Organic Food Are The Best

If you've heard the term "organic" a million times but still aren't sure what it means, here's the deal: Organic farming avoids the use of most artificial inputs, like synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, and bans the use of animal by-products, antibiotics and sewage sludge.

But check for tricky labeling: "100% organic" actually means that all the individual ingredients are organic. "Organic" means that at least 95% of the ingredients are organic. "Made with organic ingredients" means that at least 70% of the ingredients are organic. Check your local farmers market, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) project, neighborhood food co-op, and natural food stores when looking for organic foods.

Genetic engineering allows scientists to create man-made plants (corn, soy beans, canola), animals (clones) and micro-organisms (crops). These genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, can spread and interbreed with natural organisms, and contaminate non-GMO environments for future generations in unknowable and unmanageable ways The danger is that, once released into the environment, GMOs cannot be recalled. Organic food is GMO-free, but otherwise, look for a GMO-free label.

Some farmers allow their animals to graze and have outdoor space. When this is the case, the label on the products will state they are "cage-free" or "pasture grown." "Free-range" means that outdoor space is available at least once every day. But unless you are familiar with the farm the animal was raised on, don't be fooled by any of these logos, since some farms exploit legal loopholes in these terms. Other labels to look for:

1. Raised without added hormones

2. Raised without antibiotics

3. Never fed animal by-products

Being eco-safe in your food purchasing also means cutting down on packaging. Trash from the packaging of food in the U.S.(including tin, cardboard, paper and plastic) adds up to 200 million tons a day!

Here are some tips:

1. Buy food sold in bulk at natural food stores

2. Buy at farmer's markets, where most of the food is unwrapped and you can bring your own bags

3. Try to cut down or eliminate the use of disposable aluminum foil, plastic wrap and baggies for leftovers. Instead, store food in glass or ceramic bowls with lids

4. Wash and reuse zip plastic bags, containers, and grocery store produce bags

We hear about pesticides a lot, but studies find that they really do harm the body over time. In fact, many scientists think that pesticides account for the current soaring cancer rates among children. While this list of foods isn't necessarily "organic" or "eco-friendly" (because they may still be grown on farms that use pesticides) you can buy them without fearing pesticide-overload.

Why? They either grow above the soil, or have such a thick outer layer (like a banana peel) that the pesticides don't harm the part you're going to eat: Avocados, corn, onions, sweet potatoes, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, grapes, bananas, plums, green onions, watermelon and broccoli

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