Health Food Guide

 

Whether you are concerned about the health of the planet, your own personal health, or both, organic health food is the way to go. With local farmers markets in many towns and certified organic foods readily available at your local grocery store, it is the smart choice for today’s health conscious shopper.

 

So, what does ‘organically grown’ really mean? When fruits or vegetables are organically grown, they are completely free from harmful pesticides, fertilizers and other chemicals. Organic farmers utilize renewable resources that are gentle to the earth, preserving it for future generations. Instead of toxic fertilizers, they use manure or compost, for example. Organic meat, eggs, and dairy products all come from animals that were raised free of antibiotics or growth hormones.

 

The organic farmer doesn’t need to use hormones to spur animal growth. Instead, they provide their animals with a healthy organic diet and give them time outside. This is the natural way to ensure proper growth.

 

Organic foods carry a “USDA Organic” seal. Look for the seal to ensure that you are buying what you think you are. In some grocery stores, it’s hard to tell where the organic section ends and the regularly grown foods begin. Don’t confuse foods labeled ‘natural’ with organically grown items. They are not the same.

 

Health consciousness, exercise, and the desire to live green are at an all time high. There are a lot of decisions to make, especially if you are making changes to your diet for weight loss or health reasons.
 
Basically, if you are trying to eat healthy by making the choice to add more fresh fruits and vegetables to your diet, but these foods are not organic health foods, you are consuming produce that is laden with toxins and poisons. Seems like common sense to insist upon the benefits of organic foods, but many consumers are simply unaware or uninterested in hearing the truth about the dangers in these chemicals.

 

Fortunately, the news media has taken great steps to inform the general public of the dangers of conventionally grown meat and produce. Over the past year, there has been the antibiotic ridden salmon, growth hormone filled chicken, mad cow disease, a salmonella outbreak in tomatoes, a spinach recall; and the list goes on. Foods that are not organically grown are much more susceptible to dangerous contamination.

 

Organic growers have to abide by exceptionally rigid standards that were developed by the National Organic Standards Board and are subject to periodic surprise inspections to ensure that they are continuing to meet or exceed these standards. Conventional growers are under FDA guidelines and you can see for yourself where these government imposed rules have gotten us

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Currently, organic foods are pricier than conventionally grown foods, but with all of this information, one can easily see that certified organic foods have become the only rational choice. For me, saving a few pennies today is certainly not worth having myself or my loved ones fall ill and possibly end up hospitalized. Certified organic health food; it’s definitely a smart decision.