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When shopping for your family, you should consider that per pound of body weight, babies consume about 60 times more fruits and vegetables than adults. This fact combined with undeveloped digestive and immune systems, put young children at the greatest health risk for pesticide residues. To minimize the effects, you might consider buying organic for those foods that your children eat regularly.
Produce: Pesticides levels vary in produce. Here is a list of common fruits and veggies that are high in pesticide residues*. Because of the naturally high levels, you might consider buying organic for these foods:
Apples
Bell peppers
Celery
Cherries
Grapes (imported)
Nectarines
Peaches
Pears
Potatoes
Red Raspberries
Spinach
Strawberries
On the flip side, these fruits and veggies are commonly found to have the lowest levels of pesticide residues*
Asparagus
Avocados
Bananas
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Corn (sweet)
Kiwi
Mangos
Onions
Papayas
Pineapples
Peas (sweet)
*Source: The Environmental Workers Union
Dairy, egg and meat products: While produce is often associated with organic food, there is a growing interest among consumers in dairy, egg and meat products. The reason for increased interest is quite simple - consumers want to know their food is safe. The strict guidelines for producing organic foods are the answer to consumer concerns. Organic eggs and dairy products are readily available in supermarkets. Horizon, Stonyfield Farm and Eggland's Best are just a few national brands. Organic meats may be harder to find. Look for them in natural products stores, farmer's markets and through home delivery services.
Processed foods: Many stores are stocking their shelves with organically processed foods too. In order to make it easier to shop for organic products, the USDA has defined special labeling:
"100% Organic" label means made with 100% organic ingredients;
"Organic" label means made with at least 95% organic ingredients;
"Made With Organic Ingredients" label means made with a minimum of 70% organic ingredients with strict restrictions on the remaining 30% including no GMOs (genetically modified organisms); and
Products with less than 70% organic ingredients may list organically produced ingredients on the side panel of the package, but may not make any organic claims on the front of the package.
About the Author: Cheryl Tallman and Joan Ahlers are sisters, the mothers of five children, and founders of Fresh Baby.
Raised by parents who love fresh foods and entertaining, their mom, a gourmet cook, ensured that they were well-equipped
with extraordinary skills in the kitchen. Both with long track records of business success, they decided to combine their
skills in the kitchen with their knowledge of healthy foods and children to create Fresh Baby. Cheryl and Joan put a modern
twist on the conventional wisdom that when you make it yourself, you know it's better. Their goal at Fresh Baby is to make
the task of raising a healthy eater a little bit easier for all parents. Visit them online at www.FreshBaby.com and subscribe
to their Fresh Ideas newsletter to get monthly ideas, tips and activities for developing your family's healthy eating habits!
While there are many reasons for teaching kids to cook -- less expensive than eating out, preserves family heritage, etc, the most important
reason is that by teaching your child to cook, you're giving him a better chance to be a healthy grown-up. Enabling your child with the ability
to appreciate freshness and to transform ingredients into tasty foods opens their eyes to making wiser choices about what to eat...
by Cheryl Tallman and Joan Ahlers
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