The organic-food business is booming: About 70 percent of Americans buy organic food occasionally, and nearly one quarter buy it every week, according to the Hartman Group, a market research firm. For most of us, the reason is simple: We want natural food that’s better for us and for the environment, says Samuel Fromartz, author of Organic, Inc. But buying organic can cost you — as much as 50 percent more — so read on to know when it’s worth it.

Organic foods may have higher nutritional value than conventional food, according to some research. The reason: In the absence of pesticides and fertilizers, plants boost their production of the phytochemicals (vitamins and antioxidants) that strengthen their resistance to bugs and weeds. Some studies have linked pesticides in our food to everything from headaches to cancer to birth defects — but many experts maintain that the levels in conventional food are safe for most healthy adults. Even low-level pesticide exposure, however, can be significantly more toxic for fetuses and children (due to their less-developed immune systems) and for pregnant women (it puts added strain on their already taxed organs), according to a report by the National Academy of Sciences.

Pesticide contamination isn’t as much of a concern in meats and dairy products (animals may consume some pesticides, depending on their diet), but many scientists are concerned about the antibiotics being given to most farm animals: Many are the same antibiotics humans rely on, and overuse of these drugs has already enabled bacteria to develop resistance to them, rendering them less effective in fighting infection, says Chuck Benbrook, Ph.D., chief scientist at the Organic Center, a nonprofit research organization.

What is organic food, anyway?

Though organic food can be produced with certain synthetic ingredients, it must adhere to specific standards regulated by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Crops are generally grown without synthetic pesticides, artificial fertilizers, irradiation (a form of radiation used to kill bacteria), or biotechnology. Animals on organic farms eat organically grown feed, aren’t confined 100 percent of the time (as they sometimes are on conventional farms), and are raised without antibiotics or synthetic growth hormones.

Is organic food better for me?

Organic foods may have higher nutritional value than conventional food, according to some research. The reason: In the absence of pesticides and fertilizers, plants boost their production of the phytochemicals (vitamins and antioxidants) that strengthen their resistance to bugs and weeds. Some studies have linked pesticides in our food to everything from headaches to cancer to birth defects — but many experts maintain that the levels in conventional food are safe for most healthy adults. Even low-level pesticide exposure, however, can be significantly more toxic for fetuses and children (due to their less-developed immune systems) and for pregnant women (it puts added strain on their already taxed organs), according to a report by the National Academy of Sciences.

Pesticide contamination isn’t as much of a concern in meats and dairy products (animals may consume some pesticides, depending on their diet), but many scientists are concerned about the antibiotics being given to most farm animals: Many are the same antibiotics humans rely on, and overuse of these drugs has already enabled bacteria to develop resistance to them, rendering them less effective in fighting infection, says Chuck Benbrook, Ph.D., chief scientist at the Organic Center, a nonprofit research organization.

Is buying organic better for the environment?
Organic farming reduces pollutants in groundwater and creates richer soil that aids plant growth while reducing erosion, according to the Organic Trade Association. It also decreases pesticides that can end up in your drinking glass; in some cities, pesticides in tap water have been measured at unsafe levels for weeks at a time, according to an analysis performed by the Environmental Working Group (EWG).  Plus, organic farming used 50 percent less energy than conventional farming methods in one 15-year study.

There are numerous benefits to both eating organic foods, and to organic gardening. I personally believe that a huge benefit comes from a renewed relationship with nature. It starts with an “I won’t poison you, you won’t poison me” attitude, and ends with “I’ll nurture and respect you, you nurture and respect me.” Doing your own organic gardening makes this a personal commitment. Gardening is just plain good for the soul. One of my patients told me that they refer to their time spent in the garden a “going to see my therapist.” There is nothing quite like getting your hands in the soil for really good “grounding”.

In addition to the mental and emotional benefits of growing and eating organic food, there are also the physical benefits. These physical benefits can be boiled down to nutrients present in organic foods that are not in commercial foods and toxins not in organic foods that are present in commercial foods. A recent article in the Journal of Applied Nutrition gave credence to the notion that organic foods have higher nutrient levels that non-organic food. In this study the mineral content of organic apples, pear, potatoes, wheat, and sweet corn were compared to commercial varieties. Overall the organic foods showed much higher levels of nutrient minerals and much lower levels of heavy metals.

