Eating Organic Can Improve Mental Health

From ADHD, autism, and Alzheimer’s, to bipolar disorder, depression, and schizophrenia, Americans are suffering with a serious and growing mental health and behavioral epidemic—and chemicals in the environment influence this epidemic. One in five kids under the age of 18 suffers from developmental disabilities and mental health problems, and the number is growing, according to the American Psychological Association. And, the World Health Organization estimates that by 2020, neuropsychiatric disorders in children will increase by over 50%, making them one of the five leading causes of childhood illness, disability and death, and that depression will be the second greatest contributor to the global burden of disease for all ages and both sexes.

According to National Academy of Sciences estimates, at least a quarter of developmental and neurological problems seen in children are directly related to the interplay between chemicals and genetic factors, and about 3% are strictly caused by exposure to environmental toxins, such as the organophosphate pesticides. The organophosphates account for half of the insecticides used in the US, with sixty million pounds applied to agricultural land and seventeen million pounds used in residential and commercial applications annually, and exposure to these pesticides are linked to hyperactivity, behavior disorders, learning disabilities, developmental delays and motor dysfunction.

The Food and Drug Administration has found that half of the non-organic produce in grocery stores contains measurable residues of pesticides, and tests of eight industry-leading baby foods revealed the presence of 16 pesticides, including three carcinogens. In fact, 62% of all foods tested had residues of at least three different pesticides on them or in them. And, what's on our food is in our blood: organophosphate pesticides are now found in the blood of 95% of Americans tested by the CDC, and levels are twice as high in blood samples taken from children than adults, because relative to their body weight, kids eat more fruits and vegetables.

But there is some good news: eating organically produced fruits and vegetables clearly reduces the exposure to pesticides. In blood samples of children aged 2 to 4, concentrations of pesticide residues are six-times higher in children who eat conventionally farmed fruits and vegetables compared with those who eat organic fruits and vegetables.

For many people, particularly those with young kids, the all-organic diet may be cost prohibitive. Switching to organic produce for those fruits and vegetables that are typically highest in pesticide residues is an effective starting point. The dirty dozen of highest residue fruits and vegetables are:
1. Peaches (highest concentration of pesticides)
2. Apples
3. Sweet Bell Peppers
4. Celery
5. Nectarines
6. Strawberries
7. Cherries
8. Pears
9. Grapes (especially imported grapes)
10. Spinach
11. Lettuce
12. Potatoes