For a number of years organic food has been promoted as a healthier option. However, finding from a recent study conducted at Stanford University have shattered these notions. According to one of the researchers, Dena Bravata, MD,” there isn’t much difference between organic and conventional foods.” The research combined the result of over 200 individual studies on the content and associated health gains of organic and non-organic foods and concluded that organic food is not necessarily healthier or more nutritious than its conventionally grown counterparts.
According to the study organic and non-organic fruit, vegetables and grains have more or less the same nutritional values and contain similar amounts of vitamins and minerals. The same applies to milk, although there is some evidence that suggests organic milk contains more omega-3.
Although the study states that there is no discernible difference between nutritional content, it does mention that organic food was 30% less likely to contain pesticides- and therefore people who consume organic foods are less exposed to pesticide and antibiotic-resistant bacteria. On the other hand, pesticide level conventionally-farmed produce were also well within the prescribed/safe range.
There may , therefore, not be much nutritional difference between organic and non-organic food, however the former are exposed to fewer synthetic and chemical compounds such as fertilisers, pesticides, preservative and artificial sweeteners which in the long run have to count for some health benefits.
So if you are thinking of going organic don’t let the study deter you.
By Dr Samia Babar. The writer is Director, Health Awareness Society