Organic Food is Better For You

Something we have known for a long time, but that science is finally coming around to demonstrating is true… organic food is healthier for you. And, I would add that if you can get LOCALLY grown organic food, it is even better for you.

Organic food ‘better’ for heart

“Organic fruit and vegetables may be better for you than conventionally grown crops, US research suggests. A ten-year study comparing organic tomatoes with standard produce found almost double the level of flavonoids – a type of antioxidant. Flavonoids have been shown to reduce high blood pressure, lowering the risk of heart disease and stroke. Writing in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, the team said nitrogen in the soil may be the key. Dr Alyson Mitchell, a food chemist at the University of California, and colleagues measured the amount of two flavonoids – quercetin and kaempferol – in dried tomato samples that had been collected as part of a long-term study on agricultural methods. They found that on average they were 79% and 97% higher respectively in the organic tomatoes than in the conventionally grown fruit. New Scientist magazine reported that the different levels of flavonoids in tomatoes are probably due to the absence of fertilizers in organic farming. Flavonoids are produced as a defense mechanism that can be triggered by nutrient deficiency, such as a lack of nitrogen in the soil. The inorganic nitrogen in conventional fertilizer is easily available to plants and so, the researchers suggests, the lower levels of flavonoids are probably caused by over-fertilization.”