Eating Organic

I know that Pinterest isn't always the most legitimate source, but I found this: http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/4b/c1/4c/4bc14cacc9ab5df81ef23be3c65e98fe.jpg - It's the top 12 foods you should eat organic as they have the highest chemicals and pesticides!

Prioritize and eat in season.

I do organic as much as I can, but I don't flip out if I have to eat conventional.

You can do some simple research online for studies about foods that retain the greatest amount of pesticides when grown conventionally, and make those your priority organic purchases. A good general rule of thumb is if it has a peel/rind/husk that is removed, those can be conventionally grown. If you eat the outer part of the food, then it's a better organic purchase.

I also find that some organic foods taste differently, and I prioritize those because I enjoy them more. (ex. Eggs)

Farmers markets are great for organic buying, and are a good measure of what's in season. Bonus, if you become a regular with one of the vendors, they will often give you deals!

I second what jbee27 said.

I never eat organic and consider my diet to be more healthy than others that do include organic. Nice to have but organic is a marketing term in which cost outweighs health benefits for many.

IAn organic apple vs none organic version will contain similar nutrition, but with the organic variety you're not getting the added extra of chemical sprays or waxes and they're often fresher (some none organic 'fresh' produce can be up to a year old)

"Organic" food is now mostly a marketing strategy to add an extra charge. All real organic products won't have any branding or name as you will mostly buy them directly from small producers.

Depending on where you live, in a rural area you will find plenty of seasonal products in your local market. If you live in a very big city you will find many real weekly food markets directly from producers. If you live anywhere else you will be pretty much paying extra to the supermarket marketing for below average products....

Try buy seasonal fruits and veg directly from producer if you can. Poultry, fish and diary from non supermarket brands and for the rest just try avoiding buying lies branded "organic" as they are mostly expensive and below average products...

My 2 cents...

DH

Organic is great, but you don't have to eat everything organic. Some foods naturally repel pesticides, and foods (like oranges) with thick skins don't absorb pesticides into the actual fruit, so it's a waste to pay more for those items.

Someone had mentioned the list of 12 dirtiest foods, they are known as the "Dirty Dozen" (actually, the Dirty Dozen Plus, because there are more than 12 now), which are foods you should eat organic, or not at all:

1. Apples
2. Celery
3. Cherry Tomatoes
4. Cucumbers
5. Grapes
6. Hot Peppers
7. Nectarines
8. Peaches
9. Potatoes
10. Spinach
11. Strawberries
12. Sweet bell peppers
13. Kale & Collard greens
14. Summer Squash

These foods absorb pesticides and washing them isn't enough. So try to find them certified organic (and a side note about the term "Organic"... it's a federally protected term, so it is illegal to label something "organic" if it's not, as opposed to "all natural" which is not protected, so food doesn't have to be all natural to be called all natural. If you're going to spend the money, make sure it says "organic"). You can also look in farmer's markets, where they sell locally grown produce, which is better for your community as well.

Now, if you don't have the extra money to spend on organic, there is also the Clean Fifteen, which are foods that don't absorb pesticides and are completely fine to eat non-organic (and actually, even though you will find organic versions of these, it's a waste of money to buy anything from this list organic, to be honest)

1. Asparagus
2. Avocados
3. Cabbage
4. Cantaloupe
5. Sweet corn
6. Eggplant
7. Grapefruit
8. Kiwi
9. Mangoes
10. Mushrooms
11. Onions
12. Papayas
13. Pineapples
14. Sweet peas
15. Sweet potatoes

I hope this helps! Be prepared though, if you start eating organic, people will criticize you. I hear all the time, "why waste your money on organic, it's not any better for you." Well, yes and no... sure, an organic apple might not be more nutritious than a non-organic apple... but I honestly believe not ingesting more pesticides than I have to will only benefit me in the long run. I stopped trying to explain that to people, now I just tell them "it's my money to waste".

I don't know if you have the time or space, but you could also consider growing some of your veggies yourself. I'm attempting that for the first time this year, and so far the seeds I have started inside are thriving. Seeds are much cheaper than full grown vegetables, but growing your food is a big commitment at the same time.

Organic is not a 'marketing term'. It is a regulated designation (depending on the country of origin), which specifies acceptable conditions under which the product was grown. For example, in Canada, for meat to be labeled organic, the animal must have had a certain amount of space, access to the outdoors and fed only organic food. But by all means, keep eating pesticides and thinking your diet is healthier.

Do some research and see if there's a CSA in your area, this is the time of year to sign up!

You pay a big chunk of change up front, but then you get weekly deliveries of local, organic produce every week from spring through late fall. CSA's are the greatest.

I just looked into these in my area and they sound awesome. Thanks for the suggestion!