Fruits Covered In Pesticides
Alarming!
Have
you heard of “The Dirty Dozen”? No, not the 1967 movie. Every year,
Environmental Working Group (EWG) publishes a list of the top twelve
produce items that contain the most pesticide residue of forty-eight
fruits and vegetables tested by the US Department of Agriculture. In
2017, one hundred seventy-eight different pesticides were found in the
produce tested. In fact, 70% of the items tested contained at least one.
This residue remains even after we clean and peel produce. (1)
Opposite to the Dirty Dozen is the Clean Fifteen: a list of fifteen popular items that test with the least amount of contaminants. Foods on this list are safest to eat if conventionally grown from a pesticide perspective. You can find EWG’s Clean Fifteen list here.
Although these foods are meant for human consumption, they aren’t exactly safe for humans either.
According to The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine:
“Pesticides may also cause harm. Some can damage the environment and accumulate in ecosystems. And depending on dose, some pesticides can cause a range of adverse effects on human health, including cancer, acute and chronic injury to the nervous system, lung damage, reproductive dysfunction, and possibly dysfunction of the endocrine and immune systems.” (2)
Alarming!
Have
you heard of “The Dirty Dozen”? No, not the 1967 movie. Every year,
Environmental Working Group (EWG) publishes a list of the top twelve
produce items that contain the most pesticide residue of forty-eight
fruits and vegetables tested by the US Department of Agriculture. In
2017, one hundred seventy-eight different pesticides were found in the
produce tested. In fact, 70% of the items tested contained at least one.
This residue remains even after we clean and peel produce. (1)Opposite to the Dirty Dozen is the Clean Fifteen: a list of fifteen popular items that test with the least amount of contaminants. Foods on this list are safest to eat if conventionally grown from a pesticide perspective. You can find EWG’s Clean Fifteen list here.
What’s the Risk?
Pesticides kill weeds, insects, fungus, rodents, and more. Safe to say, they’re not friendly to living creatures. Without these natural predators and pests, crops grow more quickly and effectively.Although these foods are meant for human consumption, they aren’t exactly safe for humans either.
According to The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine:
“Pesticides may also cause harm. Some can damage the environment and accumulate in ecosystems. And depending on dose, some pesticides can cause a range of adverse effects on human health, including cancer, acute and chronic injury to the nervous system, lung damage, reproductive dysfunction, and possibly dysfunction of the endocrine and immune systems.” (2)
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