The biggest study ever into organic food ‚Äì a four-year EU funded project called the Quality Low Input Food (QLIF) project ‚Äì found that organic food is FAR more nutritious than ordinary produce, and can help improve your health and longevity. You‚Äôre likely to hear more about this again, once they publish their findings in full, which is expected to occur by the end of this year.
This study may have considerable impact, as its findings may even overturn government advice ‚Äì at least in the U.K. ‚Äì which currently states that eating organic food is no more than a lifestyle choice.
For example, this study found that:
Organic fruit and vegetables contain up to 40 percent more antioxidants
Organic produce had higher levels of beneficial minerals like iron and zinc
Milk from organic herds contained up to 90 percent more antioxidants
The researchers even went so far as to say that eating organic foods can help to increase the nutrient intake of people who don‚Äôt eat the recommended five servings of fruits and vegetables a day.
Food grown in healthier soil, with natural fertilizers and no chemicals, simply has to be more nutritious. It is common knowledge — though knowledge that is greatly suppressed in the United States. But science is catching up, making suppression of this fact more difficult to sustain.
A 2003 study in the Journal of Agricultural Food Chemistry, for example, found that organic foods are better for fighting cancer. And in 2005, scientists found that, compared to rats that ate conventional diets, organically fed rats experienced various health benefits, including:
Improved immune system status
Better sleeping habits
Less weight and were slimmer than rats fed other diets
Higher vitamin E content in their blood (for organically fed rats)
Does this mean that you should ditch all of your conventional produce and meat, and only buy certified organic foods? Well, yes ‚Ä¶ and no.
Continued on next blog.