Here are a few of the nutrients that were found in higher levels in the organic foods:

* Chromium is a micronutrient that is low in Western diets. Its deficiency is associated with the onset of adult diabetes and atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). Chromium was found to be higher in organic foods by an average of 78%.

* Selenium is one of the antioxidant nutrients that protects us from damage by environmental chemicals. It is protective against cancers and heart disease. It was found to be an average of 390% higher in organic foods.

* Calcium, needed for strong bones, averaged 63% higher in organics.

* Boron, which has been shown to help prevent osteoporosis (along with calcium), averaged 70% more.

* Lithium, which is used to treat certain types of depression, was 188% higher.

* Magnesium, which reduces mortality from heart attacks, keeps muscles from spasming, and eases the symptoms of PMS, averaged 138% more.

In short, many of the minerals that I most often prescribe to my patients are found in much higher levels in organic foods.

Other studies have looked at vitamin levels of food plants treated with certain pesticides. They showed that application of some pesticides would significantly lower the vitamin levels in the plants they were applied to. This is different than the notion that plants raised with chemicals are low in nutrients because the soil is depleted. This shows that chemicals actually reduce the amount of nutrients in plants after application. The nutrients most often affected are vitamin C, beta carotene, and the B vitamins. These nutrients are vitally necessary for the body to withstand the onslaught of chemical toxins. Vitamin C has been well documented by two-time Nobel laureate Linus Pauling to prevent and treat cancers. Beta carotene has been shown to be a stimulant of the immune system, and is sometimes able to prevent lung cancer.

When they studied organic food for mineral levels, the researchers also looked for the amount of the heavy metals aluminum, cadmium, lead and mercury. Aluminum has been implicated for years in the development of Alzheimer’s disease. It’s content in organic food averaged 40% less that in commercial foods. Lead toxicity, which has been in the new a lot lately, can adversely affect our children’s’ IQ. It averaged 29% lower in organic foods. Mercury, which can cause neurologic damage, averaged 25% lower in organic foods.

Besides the lower levels of heavy metals, there are the chemical residues themselves. The big question is whether or not the accumulation of pesticide residues in non-organic foods is a real health concern or not. Studies have never been able to conclusively show a direct correlation between residues in food and a decline of human health, but there are numerous problems in doing any such study. The first is that you would need a population of people who are free of chemical residues to compare to, and no one has been able to find such a group. According to an ongoing EPA study of fat samples taken from surgeries and autopsies across the country, we are all loaded with chemical residues. Similar studies done on other countries all show the same results.

The clearest studies that we have about pesticide residues and disease are those looking at breast cancer. In the last few years there have been a series of studies, each building upon the other, looking at the level of DDT, DDE, and PCB in women, They have very clearly shown that chemical residues in the serum and fat cells of women greatly increase the risk of breast cancer. Since breast cancer is a major killer of women in this country it is reasonable to say that avoidance of pesticide residues in food (the only known route of exposure to DDT in this country, since we no longer use it to spray for mosquitoes) could save numerous lives and reduce our health care cost dramatically.

After 50 years of “Better Living Through Chemistry” scientists have finally shown that breast cancer is associated with pesticide residue, They have yet to prove that it causes numerous other maladies. I am not waiting for them to prove it before I change my eating habits. As a clinician who sees numerous environmentally poisoned people with health problems, I am convinced of an association between chemicals and disease. The biggest source of exposure for many people is their workplace, then their homes, followed by air, food and water. Of these the easiest to control are our home environment and our diet.

Eating organic food, drinking pure water, and watching our airborne chemical exposure can have profound effects on our health. My friend Steve, who has now gone through an extensive protocol to remove the pesticide residue from his body and had regained his health, will back me up on that. When he added up the costs of his illness in time off work and medical expenses, he found that eating organic food was much less expensive than eating non-organic foods. He is eating better foods now, and my organic garden continues to grow, along with my children.

