A study just published in the journal Environmental Research adds to a growing body of research showing that eating organic reduces pesticide levels in the body.
The new study tested the urine of four diverse American families in Oakland, Minneapolis, Atlanta, and Baltimore after eating their typical diet of conventional food for six days and then after a controlled diet of all organic food for six days.
The researchers found that switching to an organic diet significantly reduced the levels of synthetic pesticides found in all participants – by an average of 60% – after less than one week.
The study, Organic Diet Intervention Significantly Reduces Urinary Pesticide Levels in U.S. Children and Adults, found significant reductions in pesticides, some of which are associated with increased risk of autism, cancers, autoimmune disorders, infertility, hormone disruption, and Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. The most significant declines involved organophosphates, a class of neurotoxic pesticides linked to brain damage in children: the study found a 95% drop in levels of malathion and a nearly two thirds reduction in chlorpyrifos.
“This study shows that organic works,” claimed study co-author Kendra Klein, PhD, and senior staff scientist at Friends of the Earth. “We all have the right to food that is free of toxic pesticides. Farmers and farmworkers growing our nation’s food and the rural communities they live in have a right not to be exposed to chemicals linked to cancer, autism and infertility. And the way we grow food should protect, not harm, our environment. We urgently need our elected leaders to support our farmers in making healthy organic food available for all.”
“This important study shows how quickly we can rid our bodies of toxic pesticides by choosing organic,” said Sharyle Patton, Director of the Commonweal Biomonitoring Resources Center and co-author of the study. “Congratulations to the families who participated in the study and their willingness to tell their stories in support of creating a food system where organic is available to all.”
Image: Friends of the Earth