How popular are organic foods and why

February 26, 2008

The World's Healthiest Foods

How popular are organic foods and why have they become a food trend?

Organic foods are growing in popularity as people are becoming more

aware of the impact that their food choices have not only on their

own personal health but also on the environment in which they live.

Organic foods are the fastest growing segment of the food business in

the United States. Currently, organic food is a 14 billion dollar

business, expected to grow to 23 billion dollars in the next several

years. They continue to increase in popularity not only because they

do not contain the toxins found in conventionally grown foods but

because of their nutritional value.

Organic foods have traditionally been purchased because they do not

contain the pesticide residue levels found on conventionally grown

food. According to one study whose findings are based on pesticide

residue data collected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, organic

fruits and vegetables were shown to have only a third as many

pesticide residues as their conventionally grown counterparts. Study

data, which covered more than 94,000 food samples from more than 20

crops, showed 73% of conventionally grown foods sampled had residue

from at least one pesticide, while only 23% of organically grown

samples had any residues. When residues of persistent, long-banned

organochlorine insecticides such as DDT were excluded from the

analysis, organic samples with residues dropped from 23 to 13%. In

contrast, more than 90% of USDA's samples of conventionally grown

apples, peaches, pears, strawberries and celery had residues.

Organically grown meats are preferable because they do not contain

the antibiotic and hormone residues often found in conventionally

produced meats. Organically grown foods are also cultivated using

farming practices that work to preserve and protect the environment,

reducing the pollution that can occur with the application of

agricultural chemicals to our land (which then pervades into other

arenas of our ecosystem).

But that's not all. Science is now finding that organic foods can

also be nutritionally superior to conventionally grown foods. Proof

of their superiority has been demonstrated in numerous studies. In

1998, a review of 34 studies comparing the nutritional content of

organic versus non-organic food found organic food had higher protein

quality in all comparisons, higher levels of vitamin C in 58% of all

studies, and 5-20% higher mineral levels for all but two minerals. In

some cases, the mineral levels were dramatically higher in

organically-grown foods - as much as three times higher in one study

involving iron content. Other studies have found that organic foods

may also contain more flavonoids than conventionally grown foods.

A review of 41 studies comparing the nutritional value of organically

to conventionally grown fruits, vegetables and grains, also indicates

organic crops provide substantially more of several nutrients,

including:

27% more vitamin C

21.1% more iron

29.3% more magnesium

13.6% more phosphorus

For a long time, organic food could usually only be found at natural

food stores and farmer's markets. Yet, in the last decade more and

more supermarkets have chosen to offer organic foods, reflecting

public demand, and making it more commonplace. A recent announcement

by the mega-store chain, Wal-Mart, to carry organic foods in their

stores will probably prove to make it even more available.

For more information on this topic, see:

Everything I Need to Know About Organic Foods

Why Organic Foods are Better for Health

References:

Unauthored. Effect of Agricultural Methods on Nutritional Quality: a

Comparison of Organic With Conventional Crops. Altern Ther Health

Med. 1998;4(1):58-69.

Unauthored. Nutritional Quality of Organic Versus Conventional

Fruits, Vegetables, and Grains. J Altern Complement Med. 2001;7

(2):161-73.

Worthington V. Analyzing Data to Compare Nutrients in Conventional

Versus Organic Crops. J Altern Complement Med. 2002;8(5):529-32.

The World's Healthiest Foods

www.whfoods.org

February 27, 2008

Protein shortens life but leads to more children Medical Science News Published: Sunday, 17-Feb-2008 The key to longevity is eating less protein - and not just fewer calories, as has previously been thought - scientists have discovered. But the catch is that while cutting protein may help you live longer, it

may mean you'll have fewer children. "Animals that eat less live longer - up to a point," says Professor Stephen Simpson of the University of Sydney's School of Biological Sciences. "Our research using animal models shows the balance of protein to carbohydrate in the diet is critical." The idea that restricting food intake without malnutrition prolongs life has become a core belief in gerontology research, Professor Simpson says. "We know dietary restriction extends life in yeasts, fruit flies, worms, mice and monkeys, and it is widely held that the same affect should be true for humans." But scientists couldn't be sure whether it was the restriction of calories in itself, or the restriction of specific nutrients, that affected ageing. But now Professor Simpson and colleagues at Seoul University, Auckland University, UNSW and Macquarie have measured

for the first time in any organism the relationship between diet, nutrient intake, lifespan and reproduction. Using new techniques developed by Professor Simpson and Professor David Raubenheimer (Auckland) the team showed in the fruit fly that calorie restriction is not responsible for extending lifespan: rather the balance of protein to carbohydrate in the diet was critical. "Flies lived longest when the diet contained a low percentage of protein, and died sooner the more protein they consumed," says Professor Simpson. "But protein is needed for reproduction - so flies are faced with a conundrum: eat less protein and live longer, or eat more protein and lay more eggs?" Professor Simpson said his team 'asked' the flies what they preferred. "When offered a choice, flies behaved like nutrient-seeking missiles, unerringly mixing a relatively high protein diet that maximised their

lifetime egg production. In other words, flies preferred to achieve maximum evolutionary fitness rather than live as long as possible." "In demonstrating the role protein plays in determining both lifespan and reproduction, my co-authors and I have united a body of apparently conflicting work within a common framework and provided a new platform for studying ageing in all organisms," Professor Simpson said. The research has just been published online in PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America). http://www.usyd.edu.au

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