Here are some tips to have cheaper organic foods:

1. Research
Before heading to the supermarket, search the Web for local organic associations or organizations in your town or state. Buying local is often cheaper.

2. Buy items seasonally
Fruits and vegetables that are in season will be more abundant on store shelves and will usually cost less and, as an added bonus, taste great. Whether you buy in-season items from a local grower or your supermarket, the items are always cheaper than items not in-season.

Be flexible with your shopping and purchase items that are on sale: if oranges are on sale, buy them instead of other fruits.

3. Buy locally
Local growers will have items that are in season and will have them priced to sell. Also ask about discounts and bargains, or if there are “seconds” (misshaped foods that are fine otherwise) for sale.

The added benefit of buying locally is that you can usually speak with someone who works the farm. You can ask questions about the food and even get tips on preparing the food. Buying locally also helps sustain the local economy.

4. Buy in bulk
When items are on sale, stock up. This is especially true of canned items, cereals, dried fruits and beans (canned, bagged, or bulk). Be careful to store the items at home; you don’t want items to expire. And with fresh foods, some are good for a number of days, or try preserving fruits or canning vegetables. Freezing is also a good way to have fresh foods available any time.

Also if you are feeding a big family, you may consider joining a co-op or buying club. A co-op is a member-owned business that provides groceries and other products to its members at a discount. With a buying club, members purchase food and other organic products in bulk and then share with all the members.

5. Grow your own
A family garden is a great way to have fresh, healthy fruits and vegetables at a fraction of the cost of buying them at the supermarket. Check with your garden center about which plants to start early in the season, like strawberries; those that thrive in the summer heat, like tomatoes; and those that will last into the fall, like chard and kale. Also start slow and pick items that are easy to grow.

Try to reduce the amounts of processed foods in your diet. You get less nutritional benefits from processed foods, organic or not.
Always wash vegetables and fruit well; some stores sell special detergents for this. Just because it is labeled organic doesn’t mean it is safe to eat without a wash; bacteria thrive under all conditions.

* Discover the foods (vegetables, fruits, meats) that you will definitely want to eat organic or you will be eating all the deadly chemicals in your stomach.

* Learn the underlying reasons to why you may be the next victim to illnesses or diseases.

* The truth healthy facts about organic food. What about Organic food that can maximize your health and free you’re from diseases.

* Learn 4 ways you can prevent from eating genetically modified food that can risk yourself to harmful side effects.

* Unravel the myth of the price of organic food- 5 methods you can eat organic food without paying a higher price.

* How to make your own natural wash that you can dip your vegetables or fruits into that can remove the harmful chemicals.

* The fruits and vegetables that you must definitely eat organic because they contain higher levels or full of pesticides.

* The simple step-by-step guide to show you how you can grow your own organic garden in your own backyard or garden.

The truth is many people are not aware of these facts and many of them have been following the crowd.

Many people are just following what everyone else is doing hoping that they would be healthy too.

But they don’t know there’s an increasing number of people are getting ill because they did not eat the right foods.

You have a chance to lead a healthy life by start eating right. You are just simply a few steps away from rejuvenating your body and building a healthy body.

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Why?Organic food is an ordinary food, it can be the tool against obesity. Organic foods provide a higher concentration of nutrients, if you want to steam your veggies.

The weight loss of a person usually depends on the amount of food eats.Most produce from a local farmers or even in your grocery store contain many different chemicals that your body must process and remove in order to keep these chemicals from poisoning your body. The key organ in the weight loss process is the liver.

The liver is the body’s power house and the largest burner of fat in the body. It is crucial to feed your liver properly in order to insure that it is working as efficient as possible. How to feed your liver properly? Well, you need to consume plenty of fiber and avoid foods that may contain chemicals toxins. Which is can be found in any food as well as alcohol.

We are all aware that fiber helps your body’s digestive processes by flushing certain matter that you aren’t able to digest of the body. Fiber aids the liver ridding it of these toxins and not allowing them to be stored as fatty deposits.

