Should you buy organic?

So many options for buying organic food.  Everyone knows you pay more for organic food.  Why?  Is buying organic really better for your health?  Consumer Reports has some interesting information in their article, Organic Food on a Budget . With food prices increasing many people who bought organic food before are now cutting back.  How can you enjoy organic food on a budget? 

 What does organic mean? 

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal agency that regulates organic food.  To be labeled “organic” food must be grown and processed according to federal guidelines.  Or, animals must be raised according to federal guidelines.  These guidelines cover soil quality, pest and weed control, and how additives are used.

• Produce – organic produce is grown free of synthetic fertilizers, free of pesticide use. In grocery stores, the organic produce is kept separate from regular produce.  I had a student who worked in the produce section of a store and if a customer put an organic banana (or other produce) with the regular bananas, that organic banana was no longer be sold as “organic”.
• Organic meat – animals are raised to live in more natural conditions like grazing on pastures, fed only 100% organic feed and not antibiotics or hormones are administered.
• Organic Milk – this milk comes from cow’s that were not given antibiotics or hormones (e.g. rBST), and have 30% of their diet from the pasture. 

 

Are organic foods healthier?

Many people eat organic foods to avoid the chemicals and hormones.  I prefer organic milk to avoid the antibiotics and hormones that can be in regular cow’s milk.  Organic produce doesn’t have the pesticide chemicals.  In a survey done by Consumer Reports, 42% of Americans thought organic food was more nutritious, and 66% thought it as better at limiting their exposure to pesticides or fertilizers.  

Most researchers say organic foods provide the same nutrients in terms of protein, carbs, fat, vitamins and minerals as non-organic foods.  However, a study in the British Journal of Nutrition found organic produce provided more antioxidants.  But regardless of nutrition value, organic foods do contain less pesticides.

How can you save money on organic foods?

1. Grow your own produce.  So many people have summer gardens and it is easy to grow your own veggies without pesticides.  We don’t have a garden but we do grow herbs and green peppers on our deck.  I go out and snip “organic” chives or parsley all spring, summer and fall.
2. Shop at stores that have lower-priced organic items like Aldi’s, Costco, and Target.
3. Buy organic when it is on sale.
4. Big Lots, Dollar Stores may have some organic food items marked down for quick sale.
5. Buy the store brand.
6. Buy at Farmer’s Markets and ask about pesticide use and organic practices.  Some farmers aren’t “certified organic” because of cost but may follow many organic practices.
7. Check out frozen fruits and vegetables – usually cheaper than fresh and may be organic.  Or buy fresh organic on sale and freeze for later.

What foods should you buy organic?

It really is up to you.  Because of cost, we focus mostly on organic milk and as noted above, plant some herbs and peppers in pots on our deck.  Consumer Reports recommends buying organic produce but notes these products are higher in price.  Every year the Environmental Working Group (EWG) lists the Dirty Dozen, the foods highest in pesticides.  These include strawberries, spinach, grapes, nectarines, apples and other foods. 

How can you cut back on pesticides without buying organic?

• Focus on buying fruits and vegetables lowest in pesticides?  EWG provides a list of the Clean Fifteen.  A listing of fruits and vegetables with no or low detectable amounts of pesticides.  What foods are on the Clean Fifteen list for 2022? 

o   Vegetables:  Sweet corn, onions, sweet peas, asparagus, cabbage, mushrooms, sweet potatoes

o   Fruits: Avocado, pineapple, honeydew melon, kiwi, cantaloupe, mangoes, watermelon

• Wash fruits and vegetables.  Registered Dietitian, Lily Nichols, wrote an interesting blog on the benefits of washing fruits and vegetables.  Her conclusions?  Washing does help to remove some pesticides.  She cited a study (Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry,2000) that found “washing produce reduced residues of nine out of the twelve pesticides“ studied. 
• Cooking: Another interesting factoid is that cooking vegetables reduces pesticides. 

Whether organic or not, eating fruits and vegetables is good for one’s health.  One study (Food and Chemical Toxicology, 2012) noted, ..if one-half of the U.S. population were to increase fruit and vegetable consumption by one serving per day, an estimated 20,000 cancer cases might be avoided each year. 

Do you buy organic food?  What kind?  Meat, milk, fruits or vegetables?  Do you take time to wash the fruit and vegetables you eat?  Feel free to comment below.

