Organic or conventional? Local or organic? This one is a doozy because when it comes to food, nutrition and health, there isn’t one correct answer for everyone. Stanford University just released findings that organic produce is not more nutritious than conventional produce. It also states that eating conventional produce may expose you to pesticide residues and antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
Here is the thing…what does the word nutritious really mean?
For some eating a nutritious diet means that is full of all the essential nutrients – protein, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins and minerals. For others, a nutritious diet helps you maintain a healthy weight. For some, all they care about is that their blood panels are good at their annual physical. And for others, eating nutritiously means that all the foods you eat are whole and grown in a sustainable manner with little to no processing.
It is true that an organic apple vs a conventional apple will have the same amount of calories per serving size and possibly the same amount of vitamins and minerals. So it makes sense that some will see no benefit in eating organic. However, some find pesticides and GMOs as unhealthy and not part of a nutritious diet and do not want to be exposed to them, therefore there is a significant difference between organic and conventional for that individual.
My advice is for you to decide what is important to you. Be a smart consumer. Do you care how your food is grown? Do you understand what the local and organic movement is even fighting for? Is it just about the calories and your weight? Once you learn more sides to the story, then you can make an educated choice and be a smart consumer.
How do you like them apples???