Eat Your (Organic) Vegetables!
an Excerpt

"Choosy moms choose Jiff!" Remember that commercial exhortation? When I was a child I looked forward to my mom proving her choosiness every time we went shopping. It seemed a simpler time then when all that moms had to concern themselves with at the grocery store was brand loyalty and bargain buys.

Now we have to worry about pesticides on fruits, hormones in our milk, genetically altered vegetables and going crazy, literally, for burgers.

The inventory, of chemically treated and potentially dangerous foods, is a veritable A-Z list. According to the Food and Drug Administration, 36 different pesticides can be, and are, found on apples, with as many as seven additional chemicals to be found present on the skin. Cantaloupes frequently contain dieldrin, an exceedingly toxic and carcinogenic insecticide. Dieldrin was banned in 1974 but residues remain in soils and are taken up through the roots of plants and stored in the edible portion. Grapes, one of the most popular snack fruits for children, are covered with various chemicals. The worst offenders are Chilean grapes, which are covered with as many as 17 different chemicals. And Chilean grapes make up 90 percent of the grapes eaten here in the states. Spinach is treated with a chemical that can cause cancer and strawberries are one of the most contaminated of all produce items here in the states. Zucchini is not only treated with harmful pesticides but also coated with waxes that hold the chemicals.

One smart approach to the threat of pesticides and chemicals is to purchase organically grown fruits and vegetables.

Authors Note: This 1500 word article covers, in precise and accessible language, what organic food is, USDA labeling, organic food's availability and where to find it, a recommended reading list and how to get involved.

From the article:

Want to get involved? Want to tell the FDA to impose a moratorium on the approval of GE Fish Applications, oppose FDA's new regulations on Genetically Engineered Food, or take genetically engineered Bovine Growth Hormone off the market? Go to The Center for Food Safety, http://www.foodsafetynow.org/ , and click on the cause you are interested in. Getting involved is a rewarding and satisfying way for "choosy moms" to pick the best and to ensure that the best is there to pick.

First North American publication print rights for this article have been sold. For availability of this article's reprint rights in your distribution area, and for information about other articles like it, email inkme@annettehyder.com

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