FOOD

HEALTH BENEFITS OF EATING ORGANIC FOODS

• Often, the flavor is just so much better. Good organic fruits and vegetables are juicy and full-flavored, milk tastes richer, cheeses are ripe and mouthwatering. Once you've experienced the sweet intensity of a fresh organic carrot, bought with the sandy soil still clinging to it, other carrots will seem insipid and bland. Of course, there are no guarantees. Not every organic item will give you a burst of flavor pleasure, but if you shop carefully, buy only the freshest, and seek out quality, you won't be disappointed. Eating organic makes it easier to follow the seasons too.

• Supermarkets choose fruit and vegetable varieties for appearance and shelf-life. Flavor isn't always a consideration. Because there are more, named varieties of organic fruit and vegetables to offer, you can get to know their subtle flavor differences.

• One of the huge advantages of organic foods is that they haven't been doused in pesticides. Non-organic fruit and vegetables are covered in the stuff and it won't all wash off. Pesticide residues turn up, not just on fruit and vegetables, but in bread, baby food and other products. Governments claim that there's no risk to health from these pesticide traces, but wouldn't you rather feed yourself and your kids food that's pesticide free?

• Making organic food for babies is an especially good idea. That way, you'll to give them the purest possible source of nourishment while their organs and bodies are growing so fast. Perhaps one of the prime advantages of organic food is that it is pure food, nothing more, nothing less. Forget E-numbers, hydrogenated fats, artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners, preservatives – none of the additives lurking in processed and fast food are permitted in organic foods. There are no residual antibiotics, growth hormones or BSE in organic meat, no pesticides in organic milk, no hidden starches bulking out organic baby food. If you want a diet based on natural food that hasn't been tampered with – think organic.

• Genetically modified – GM – food isn't used in organic products. We don't know what effect GM foods have on long-term health. Best avoided.

• Organic foods can be more nutritious, richer in vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids than non-organic.

• And don't forget the feel-good factor. One of the greatest advantages of organic foods is that buying and eating them is a real, guilt-free pleasure, which is more than you can say for the average supermarket shop. It's great to know that you're not only helping the environment, you're feeding your family on good, pure food, that tastes better than processed food, and has no hidden unhealthiness. That feels good.

ORGANIC FOOD FACTS

• Yet another of the advantages of organic foods is that you're also doing the environment a good turn when you choose them. Intensive farming methods erode soil, destroy ancient hedgerows, and decimate wild life. Organic farms look after the environment.

• Intensive farming is outrageously cruel to farm animals – think of battery chickens, pigs kept in far row pens, cows milked to exhaustion. Another of the indisputable advantages of organic foods is that organic farming methods put humane treatment top of the agenda.

HOW TO SWITCH TO ORGANIC FOODS

• Don't feel that you must buy organic everything. Even switching to a few organic regulars makes a difference.

• Make the change to organic versions of everyday mainstays. Try organic milk, cheese, pasta, chicken, bananas.

• Take it slowly. Pick up one or two organic items every time you shop. Try different brands, and once a week, buy something new to try: organic tofu, stuffed vine leaves, soup. You'll soon find favorites.

• There's an organic version of almost every food you can think of, from coffee to baked beans, pizzas to eggs. Drinks, pork chops, peanut butter, jam – all supermarkets stock organic goods, although you'll do better buying in local shops or farmers' markets if you can.

• Shop around. Organic foods are sometimes more expensive than non-organic, but the more people buy them, the more prices will come down. We pay through taxes for the hidden costs of cleaning up water polluted with agro-chemicals that underpin the production of cheap mass-produced foods.

• Once you've started making the change, you'll soon appreciate the many advantages of eating organic foods, and you won't want to switch back.

WHAT GROWING YOUR OWN FOOD CAN DO FOR YOU!

 POSTED BY: Monica Reinagel, M.S., LD/N | April 13, 2009 | 10:33 AM

As global economic woes persist, many families are reviving the tradition of the family vegetable garden.  What a great upside to a tough time!  Not only is the back-to-garden movement saving folks money on their grocery bills, but it's putting healthier food on the table.

 Need a few more reasons?

1. Fresh vegetables are more nutritious, and it doesn't get any fresher than straight from the garden to the table. Vegetables start to lose valuable nutrients (and flavor) the moment they're picked. When they're harvested just moments before you serve them, you're getting the absolute maximum nutritional benefit.

2. You can grow organic a lot cheaper than you can buy it.  If you're struggling to make ends meet, organic produce may feel like a luxury you can't afford. But you can grow your own organic produce using your own composted kitchen scraps as natural fertilizer. As organic gardening Coach Jean Ann van Krevelen says, "Compost is waste turned into plant food."  You can also use inexpensive pest controls like companion planting and soap spray instead of harmful chemical pesticides.

3. Eating local saves energy and fossil fuels--and it doesn't get any more local than your own back yard.  This translates into lower food costs for you and a lower carbon footprint for your household, as well.

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in Your State

4. Gardening provides free exercise and stress relief.  No money for gym memberships or spa weekends? An hour in the garden will get your heart pumping and your muscles toned.  It also clears the mind and erases the day's stress. Make time to commune with nature. People who connect spiritually with nature feel grounded to the earth.

5. Kids will eat what they grow.  (This may be the best benefit of all!).  Want to turn your finicky eaters into vegetable lovers? Let them grow their own. Kids love to garden and are much more willing to eat vegetables that they had a hand in bringing to the table. 

No more excuses!

If you haven't already, why not celebrate Earth Day this year by breaking ground on a small (or large) vegetable plot? 

"Organic" Garden

"Organic" Roof Top Gardens

Small Plastic Swimming Pool Roof Top Gardens!

WE ARE ONLY LIMITED BY OUR IMAGINATION!