Why organic?
Organic produce is grown without the use of pesticides, chemical fertilisers or genetically modified components.
Pesticides
Increases in birth defects and reproductive disorders, chronic diseases such as different types of cancer, diabetes, neurodegenerative disorders like Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and ALS have been linked to increased exposure to pesticides.1
Children born from mothers with the highest pesticide levels measured in their urine were measured with significantly lower IQ points.2 Over 26 studies showed detrimental effects of pesticides on brain development in children, including short-term memory difficulties, attention problems and developmental disorders. 3
3- to 11-year old children that were previously eating a conventional diet with pesticides on the produce were switched on an organic diet for five days, and then back to the conventional diet. The study proved that eating organic provides a significant and immediate protective effect against exposure to pesticides commonly used in agricultural farming. 4,5
Adults who consumed a diet of at least 80% organic for a week were found to have pesticide exposure reduced significantly by nearly 90%.6
Table 1 below shows Pesticides associated with elevated incidence of cancer in epidemiological studies. 7
Chemical Fertilisers
Many phosphate fertilizers used in non-organic farming have elevated cadmium levels. Examining 343 peer reviewed studies, not only did organic foods have more antioxidant phytonutrients, but lower concentrations of cadmium (one of three highly toxic heavy metals found in the food supply, with Lead and Mercury being the other two). 8
Plants exposed to high amounts of synthetic nitrogen fertilizers divert more resources to growth rather than defense. 8 Organic fruits and vegetables had between 19% and 69% greater variety of antioxidant phenolic phytonutrient compounds, created by the plant for its own protection. 8 One of the most powerful anti-cancer phytonutrients is the bitter compound sulforaphane9 (found in greater concentrations in organic broccoli) that deters bugs from eating it.
Higher Nutritional Profile of Organic Produce
Organic fruits and vegetables have up to 69% more antioxidant phenolic phytonutrient compounds; this has been shown to translate into better cancer fighting properties. Extracts from organically grown strawberries were shown to lower the growth of colon cancer cells and breast cancer cells significantly compared to extracts from non-organic strawberries. 10
Organic produce has shown to have higher antioxidant and antimutagenic activity, as well as better inhibition of cancer cell proliferation. 11
7. S. Mostafalou, M. Abdollahi / Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology 268 (2013) 157–177