First
and foremost, eating your fruits and veggies is most important. If you
cannot afford organic, it's okay. Clean your fruits and veggies with an
appropriate scrub/rinse. You can buy the veggie wash from the store or
you can make your own with common household items. Do you know which
household ingredients go a long way in reducing the pesticide residue on
your foods? Click here for more.
Here is what you can do to get rid of the pesticides in a friendly way:
- Baking soda ~ Using, a clean sponge or cloth, sprinkle, scrub, and rinse!
- Make a spray bottle with 1t vinegar (white or cider) and fill the rest with water. Make a separate spray bottle with 1/2t hydrogen peroxide and water. DO NOT MIX TOGETHER IN ONE SPRAY BOTTLE TO SAVE A STEP!!! Creates a Peracetic acid which in no bueno to consume. Then rinse.
- Add 1/4-cup vinegar and 2 Tablespoons salt into a sink full of water and let sit for 15 minutes then rinse.
- Combine 2T vinegar, 1T lemon juice, and 1c cold tap water in a spray bottle, shake well, and apply to your produce. Rinse
- 4T salt and juice of half a lemon in a sink full of water, soak for 5-10 minutes, less for leafy greens and berries. Rinse.
Why
buy organic? Many people buy organic because of the amount of
pesticides that are usually used on that particular crop that will
absorb into the food and/or stick as a residue which will be passed onto
the consumer, aka your body. I'm not going to get into the politics or
more specifics, check out the links below for additional reading.
Here is a quick list that I gathered from multiple resources1 that agreed on what to get organic:
- Apples
- Celery
- Strawberries
- Stone fruits - peaches, apricots, cherries, nectarines
- Leafy vegetables - spinach, kale, collard greens, lettuce
- Grapes
- Sweet bell peppers
- Potatoes
- Blueberries
What other foods are recommended organic and why?
It
is also suggested to find organic meats and dairy products because of
the hormones that are used. Coffee because of the countries it comes
from. Raisins and wine because they are made from grapes. There are also
the ideas of eating foods in season so it doesn't have to be imported
and travel long distances to get to you. Imported foods have different
standards on pesticides used vs. domestic. Cantaloupe is one of the
foods that is okay domestic but organic imported. The fruits and veggies
with peels have less concern because the pesticides don't penetrate as
much and they are peeled off. But with bananas there is a concern on
proper harvesting and sustainable farming. Those are the issues that I
will leave for you to decide.
Here
is a list of what doesn't need to be organic because minimal pesticides
are used for this particular crop and/or they don't absorb as much of
the pesticides.
1. Onions
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| EWG's Dirty Dozen Cheat Sheet 2 |
2. Corn
3. Pineapples
4. Avocado
5. Asparagus
6. Sweet peas
7. Mangoes
8. Eggplant
9. Kiwi
10. Mushrooms
11. Cabbage
12. Watermelon
13. Sweet potatoes
14. Grapefruit
Organic
is great if you can fit it in time wise and financially. If not, use
one of the helpful tips to eliminate the majority of the pesticides. BUT
MOST IMPORTANTLY, organic or not, EAT YOUR FRUITS AND VEGGIES!!!!! Your
body really does need the nutrients they provide that you can't get in
such glorious form anywhere else.
Check out the other blogs for links to watch the video, print the recipe, prepare any one of the dishes and you'll find yourself saying "That's Vegetarian?!"
