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Organic vs. Industrial Food
Whenever you buy food, you have to make a decision: Healthy
or cheap, organic or industrial.
If organic food wouldn't be that expensive, the decision would
be easy.
Everybody would just consume organic food. But unfortunately not
everybody can afford
it.
Sometimes it looks like
healthy
food is becoming a luxury good.
Or are some people just trying to earn
big cash with organic food labels?
Find more nutrition related topics at nutrition
main.
Description: Organic vs. Industrial Food
- In the rush to produce more and more food
for the people on this little planet, chemicals came into play.
Farmers try to sell the highest possible percentage of their harvest
and therefore often use pesticides, gen-manipulated
corn, chemicals etc.
The farmer's investment in pesticides, hormones, anti-biotics and
chemicals usually pays off.
They earn more, their fruits look better and costumers are happy
with huge pest fee fruits and vegetables.
- If a farmer says no to chemicals and pesticides,
he runs risk of losing a harvest because of pests etc. and if he
doesn't feed hormones,
his animals grow slower and cost more.
The only way to compensate
this cost is a higher consumer price for organic food.
You can't ask everybody to pay more, and a lot of people would
starve to death without the use of chemical cocktails
which protect harvests against pests. But the rich want to eat
healthy and somebody has to produce food apart from the food for
the rabble.
In many countries people have no choice. When I lived in South
America and China I often had to hear that
only rich countries use chemicals. But when you
walk to the back yard of a farm, guess what you find. The same
plastic bags you find behind most european and american farms.
But to be honest, I am convinced that world hunger would be much
worse without pesticides etc. and I was happy I was not forced
to pay european prices for the food when I lived in China.
- But now that you know how farmers have to
plan their cash budget, guess what a farmer would do if he was
in financial
problems.
- Almost every time you eat something, you also
consume pesticides, flavors, etc.
These substances are added in order to produce and sell more efficient
and it's not a secret that pesticides and flavors are not good
for us.
Fortunately there are strict rules for the use of
chemicals.
Even if you only buy organic food, you are consuming these substances.
But the bar is set at a different height and you are consuming
less harmful substances.
- So how bad is industrial food?
There are maximum residue limits for all pesticides and possible
chemicals.
The department of health determines how much of each substance
is ok.
These limits are set to be compatible for everybody, but as you
know laws change from time to time. Sometimes
they find out that a substance causes cancer or a new disease
after
thousands
of
people consumed it in excess for many years. Just remember the
BSE-crysis.
A law is changed, then a fem month beef sanctions and the case
is closed.
Eating organic food lowers the risk of getting hit by a similar
scenario, but it's not a 100% guarantee.
- However, the risk of getting seriously sick
from cheap food is not "THAT" high.
As long as you read food labels and try to avoid chemical cocktails,
you can eat cheap and healthy at the same time.
If you are eating organic food only, you are still consuming
unhealthy substances.
The limits are just set a bit lower and the risk that your food
will kill you, is lower.
Your body will have to deal with less unhealthy substances and
therefore work a bit better and more efficient.
Advice: Organic vs. Industrial Food
- If you want to live healthy, you shouldn't philosophize
about healthy food if you are still smoking, drinking 10 cups of
coffee/day or drinking. Quit your worst habits
first.
You can't start building a house
by cleaning the floor.
- Buying
organic food can easily come 3 times more expensive
than normal food.
- Try to eat natural.
If you have the choice between a protein bar and a real meal with
the same amount of protein, take the real food. If you don't have
time for a meal, but need your protein, take the protein bar. Anyway,
a protein bar can never be as unhealthy as a coffee, a cigarette,
a chocolate or potato chips. So don't let a smoker tell you, your
protein bar is unhealthy.
- The only way to be sure your nutrition is 100%
organic, is growing everything at home.
Even in this case there is a residual risk of chemicals in the
earth or the water.
So take it easy and don't fear the worst. Don't be fanatic.
Related Topics: Organic vs. Industrial Food
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