Organic Vs Processed Food

In modern times the quality of our food is vastly deteriorating and the quantity that we consume are increasing. Due to the amount of chemicals used and the way that the food is processed; this is ultimately leading to a rapid downfall of the general health. The importance of the origin and quality of the food source such as an organic standard is vast, not only due to how we destroy our world with conventional farming, but also because of the absolute deterioration and downfall of human health. The media generally supports that there is no significant difference between conventionally grown and organically produced food, but this is practically impossible if you consider what organic farming entails. Very few people are conscious of the benefits of organic food and most shop for groceries like it where gasoline or motor oil, chasing the cheapest available products. It’s not likely that people would rush to get hold of the cheapest food available if they realized that within hours of whatever you put in your mouth, it’s replacing cells somewhere in your body. You become what you eat (Chek 55). There are a full range of substances, except the obvious energy giving macronutrients, protein, carbohydrate and fats that are essential for survival. Most of these are acquired via the food intake. To achieve maximum functionality and obtain the greatest capacity of survival, humans need a specific combination of nutrition and environment (Ludegardh 3). We are adapted to our ancestral heritage of given environmental factors; in a way we are still cavemen and this greatly includes the food we are exposed to. The greater difference from the lifestyle of our ancestors, the greater the risk that we will develop complex illnesses (4). The food that we’re generally exposed to is so processed that our bodies don’t even recognize it as food any more. The lack of necessary nutrients makes it totally inadequate to fuel our bodies and gain optimal health, which should be totally naturally occurring. Even if it isn’t processed but only conventionally grown, the nutrient value is so much lower that we probably have to eat twice the amount just to meet the survival requirements. Since the body are lacking from nutrients it will gage a response of in satiety, creating sugar cravings and or cravings for caffeine or other stimulants, just to obtain “energy”. This malnutrition is getting more and more obvious in the modern society, where obesity constantly increases, and deceases and lack of health is at an all time high (Wolcott 162). There is a significant difference between organically vs. conventionally produced food. The concept organic standard is based on farming with limited use of chemical pesticides and the product stays free from involvement of chemical use and or any other processing agent after or during any part of the production. When pesticides and other chemical agents are involved in the growing process of plants, there are a number of different actions that occur that differs from the ones present during organic farming. This includes an imbalance in the mineral/nutrient relation (Lundegard 8-10). More and more evidence points out that these minerals are essential to maintain health among mammals. Out of 93 naturally occurring elements, it’s believed that over 50 are essential. Furthermore, organic soil possesses higher levels of nitrogen, enzymes and microbial biomass C. This yields a higher soil respiration, leading to an increase in soil stability, humic acid and stability in PH value. If a crop is reliant on this soil it generates a foundation of which the development of trace elements and other vital micronutrients will increase (Riffaldi 350). Humans have been accustomed to agriculture for the last 6000 years, but only during the last 50 we have introduced fertilizers and pesticides to “enhance” the farming procedure. Taking in consideration that nature has provided a natural way for things to grow, what makes us think we can outsmart it? The reason for the usage of fertilizers and pesticides is normally to increase the crop production (Horrigan 1). Although, this is not necessarily true; research and different government programs show that we can eliminate pesticide use with up to 65% without sacrificing crop yields or quality (9). Merely this information should get us to reconsider the vast use of inorganic fertilizers and pesticides due to its damaging effects and costs of society. In close, the various cost of using pesticides exceeds the profits; for example only the estimated environmental and health care costs of pesticide use at recommended levels in the United States run about $12 billion every year. Modern agricultural practices are also likely to contribute to the erosion of soil. The estimated annual costs of public and environmental health losses related to soil erosion exceed $45 billion. If we manage the pest and nutrient systems, organic agriculture can minimize the dependence on chemical inputs, making agriculture environmentally and economically sound (Pimentel 1). The amount of chemicals used in the world today is great; in 1998 the world used 137 million metric tons of chemical fertilizers, of which U.S. agriculture consumed about 20 million tons. Annually the world uses about 3 million tons of pesticides (consistent of herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides). These are formulated from about 1,600 different chemicals and are normally sprayed directly on to the crop and obviously end up in your food (Horrigan 3). The chemicals often found in conventional food are of great magnitude and induce serious health issues. The amount of chemicals that is deliberately added to our food each year ranges between 2800-3000 accordingly to the FDA. In food production the whole process chain, from ground to stomach, the number of chemicals that the food is exposed to ranges from 10000-15000. These vast numbers speaks for themselves, considering exposure to only a few of them can cause severe health disorders (Chek 58). These chemicals, pesticides and fertilizers are polluting soil, water, and air harming both the environment and human health. The soil where chemicals are used is eroding much faster than it can be replenished, taking with it the land's fertility and nutrients that nourish both plants and those who eat them. It has also been estimated that only 0.1% of applied pesticides reach the target pests, leaving most of the pesticides (99.9%) to impact the environment (Horrigan 3). All of the chemicals that we are exposed too will put a huge taxation on the body; pesticides produce both short term and long term effects on human health. Milder and short term effects are weight-gain, skin disorders and eventually auto immune diseases (Chek 57). Some of the