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Saturday, June 2, 2012

How to minimize pesticides on non organic foods

         Over the past few years as more stores stock organic foods I have been trying to buy as much organic as I can.  At first reluctant to pay considerably more for organic I have just decided that the cost of ingesting pesticides and steroids don't justify the lower cost of the non organic products.  I know that what qualifies for organic may not be consistent and some manufacturers are using the word as a marketing gimmick.  Just like the low fat, low cholesterol packaging misled consumers into thinking that the products were healthy.  Only looking at the ingredients showed high amounts of sugars and other harmful ingredients.
    I have researched fruits and vegetables that have less pesticides and have been buying only those that are more pesticide free.  The list of fruits and vegetables ranked from worst to best on pesticide use are:
         These are ranked in order with the worst of the bunch, peaches, at #1.
produce pesticides
Peaches tend to have the most pesticides of any fruit or vegetable ... so if possible buy these organic.
  1. Peaches
  2. Apples
  3. Sweet Bell Peppers
  4. Celery
  5. Nectarines
  6. Strawberries
  7. Cherries
  8. Pears
  9. Grapes (Imported)
  10. Spinach
  11. Lettuce
  12. Potatoes
  13. Carrots
  14. Green Beans
  15. Hot Peppers
  16. Cucumbers
  17. Raspberries
  18. Plums
  19. Grapes (Domestic)
  20. Oranges
The 20 Fruits and Veggies With the LEAST Amount of Pesticides
According the following produce has the lowest pesticide load, ranked in order with the produce with the absolute lowest pesticides first.
  1. Onion
  2. Avocado
  3. Sweet corn (Frozen)
  4. Pineapples
  5. Mango
  6. Asparagus
  7. Sweet peas (Frozen)
  8. Kiwi
  9. Bananas
  10. Cabbage
  11. Broccoli
  12. Papaya
  13. Blueberries
  14. Cauliflower
  15. Winter Squash
  16. Watermelon
  17. Sweet potatoes
  18. Tomatoes
  19. Honeydew melon
  20. Cantaloupe
 To make your fruits and vegetables safer that are on the bad list there is one fairly quick way to eliminate a good deal the surface pesticide.  Let your fruits and vegetables soak for 15 to 20 minutes in a bath of one part white vinegar and three parts water.  Rinse the fruit or vegetables after the bath.  Surprisingly the fruits and vegetables don't take on a vinegar taste.  It removes 98% of the bacteria.  Peeling and only eating the inner parts of leafy vegetables also helps.

P. S.
Music video of the week.  One and only King of Rock and Roll (love the black leather outfit!)                                     

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