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Should You Buy Organic?

Nothing is too good for my first born grandchild! Now approaching nine months, he has ventured into the world of baby foods. I decided to buy some to keep at my house, and I was taken back by the whole array of "organic" foods made by companies that have been making baby foods forever! Being the skeptic that I am, I wondered whether or not it was worth the extra cost for the organic food.
More often in the marketplace, we are seeing foods billed as "organic" or "all-natural." But what exactly does that mean? Are organic foods safer? Are they more nutritious? Or is it one of those marketing fads that has captured the conscience of the consumer.

A timely article came across my desk as I was pondering the worth of "organic" foods. In the July/August 2007 issue of Nutrition Action Healthletter, there is a lengthy article on the organic food boom that has hit the marketplace. The article discusses these and other questions. Some simplified answers taken from the article are as follows:

• Organic foods are not necessarily safer from contaminants like salmonella or E.coli.
• Organic foods have not been shown to have a higher nutritional content than traditionally-farmed foods.
• Organic foods may have traces of pesticides, due to background contamination of soils from previous years or on occasion, from fraud. Generally, less than 25% of organic foods have pesticide residues.
• Imported organic foods are of greater concern than domestically-grown foods, especially those from China.

The article points out that to the farmer, "organic" means grown in healthy soil, but to the consumer, it usually conjures up a pesticide-free product. Fortunately, there are now some legal definitions for terms used on such foods, which the article defines. For example, if a product is labeled "organic fruit and vegetables" it means legally that the foods were grown without synthetic pesticides, synthetic fertilizers or sewage sludge and haven't been genetically engineered or irradiated. "Organic beef and chicken" means legally that the animals were not the offspring of cloned animals, were never given growth hormones, antibiotics or other drugs and their meat was never irradiated. "Organic milk" comes from animals that for at least the past 12 months were fed 100% organic feed and were not given antibiotics or growth hormones. "Cage-free" eggs come from hens that were not confined to cages and that may or may not have access to the outdoors. It does not mean that they are organic. "Free range" poultry means that the birds have access to the outdoors but for no minimum time. Again, they are not necessarily organic.

Organic farms are supposed to be inspected once a year. But there are only about 10 inspectors who have to monitor more than 20,000 growers. Hopefully, most organic farmers are honest. But as with anything else, there are always those who will be less scrupulous and take advantage of the American desire for healthier food. You have to decide for yourself if spending the extra money for organic foods is worth it. For a reprint of the July/August 2007 Nutrition Action Healthletter,

For more information, District residents (Hamden, North Haven and Woodbridge) can call QVHD, 203.248.4528. Or you can request information online or through email, dculligan@qvhd.org

Quinnipiack Valley Health District
1151 Hartford Turnpike
North Haven, CT 06473

Phone. (203)248-4528
Fax. (203)248-6671
E-Mail. info@qvhd.org