Organic or Not?

Introduction

You walk into a grocery store to buy some grapefruit for your favorite fruit salad recipe. Sitting in front of you are two choices: organic grapefruit and regular grapefruit. The organic versus not organic question is one that confuses consumers every day. You know that organic uses fewer chemicals, but is it healthier than the other option? Is it worth it to spend the extra dollar?  It seems that, it would be more beneficial to buy organic produce than regular if you have the extra money.

Higher Nutrients in Organic

Some nutrients are higher in organic versus ordinary produce, such as Vitamin C. As humans, we need vitamin C to keep our bodies healthy. It’s known as an antioxidant, which means it helps fight off cancer causing materials. Vitamin C also helps repair our bones and teeth. So, having an increased level of vitamin C in our foods would be beneficial. It’s been shown that vitamin C levels are higher in certain organic produce, such as tomatoes¹.

Other nutrients are also considered to be antioxidants, such as beta-carotene. Beta-carotene is high in carrots, sweet potatoes, and spinach. The body can make vitamin A from beta-carotene, which helps with our eyesight. It’s still argued if beta-carotene is higher in organic or regular foods².

Flavonoids, also called vitamin P, are another compound that has antioxidant capabilities. They are typically higher in organic foods versus regular foods. One farm that switched from a traditional farm to an organic farm kept track of the flavonoid levels in the food. They noticed that every year the flavonoid levels increased. With organic soil it lets the food make more flavonoids. That means, the longer the soil has been organic; the more flavonoids will be produced.

Why there are more Nutrients in Organic

There is no clear reason why organic foods have more nutrients than regular foods, but there are some ideas. One idea is that regular produce comes in contact with more fertilizers. Fertilizers are high in the nutrient nitrogen, which allows the plant to develop more. So instead of the nutrients being available for us to eat, the plant uses them for its own development. Another idea is that organic produce has less fertilizer and protection. Without the fertilizer protecting the plant from pests, the plant must protect itself. So it creates its own defense system, and that defense system contains nutrients³. It’s similar to the ending sense in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. The king’s castle is under attack and even though Aragon and his army are doing their best, they need more help. Then Gandalf and his army appear on the hill and ride in to help fight off the bad guys. Think of the King’s castle as the plant, and Gandalf and his army as nutrients. When a plant is organic it needs more help to fight of pests, so it builds a stronger “army.”

Other Views

The American Dietetic Association (AND) is a respected organization of food and nutrition experts. They don’t promote organic foods to be more nutritious. However, their reason is simply because they try to promote the consumption of fruits and vegetables overall. AND doesn’t want people to think that organic produce is too expensive, and thus not eat any produce at all.⁴ They believe that eating any apple is more important than eating an organic apple.

Conclusion

As your looking at all your grapefruit choices, it may seem confusing. But know, you’re not alone in the confusion. Here is the bottom line: if you have the option and the extra money to choose between organic versus regular, the smarter choice would be to choose organic. This is because of its lower pesticide residue, the increase nutrient content, and the higher levels of antioxidants. Evidence is still being released on this subject. However, with the knowledge we know now, it would be more beneficial to buy organic. 

Work cited

1     United States Department of Agriculture. National Organic Program. Available at: http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/nop. Accessibility verified February 2, 2014.

2     Cardoso P. Vitamin C and carotenoids in organic and conventional fruits grown in Brazil. Food Chem. 2010; 126: 411-416.

3     Winter C. Organic Foods. J Food Sci. 2006; 71: 117- 124.

4      Wunderlich S. Nutritional quality of organic, conventional, and seasonally grown broccoli using vitamin C as a marker. Int J Food Sci Nutr. 2008; 59: 34-45.