 

Sources:  Organic Food on a Budget , labeled , milk , survey , British Journal of Nutrition , Shop , store brand, Dirty Dozen , Clean Fifteen , Registered Dietitian , cooking , study  Images:  USDA organic seal , Organic percentages , Organic milk

How to crush those sugar cravings

Who doesn’t love sweets?  Always fun to enjoy some desserts like cookies, cake, candy.  But Americans eat way too much sugar, not just in desserts but in so many foods.  And it is the added sugar in foods that we need to cut back on, not the natural sugar found in fruits or even real cow’s milk.  What are some ways that we can cut back on all that added sugar and those cravings for sweets?

Psychologists have studied how sugar affects our brains and body weight as noted in the Frontiers in Psychiatry.  The article notes that “studies have linked sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) to an increase in body weight in children and adults”.  What are sugar-sweetened beverages?  Think sugar-sweetened sodas like Coke, Mountain Dew, Sprite, sports drinks like Gatorade, Powerade, sweet tea, sweetened coffee drinks like Frappuccino, energy drinks like Red Bull and Monster and fruit drinks like lemonade or fruit punch.  These beverages not only contain a lot of added sugar but provide a lot of calories and few, if any, nutrients.  Why might these beverages be linked to weight gain?  As noted in Young Men’s Health:

When you have a sugar-sweetened drink, you likely do not feel full afterwards compared to how you would feel from eating food that has the same amount of calories.  The non-filling calories from these beverages can cause a person to consistently consume more calories than their body needs for energy, which over time can lead to a body weight increases beyond what is normally expected.  

What are some ways to cut back on foods high in added sugar including those problematic sugar-sweetened beverages?  Eat This, Not That! has some suggestions. 

• Eat a complete breakfast of real foods.  Skip the sweet rolls and those grab and go muffins at Fast Food places.  Focus on whole grain cereals (all General Mills cereals are whole grain), whole grain toast, bagels, or English muffins, fresh fruit and high-quality protein like eggs or yogurt.  How does eating breakfast help fight off those sugar cravings?  Because it will help prevent sugar lows later in the morning.  Skip breakfast and around 10 or 11 AM you may be at the vending machine buying a candy bar or some other snack loaded with added sugar.
• Snacks – no need to skip snacks but opt for some healthy choices like peanut butter on whole wheat toast, hummus and carrots, yogurt and some fruit, a cheese stick and fruit.  These will fight off the hunger and don’t contain a lot of added sugar.  Eating foods with some protein and fiber will help fill you up and stave off those hunger pains.

A great snack for kids.

• Don’t get too hungry.  Remember to eat meals and snacks throughout the day.  If you get too hungry, you may be more tempted to eat something that will immediately boost your blood sugar level like a donut, sweet roll, candy bar.  Skipping meals isn’t healthy especially when it leads to eating foods loaded with added sugar and few nutrients.  Dietitian Amy Goodson says, Eating more often and balancing that meal or snack with carbs and protein can prevent you from blood sugar drops and ultimately help you avoid those sugar cravings.
• Snack on some naturally sweet fruit like watermelon, honeydew, and cantaloupe.
• Eat some foods high in magnesium – sugar cravings may mean your body is low in magnesium.  Dietitian, Lauren Manaker, says, One side effect of having magnesium deficiency is experiencing sugar cravings.  And being low in magnesium can lead to feeling more tired.  (See Feeling tired?  Maybe you need more magnesium.)  NIH provides a list of many foods high in magnesium including: 

• Nuts:  almonds, cashews, peanuts and peanut butter
• Seeds:  Pumpkin and chia
• Vegetables:  spinach, potatoes, edamame, kidney beans
• Fruit- banana, raisins
• Whole grains:  oatmeal, whole wheat bread, shredded wheat
• Dairy – cow’s milk, yogurt made from cow’s milk

• Exercise and go outside:  to improve your mood and boost those feel good, serotonin, instead of grabbing a food loaded with added sugar, take time for some exercise.  Manaker recommends, Exercise and exposure to sunlight can elicit happy feelings too, and it may possible help cut your sugar craving for good. 

This week before reaching for that sugar-sweetened beverage or that sugary snack, try some of the above ideas and see how you can keep those sugar cravings under control.

 Sources:  Frontiers in Psychiatry , sugar-sweetened beverages , Young Men’s Health , Eat This, Not That! , Eat This, Not That! , Dietitian , Feeling tired?  Maybe you need more magnesium , NIH , recommends  Image Sources:  Healthy butterfly snack , Sugary Drinks , Exercise