fact, you will find organic cereal, baby food or even pet food in grocery aisles nowadays. But we’d like to give two concrete examples of organic foods as well as their health benefits.

Organic Tomatoes—this may seem rather counterintuitive, but organic tomatoes grow in soils that have a smaller nutrient supply than regular farming land because these are free from chemical fertilizers rich in nitrogen.

According to discovery in a ten-year study done at UC Davis, organic tomatoes are very rich in antioxidants, which ward off cancer and lower the incidence of heart disease.

Organic Tomatoes

Organic Milk—has been shown to be higher in vitamins, omage-3 fatty acids, antioxidants and other minerals than non-organic milk.

A study done at the University of Aberdeen has proved that organic milk is indeed healthier because pasture-grazed organic cows produce a more nutritious quality of milk.

Because of these studies and others, more and more people are beginning to see that we must stop using chemical fertilizers and adapt organic farming practices.

Why are organic foods better for our bodies?

Here is a list of the health benefits that organic foods give us.

  • Antioxidant capacity—studies have shown that antioxidants work better in our bodies when they originate from organic foods. This is due to the absence of chemicals that cannot interfere with the nutrients in our food that prevent disease, aging, brain functions and the like.
  • Less exposure to pesticides—for example, the chemical organophosphorus, found in many pesticides, is linked to ADHD, autism and other problems in a child’s development. Organic foods have no chemicals such as organophosphorus.
  • Cardiac health—pasture-grazed animals have higher levels of CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) a heart-protecting fatty acid.
  • Less resistance to antibiotics—because organic farmers do not give their livestock antibiotics, they do not contribute to widespread antibiotic resistance that has wreaked havoc all over the world.
  • Organic food tastes better than non-organic food, which is highly beneficial to children, who end up eating more and better food.
  • Organic food is better for the environment, as it is free from harmful chemicals.
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Posted in Healthy Living

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