Monday, April 16, 2012

To Be or Not To Be Organic....

   


   Along with gas prices, the price of food gets higher and higher. Right now dairy and gas are competing to see who can get the highest per gallon. Unfortunately most budget friendly (cheap) foods are over processed prepackage with little or no nutritional value. They contain high amounts of sugar (refined, corn syrup, natural etc are All sugars) sodium and a long list of things I can't pronounce. You are what you eat, literally...
Changing peoples perspective on their diet is like asking a long time smoker to quit. One quote was 'I'm not going to change how I eat. I only get to live once. So I'm going to eat what I want."  *That kind of thinking could possibly make you sick, depressed, stressed and overweight.

   One thing we've been doing is adding more whole fruits and veggies in our diet. Some are organic and some are not. For years I felt guilty for not buying organic produce. Because lets face it, they are expensive! My very tight grocery budget wouldn't allow me to buy organic. Your budget may be the same. Do the best you can. Replacing over processed foods with whole fruits and veggies is a step in the right direction. Don't skip it all together just because they aren't organic. Not all of them have to be organic.....

   Here on the EWG's Website is a guide to pesticides in produce. They have a complete list of 53 fruits and veggies that have the highest and lowest amounts of pesticides. From 1.Apples (the highest) to 53.Onions (the lowest), you have a clear guideline on what to buy organic. That's a lot to try and remember, so they have put together a smaller printable Shoppers Guide. On this guide you have the 'Dirty Dozen'. These are the produce you would need to buy organic if possible. **Then there are the 'Clean 15'.  With these you can feel confident buying the non organic version. Thus keeping more money in your pocket and putting healthier options on your plate.





*Note I am not a nutritionist. I am someone who is seeking out a healthier lifestyle and sharing my opinions. 

**With any produce, it is always recommended to wash well



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