Avoiding Pesticides in Produce

In a perfect world, 100% of the produce in our shopping cart would be organic, grown with methods that do not use health-compromising synthetic pesticides. But perfect world this is yet to be.

We may desire to purchase only organic and locally grown, chemical-free fruits and vegetables. Yet, due to their often-higher prices—let alone their more limited availability—this is not a realistic option for most people, myself included.

Luckily for us, the not-for-profit Environmental Working Group (EWG) just yesterday released their updated Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides. The Guide—which lists the 47 most commonly eaten fruits and vegetables ranked in the order of their pesticide-residue contamination—can help you navigate the produce aisle to make the most health-supporting choices for yourself and your family.

The foods at the top of the list—beginning with peaches, apples, and bell peppers—are those which they found to be the most laden with pesticides; these are the ones you may want to prioritize on your organic-produce shopping list. Those at the bottom of the ranking—including onions, avocados, and sweet corn—are the ones that you need to worry about less when purchasing them in their conventionally grown varieties.

In preparing the Guide, the EWG also calculated the tangible effects of making changes in produce purchasing decisions. For example, they note that if you avoided eating the twelve most contaminated fruits and vegetables—which they label as the Dirty Dozen—and instead ate the least contaminated ones (which they call the Clean 15), you could lower your pesticide exposure by almost 80 percent.

Why is this all this important? Numerous experimental and animal-research studies suggest that pesticides can have untoward health effects including damaging cell membranes and causing genetic mutations that may precipitate cancer development. Additionally, some are thought to be neurotoxins, which can negatively impact our brain and nervous system. While this is relevant for all of us, it may be of greatest concern for our children who, with their growing bodies and developing nervous systems, are most at risk for the adverse impact that these chemicals may cause.

The information included in the Guide was compiled from an analysis of approximately 87,000 pesticide tests conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Department of Agriculture.

As part of the EWG’s report, you can see a ranking of all the 47 fruits and vegetables and download a wallet-sized guide of the Dirty Dozen and Clean 15.

The Guide is just one of the great projects that the EWG supports. If you have time, peruse their website to learn more about the work that they are doing to positively impact the world in which we live.