Study: Eating organic food drastically cuts chemicals in body

A study by an Australian University states that “Eating an organic diet for a week can cause pesticide levels to drop by almost 90% in adults.”

 Researchers at RMIT University found that people who ate organic food for seven days had levels of urinary dialkylphosphates (essentially, a measure of pesticides that are eliminated from the body in waste) that were 89% lower than those participants who ate a conventional diet for seven days.

 Dr. Liza Oates, who led the study, said the results indicated that most of the pesticides came from food, but also said that food wasn’t the only source of the chemicals: “The people in the organic phase (of the study) still did have some exposure, so there are obviously some alternate routes of exposure.”

It’s an interesting look at the chemicals we’re exposed to every day, and also raises another possibility: eating food that isn’t raised with pesticides and herbicides can help us keep our water supplies clean in more ways than one.

Scientists have long known that runoff from farms often contains high amounts of pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers, and that it shows up in high concentrations in rivers, lakes, streams and other bodies of water.

 But it may also be entering water supplies through our bodies in the form of waste material.

If you’re growing a garden this year, why not try to do it without the use of chemicals? Use mulch to keep the weeds down, use compost to fertilize, and use a mixture of dish soap and water to eliminate bugs.

The next time you’re grocery shopping, consider adding more organic food to your cart. A plethora of studies have shown that adopting an organic lifestyle, and supporting organically raised food, can have a number of health benefits. It can also help to protect our environment and our water supply. And that’s a benefit for everyone.