Health effects of organic foods

The manner agricultural products are cultivated and processed is referred to as “organic.” While rules differ from nation to nation, in the United States, organic crops must be grown without the use of synthetic fertilisers, pesticides, herbicides, or fertilisers, as well as without the use of bioengineered genes (GMOs).

Organic feed and forage must be used to rear animals raised for meat, eggs, and dairy products in environments that support their natural behaviours (such as the capacity to graze on pasture). They are not permitted to get any animal byproducts, growth hormones, or antibiotics.

Human health consequences of organic food and organic agriculture were published by the European Parliamentary Research Service in December 2016. This article is a review of previously released scientific research that looked at various aspects of how eating organic food affects people’s health.

Despite the fairly sparse amount of data that is currently available, the findings point to some positive connections between eating more organic food. (Remember that association does not imply causation. For instance, those who consume more organic food may also have a tendency to exercise more and smoke less, both of which may be partially or entirely to blame for the impacts noticed.

Comparative meta-analyses of composition

There are noticeable differences between foods grown organically and those produced conventionally in terms of the quantities of chemicals that are crucial to nutrition, according to a number of recent systematic reviews and meta-analyses of published data [12–14]. These systematic reviews in particular noted that.

Increased consumption of polyphenolics and antioxidants has been linked to a decreased risk of certain chronic diseases like cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases as well as some cancers (discussed by Baraski et al. [12]); organic crops have higher antioxidant activity and between 18 and 69% higher concentrations of a range of individual antioxidants.

There are general recommendations to reduce pesticide and cadmium intake to prevent potential health effects. Conventional crops have greater amounts of the hazardous metal cadmium and are four times more likely to contain detectable pesticide residues.

Omega-3 fatty acid concentrations in organic meat, milk, and dairy products are roughly higher than those in conventional meat, milk, and dairy products. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) recommends at least doubling the intake of very long chain omega-3 fatty acids in Western diets

Milk is not a major source of selenium, but it may be the main source of iodine in nations where iodized salt is not widely available or used. There is concern that the lower iodine content in organic milk may cause iodine deficiency (especially during pregnancy and/or in people with low milk consumption) and the associated negative health effects. Conventional milk was estimated to have and higher concentrations of iodine and selenium (e.g. impaired foetal brain development).

Study on human cohorts

A modest number of animal dietary intervention studies and human cohort studies have found links between organic food consumption and particular physiological and health-related outcomes. The majority of human cohort studies involved mother-and-child dyad cohorts and found a link between eating organic vegetables and/or dairy and a reduced incidence of (1) pre-eclampsia in women [17], (2) hypospadias in male infants [18, 19], and/or (3) infant eczema [20].

Furthermore, although the study was based on an observation period of just seven years, a subgroup of a large UK cohort study focused on cancer incidence in middle-aged women revealed a weak connection between organic food consumption and a decreased incidence of non-lymphoma.

The benefits of organic food

Your physical, mental, and emotional health, as well as the environment, can all be significantly impacted by how your food is cultivated or grown. Those with sensitivities to foods, chemicals, or preservatives may discover that their symptoms reduce or disappear when they eat only organic foods since organic foods frequently offer more beneficial components, such antioxidants, than their conventionally-grown equivalents.

Produce grown organically uses less pesticides.

In conventional agriculture, synthetic fungicides, herbicides, and insecticides are frequently utilised, and their residues stay on (and in) the food we eat.

Frequently, organic food is fresher.

It has no preservatives to extend its shelf life. Often (though not always, so check where it came from) organic produce is grown on smaller farms closer to the point of sale.

The environment benefits more from organic farming.

Organic agricultural methods may utilise less energy, less pollution, and less soil erosion while increasing soil fertility. It is better for surrounding birds and animals, as well as for residents who live adjacent to farms, to farm without synthetic pesticides.

There may be more nutrients in organic milk and meat.

According to the findings of a 2016 European study, organic meat and milk had levels of several nutrients, such as omega-3 fatty acids, that were up to 50% greater than those from conventionally farmed animals.

GMOs don’t exist in organic food.

Foods that are genetically modified organisms (GMOs) or genetically engineered (GE) are plants whose DNA has been altered in ways that are not possible in nature or through conventional crossbreeding, most frequently to generate an insecticide or be resistant to pesticides.

Animals kept organically are not fed animal byproducts, growth hormones, or antibiotics.

The danger of mad cow disease (BSE) is increased when feeding animals animal wastes, and the usage of antibiotics can result in bacterial strains that are resistant to such drugs. Animals grown organically typically have greater room to roam and access to nature, which helps to keep them healthy.