Dirty Dozen Foods

By : | Comments Off on Dirty Dozen Foods | On : March 9, 2013 | Category : General Information

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Healthy eating should be simple. Celebrity doctors and nutrition experts tell you to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables and less meat and saturated fats. Fruits and vegetables are high in vitamins, minerals and 100’s of micro-nutriants. But, and there is always a but, some fruits and vegetables have high pesticide levels or are genetically modified (GMO). What can you do if you are concerned about pesticide residue?

The Environmental Working Group publishes an annual list of 12 foods they consider have high pesticide levels. The United States Food and Drug Administration and the food industry contend the allowable levels are safe and the produce you buy should not exceed those levels. The EWG website also lists produce lowest in pesticide.

Produce that made the 2012 Dirty Dozen List are:

1. Apples
2. Celery
3. Sweet Bell Peppers
4. Peaches
5. Strawberries
6. Nectarines (imported
7. Grapes
8. Spinach
9. Lettuce
10. Cucumber
11. Blueberries (US grown)
12. Potatoes

Green beans, kale and other greens may also contain high levels of pesticide residue.

If you are concerned about pesticide residue, you should consider buying organic equivalents.

Produce with low pesticide levels include: onions, sweet corn, pineapples, avocados, cabbage, sweet peas, asparagus, mangoes, eggplant, kiwi, cantaloupe (us grown), sweet potatoes, grapefruit, watermelon and mushrooms.

You can view the EWG’s list of 45 fruits and vegetables buy clicking on this link EWG Full List.