Health benefits of choosing organic

Organic foods are becoming increasingly popular and more readily available. Whilst many people have heard that organic food is better for our health, very few really understand why. Lets look at some of the health benefits to be found when choosing organic food over conventional food.


Antioxidants



It is believed that antioxidants found in organic food has a greater effect on our health and wellbeing when compared to conventional food.
This may be due in part to the harmful chemical toxins found on conventional food interacting with the bodies ability to effectively benefit from the uptake of vitamins and minerals found in fresh produce.

Eat a rainbow of foods. The diagram below indicates the protective benefits from the natural food colours. Choosing to eat a variety of coloured food on a daily basis will help to increase your antioxidant level and boost your immunity. Choosing organic optimises these benefits.




Pesticides

Pesticides are used to protects crops from being damaged by pests and the environment. These chemicals are powerful and very effective, however, the are not natural to the human body and are toxic.
The consumption of these toxins has a negative impact on our health, including developmental problems such as autism and ADHD. Children are particularly vulnerable, even low levels of exposure during development can lead to long term adverse health effects.

The World Health Organisation suggests that there are upwards of 3 million cases of pesticide poisoning each year, leading to over 200,000 deaths.
The symptoms may be subtle and therefore go undetected by conventional medicine. Symptoms of pesticide exposure can range from memory loss, poor vision, reduced motor skills and changes in behaviour or mood. Pesticide exposure has also been linked to asthma, allergies, hypersensitivity, hormone disruption, problems with reproduction, fetal development and cancer.

Exposure from crop spraying goes beyond direct ingestion from contaminated foods, the chemicals become an environmental hazard too. This diagram shows how direct crop spraying turns into environmental contamination.

Organic food is grown without the use of chemicals, pesticides, fertilizers, fungicides and herbicides.




The Immune System

The immune system is a collaboration of cells, tissues and organs that work to defend the body against invaders. The success of our bodies immune system is down to an elaborate communication network. This protects the body from foreign invaders such as bacteria, viruses, parasites and toxins.

When our immune system is not working properly it can lead to health problems such as cancer,HIV, allergies and autoimmune diseases, including lupus, arthritis and diabetes.






Antibiotic resistance

Antibiotic resistance is a widespread growing problem. frequent use of antibiotics can cause bacteria or other microbes to mutate or change, meaning that the antibiotics are no longer effective. This makes the infections harder to treat, leading to the development of stronger, more powerful drugs.

Antibiotics are routinely given to conventionally raised farm animals. This widespread agricultural use promotes the development of antibiotic resistance. Exposure to antibiotics is through under cooked meat or contaminated soil and groundwater. Organic farming ensures that animals are raised without antibiotics and hormones.