Eating organic food that is high and fiber, low in fat and free of chemicals and toxins is one way to cleanse the body of this condition. Organic food is excellent choice because of often meets all of the above criteria. Keep in mind that food manufacturers often inject the foods their sell with chemicals in order to keep them fresh and tasty. Eating these types of produce might no be as healthy as you think.

By eating organic foods exclusively you can seriously limit the number of toxins being produced to your body. Good diet foods include fruits,vegetables, fish, legumes, nuts, olive oil and grains. You can maintain thees diet for lifetime since they encourage healthy eating habits that can become a lifestyle for healthy weight loss. This also involves the burning of calories for effective weight loss.

Nowadays, where society considers a slim(thin) bodies as sexy, more and more people became conscious with their diets.For them, diet is synonymous with restriction of certain foods to lose weight. However, these fad diets generally do more harm than good. They starve themselves, and once the goal is reached(if it’s reached)- they return to the old eating habits. Generally the weight that was lost is regained quickly. Even worse, during the diet, unhealthy foods are substituted for natural ones. For instance, eating junk foods as substitute for usual meal, leading to worse general health.

Switching to natural and organic food diet is a lifestyle change that promotes good health and long life. Because the natural and organic food diet is more likely to provide the nutrition your body needs and also has a cleansing effect on your body, it will allow your body to heal itself. By eliminating the foods that introduce or create toxins in your body, and by eating foods that are natural and organic, you will achieve good health.

The premise of the natural and organic food diet is to avoid foods that contain artificial sweeteners and other additives. Because they are created by man, the human body does not process them correctly. It causes the body to build up toxins and generally leads to bad health. Similarly, use of non-naturally occurring fats and oils can also lead to compromised health.

The following are few guidelines to achieve organic food diet:

1. Eat those:
- organic food which has not been genetically altered
- local and fresh as possible.
-are close to the Sun as possible (low on the food chain), this much reduced
levels of contaminants and fewer “broken” molecules which promote the aging process.
2. Avoid those:
- processed foods
- Avoid foods which use cheap, non-organic ingredients and are over processed.
This will result in health problems and promote aging.
- Avoid foods containing preservatives or those that have been irradiated with X-rays,
gamma and other rays.

3. Eat moderate amounts of food and divide it into 5 small meals a day.
In this way, your body will digest and absorb food more thoroughly.
4. Do not mix too many foods at once.
5. Each meal should be well-balanced and should contain vitamins, minerals, fiber, proteins, oils,
enzymes, water, etc.
6. Your diet should include: plant protein (whole grains and beans are the best source), various plant
oils (whole grains, seeds, nuts and beans are the best source), various nuts (fresh almonds and
hazel nuts are best), various types of fish which are from the ocean and are low on the food
chain, vitamins and minerals, eggs, yogourt, milk and white cheese (goat’s milk is the best, if you
can tolerate this).
7. A good diet should include 8 to 16 glasses of pure, body-temperature, well pH-balanced water
per day. Contaminants such as chlorine, lead, pesticides, herbicides etc., should be removed.

I usually go with my mother when she go for grocery. Because I can buy whatever I want. As what I observed in the supermarket I see fruits and vegetables labeled organic.Organic and non-organic fruits and vegetables both look fresh, but the organic foods are very expensive.My mother once said she wont buy fruits and vegetables if its not organic.I asked my mother why she chooses to buy organic foods, she exclaimed ” we are being poisoned by pesticides”. My mother really like reading magazines. And she noticed that they often mention the word organic so she think organic really better than the non organic.

At first I miss eating non organic foods but I’m getting used to it. And its more nutritious and healthy, it removes the pesticides and the surfaces microbes. There are increasing concerns about food safety and the fact that many processed foods are made from genetically modified products. Originally grown foods mean that these organic foods have grown on land that is absent of any chemicals for a minimum of 3 years. Organic foods are processed and packaged without the use of artificial preservatives, colorings, irradiation or any other additives.

