This is a common question I receive as a wellness advisor and a common response is "It's so expensive to buy organic". So I have come up with a few tips in helping you to decide weather or not to buy organic. First of all know what organic means. Organic means how a food is produced and when an item is grown organically it means it was grown without the use of artifical ingredients, including preservatives, and without synthetic pestisides and fertilizers. This is a limited definition but considering what atificial ingredients, preservatives and chemicals do in our bodies, YES we should eat organic. Now, know where the food is from. If you buy produce at the supermarket in the summer months it is likely from the USA and is pretty safe because the government monitors farmers and their growing process. However during our winter months you are likely to find much of the produce is from South America and other countries and the growing process is not regulated or monitored by our government. So in the winter months you should try to buy your fresh produce organically. Here are where the options come in. Carry a list of the dirty dozen to the store with you. The dirty dozen are the foods that are most likely to be contaminted with harmful fertilzers and pesticides. 1peach, 2 apple, 3 Bell Pepper, Celery, 5 Nectarine, 6 Strawberries, 7 Cherries, 8 Kale, 9 Lettuce, 10 Grapes(imported) 11 Carrot, 12 Pear. Notice all of these either have thin skins or skins that you eat, that is why they are more easily contaminted. You are safer with thick skin items such as melons, however always wash your produce even melons or you may contaminate the fruit as you cut trough the skin and into the fruit. The next thing is stick with whole foods, fruits, veggies, beans, legumes, rice, pasta, etc. If you are doing that then there is no need to worry about all the prepackaged foods and if they are organic, prepackaged items can be very pricey. If you can afford it though and want to there are a few out there worth the extra bucks. I personally buy my kids organic cereal, in comparison to nationally reconized brands of kids cereal the nutrition facts are night and day. Other things to look at are local farms, Lakeland has Lakeland Farmers Market Downtown and Go Natural Organics, Inc. , which is a co-op. Also, planting your own garden or with a group of freinds so that you can swap are great alternatives. Last but not least be patient, everthing works by supply and demand, the prices will drop the more common buying organic becomes. Eating organic and eating healthy does take a little more planning but the investment is so worth it. It's prevenative maintnance for your body!
Comment by Alexandra Lee on June 17, 2010 at 9:56pm 
Comment by Liz Craven, WtoW Editor on March 2, 2010 at 9:20am 
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