| This section contains
extracts from articles that address some of the issues surrounding
organic food production.
Study finds organic
gives immediate protection from pesticides.
A new study carried out by government-funded
US scientists has shown that switching to organic food gives
children 'immediate' protection from pesticides, reports
the Los Angeles Times.
Research carried out by scientists from
the University of Washington, Emory University and the Centre
for Disease Control and Prevention found that concentrations
of two organophosphate pesticides - malathion and chlorpyrifos
- decline substantially in the bodies of primary school
children during a five-day period when organic foods were
substituted for conventional foods.
The study was carried out over 15 days,
over which time the scientists tested the urine of 23 school
children from the Seattle area. During the first three days,
the children ate their normal foods. But during the middle
five days, organic items were substituted for most of their
diet, including fruits, vegetables, juices and wheat and
corn-based processed items such as cereal and pastas. Average
levels of both pesticides in the children 'decreases to
nondetect levels immediately after the introduction of the
organic diets and remained nondetectable until the conventional
diets were reintroduced'. the researchers reported.
When they ate organic foods, the children
had on average zero malathion detected in their urine, with
a high of seven parts per billion in one child. But when
the children returned to eating conventional foods, one
child had as much as 263 parts per billion and the average
increased to 1.6 parts per billion. For chlorpyrifos, the
children had less than one part per billion when they ate
organic foods, but the average increased fivefold as soon
as they returned to their previous diet.
The findings suggested that children are
exposed to organophosphate chemicals mainly through food,
not through spraying in homes or other sources.
The researchers concluded 'we were able
to demonstrate that an organic diet provides a dramatic
and immediate protective effect against exposure to organophosphorus
pesticides that are commonly used in agricultural production.'
Natural Products
Magazine - September 7th 2005
Little is known about how genes will behave
when put into a completely different species. Moreover,
the technology used to incorporate the gene into other organisms
is random and poorly understood: the scientists do not know
where the foreign gene will become attached or what genes
they will react/respond to in the host. It is highly possible
that new proteins will be produced which trigger allergies
in some people, or cause the production of toxins in our
food.
Moyra Bremner,
Organic Farming Autumn 1998
Organic Farming delivers the highest quality
food, produced without artificial chemicals or genetic modification,
and with respect for animal welfare and the environment,
while helping to maintain the landscape and rural communities.
HRH The Prince
of Wales, Organic Food Awards, 1998
It's thought the toxic effect of some groups
of bioaccumulative substances may have their maximum effect
on the next generation while in the womb. Research is also
showing that mixtures of organic pollutants, which cause
effects such as immunosuppression and hormone disruption,
can have an additive or a synergistic effect, and that the
foetus may be most at risk to these.
Tanyia Maxted-Frost
None of the organic foods sampled in our
random test had any detectable pesticides. However, 20pc
of the conventionally produced foods did, with multiple
residues in one sample. While the amounts of such residues
are usually very small, their additive effect on health
is still poorly understood. For sensitive groups such as
children, choosing organic versions of staple foods must
still be the safest option.
Angela Dowden,
Daily Mail, January 2000
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