The mineral content of organic apples, pears, potatoes, wheat, and sweet corn were compared to commercial varieties. Overall, the organic foods showed much higher levels of nutrient minerals and much lower levels of heavy metals.It made the case that organic food is not necessarily healthier than conventional food, and might actually be dangerous. Maure used in organic compost may be more harmful than the health risks from pesticide to humans. The pros in going organic is that organic food is free from artificial chemicals, pesticides antibiotics and fertilizers. And it is free from genetically modified ingredients. Organic foods show that they have more vitamins and beneficial trace elements than conventional green food and so may be more nutritious.

There are different views on whether organic foods are really helpful to us, or in fact may be harmful. In the future science will have to address these issues. As more studies are being done, our views about organic foods might change. In the past, we thought the egg was the perfect food. Now we know that although nutritious it contains high levels of cholesterol. Who knows what will be considered healthy eating in the future? At this point, organic foods seem to be beneficial.

As a shoppers become more selective in making healthy choices at the supermarket. May are opting for organic grocery products. The good news for organic shoppers on a budget is that there are fair amounts of coupons available for organic foods.

You can now find more organic food coupons in the Sunday newspaper circulars. You ca easily preview the types of coupons available in the free “Grocery Coupon Database” found at couponmom.com. Use the search box at the top of the list to see if coupons for your favorite brands are available. You can also use generic search terms like “organic” or “natural” or “healthy” to find a broader range of products.

You can also seek out the websites of organic food companies to see if they issue coupons directly from their site, by mail, or retailers’ locations. You can easily print coupons for daily products and yogurts from Stony field Farms at stonyfield.com. Look for the coupon and promotion sections to fine more printable coupons at the sites for Organic Valley, Santa Cruz Organic and Coleman Natural Foods.

Individual health food stores also have printable coupon sites for many natural products. You can print these “health coupons” at nay natural foods store websites and use them locally. I found a great coupon section at shopnatureoasis.com, which is actually a health foods store in Durango, Colorado. But their coupons are for natural brands, so you can use them at any store that carriers these products.

You can also do a search of your favorite organic food manufacturer’s web site to find organic food coupons. Look for the coupon and promotion sections to find on-line printable coupons. If you find the manufacturer does not have any coupons listed on their web site be sure to contact them directly to request that coupons be mailed to you. If you send a polite e-mail with your address, you may be pleasantly surprised. You can also call the toll-free phone numbers listed on the sites to request coupons.

They are much more likely to mail coupons in response to a question if you have already provided this essential information. The best place to find coupons for these organic and natural food products is to go directly to their websites

Are you looking to improve your health? If you are, you may start with organic foods. Organic foods are known for being all natural. Organic foods are not like many of the other foods available for sale in grocery stores, as there are no artificial additives added to natural, organic foods. That is why many believe that eating organic foods can help to improve their health.

If this is your first time looking to eat organic foods or if you are looking to make a full switch to eating organically, you may be ensure as to where you can purchase your foods from. You have a number of different options. In fact, many individuals are surprised when they see just how easy it is to find and buy all natural foods.

It is important that you know what to look for. It is important to search for the certified organic label or sticker. When you see these certified organic stickers or labels, you know that what are buying is “truly”, organic. In fact, manufacturers cannot claim that their foods are organic unless they meet specific standards.

As for where you can find organic foods for sale, one of the most common places that organic foods are purchases from is locally. When looking to shop locally for organic foods, supermarket or grocery stores is one of those options. There are large numbers of products often featured.

Another way that you can go about finding organic foods for sale locally is by visiting an organic foods store, also commonly referred to as a natural food store. Although many individuals find it easier to shop organic foods at a grocery store or supermarket, as it can sometimes be more convenient to do so. Many large cities and towns have them with reasonable prices.

As nice as it is to shop locally, you may not have a specialty organic food store to shop at or you may be unimpressed with the selection of organic foods at your local grocery stores. If that is the case, you can also shop online. There are a number of organic food stores that can be found online, with a standard internet search. These food stores often sell organic foods from a number of different companies or brands. There are also a number of organic food manufacturers that sell their own brands online.

There are a number of different ways that you can go about buying organic foods, both on and offline. To help provide you with the best product selection, as well as the best prices, consider giving each method of shopping a try.