UK Healthy Eating news
 | Wednesday 5th August 2009 FSA Report Claims Organic Food Not Better For You An independent review commissioned by the Food Standards Agency shows that there are no nutritional or health benefits to be gained from eating organic produce. The report, which focuses on the nutritional benefits of foods, shows that there are only negligible differences in nutritional content between organic and conventionally produced foodstuffs. The FSA commissioned the report with the aim of improving consumer information and states that the findings should not deter people from eating organic food but that consumers now have additional information when choosing their diet. There was some evidence of nutritional differences found between the two food groups but the report concludes that these are unlikely to provide significant health benefits. The FSA report is contradictory to separate US and EU reports in recent years that have found concentrations of nutrients to be up to 25 percent higher in organic food. Besides the contradictory nature of the findings, critics of the FSA report point out that one of the main reasons for eating organic produce, is more what is not contained within the food, rather than what is. A few examples of such unwanted additives include pesticides, hormones and antibiotics. Several previous studies prove that organic diets successfully eliminate toxins from the body and that these toxins are associated with health problems, particularly in children. There is also the question of animal welfare to consider, as well as supporting sustainable farming practices to better the environment. Current conventional farming practices are forecast to eventually ruin the land for future generations and cause acute food shortages. Choosing an organic lifestyle is just that, a lifestyle choice. This report does not address the many other reasons why people choose to eat organic foods and seek out other organic produce, such as the rather important matter of taste. While this is, of course, completely subjective a 2005 report from the Soil Association found that 72 percent of people chose organic food because it just plain tastes better. |
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