long-term effects of pesticides include elevated cancer risks and disruption of the body's reproductive, immune, endocrine, and nervous systems. I the United states alone an estimated 2 million poisonings and about 10000 deaths occur each year due to pesticides (Horrigan 8-9). Food irradiation is also common in conventional food production and it’s used to eliminate bacteria and other “harmful substances” as well as prolonging shelf life. Not only does this process destroy nearly all vitamins and other nutrients, it also disrupts the chemical composition, including friendly bacteria and naturally occurring enzymes (Chek 60-61). This leave the product with nothing live left, effectively rendering the food “dead” and therefore useless to the body. Another method of trying to outsmart nature is genetically engineered food (GM) or (GMO). This is rising in popularity but the ultimate outcome is far from beneficial. It is simply impossible to foresee what eventual consequences might be to the ecosphere or to human health from tampering with the DNA of crops (Wolcott 362). Research suggests that genetically engineered produce introduces allergens to the food that it previously did not contain. These allergens could be life threatening in some cases, if you for example are nut allergic and are unaware of the contents of nut in genetically engineered products. A study made by Arpad Pusztai also came to conclusion that GM foods where stripped of its nutrients and had a modified anti-nutrient profile. For example starch and glucose values in a potato were significantly different (Chek 60). Health benefits of organic food Switching to organic food induces a series of health benefits. Just by eliminating the very large number of chemicals used in the production and processing of conventional food we obtain a sincere change in our bodies ability function, this due to several factors; If chemical input is minimized the chemical related diseases and distortions that occur with the exposure of these can be eliminated to a great extent. Chemical input distorts our internal balance of satiety creating an eating response that is unnatural, potentially leading to overeating (Riviera 178). In research made by J. I. Rodale it was reported that four cancer patients that switched to 100% organic food where cured from their alignments (Faidon 358). It’s evident that minimally processed food creates an eating response that yields a higher satiety due to nutritional value and content (Wolcott 93). This leads to a natural insight in your body’s requirements and it will tell you what it needs at any given moment, preventing overeating tendencies and cravings for junk food, leading to decreased obesity. Eating organic whole grain products fresh fruits and vegetables have a higher content nutrient and minerals, which are beneficial to health and proven to decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer (Lea 23). In our time today we have no choice but to choose organic to ensure that the quality and standard meet the requirements for what we need to obtain optimal health. Since what we eat directly corresponds to what we are made of, every function and energy-giving aspect is dependant upon it; it is of outmost importance that the food we choose to recreate our bodies are of supreme quality. Conclusion Due to the vast number of benefits presented in this paper, combined with personal experience in health development when switching to organic food, makes me clearly in favor of organic farming. Only the health benefits alone would be reason enough to choose organic food. I believe that health is not the absence of disease; it’s a state of which you are looking and feeling great from the inside out, have great energy and commitment in all what you do. All of this includes the freedom of eating good food that you like, without having to restrict yourself. That’s when you can come closer to yourself and develop yourself to be a better human being. Feeling successful in living life at it’s fullest, projecting your intentions out from mere selfish perspective. Environmentally the benefits of organic farming would be considerate. The air would be cleaner and clearer, minimizing toxic outlet that affect us and any other creature that breathes on this earth. The soils would carry less toxins, resulting in higher productivity of crop yields and these would be of a far higher quality. Wildlife and nature would normalize moving towards optimal homeostasis. For mankind in our time, the impact would be enormous. A very high percent of the continuing health deterioration today is directly food related, and the quality of our food plays a huge role. By switching to organic foods we would increase productivity, health and probably general happiness. Obesity, diabetes, cancer, just to name a few diseases, would decrease by improving our eating habits. Overall we would be striving towards a healthier society, both internally and externally, ultimately; wouldn’t it be better to live in a world as nature intended it to be? Works Cited Chek, Paul. How to eat, move and be healthy. San Diego: 2004. Faidon, Magkos, Fotini Arvaniti and Antonis Zampelas. "Organic food: Nutritious food or Food For Thought, A Review of The Evidence." International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition vol. 54, 5 (2003): 357-371. http://libdb.smc.edu/login?url=http://search.epnet.com.libdb.smc.edu/log... Horrigan, Leo. Robert S Lawrence and Polly Walker. "How Sustainable Agriculture Can Address the Environmental and Human Health Harms of Industrial Agriculture." Environmental Health Perspectives 110 5 (2002): 445-56. http://libdb.smc.edu/login?url=http://search.epnet.com.libdb.smc.edu/log... Lea, Emma. "Food, Health, The Environment and Consumers' Dietary Choices." Nutrition and Dietetics 62 (2005): 21-25. http://libdb.smc.edu/login?url=http://search.epnet.com.libdb.smc.edu/log... Lundegardh, Bengt. Anna Martensson. "Organically Produced Plant Foods - Evidence of Health Benefits." Soil and Plant Sci 53 (2003): 3-15. http://libdb.smc.edu/login?url=http://search.epnet.com.libdb.smc.edu/log... Pimmentel, David, et al. "Environmental, Energetic, and Economic Comparisons of Organic and Conventional Farming Systems." BioScience 55 7 (2005): 573-82. http://libdb.smc.edu/login?url=http://search.epnet.com.libdb.smc.edu/log... Riffaldi, Ricardo, et al. "Organically and Conventionally Managed Soils: Characterization of Composition." Archives of Agronomy and Soil Science 49 (2003): 349-355. http://libdb.smc.edu/login?url=http://search.epnet.com.libdb.smc.edu/log... Rivera, Rudy and Roger D. Deutch. Your Hidden Food Allergies Are Making You Fat. Rocklin: Prima Publishing, 1998. Wolcott, William and Trish Fahey. The Metabolic Typing Diet. New York: Broadway Books, 2000.