The Dirty Dozen

There is so much talk on whether or not to buy organic. Different people have different opinions. Here is how I decide for me and my family. If the item is an animal product ie. any type of dairy or meat I always make sure it is organic. Why? Hormones and antibiotics. A lot of animals are pumped full of these 2 things which we then ingest when we eat them. As long as your meat and dairy are USDA certified organic, you can feel confident that they were not given drugs. Also, just an FYI if you can find a farmer who is organic and feeds their livestock a grass diet that would be the absolute healthiest. In Indiana Traders Point Farm is the only grassfed, certified organic dairy farm. However, don't overlook the small local farms. It is very expensive for farmers to be become certified organic. I reccomend looking at your Local Food Guide to find a farmer near you. Indiana peeps, click here for our 2010-2011 Local Food Guide

With produce you don't have to worry about hormones and antibiotics, but rather the concern is pesticides. I read yesterday that if you eat a piece of celery that is not organic, you could be exposed to 67 different chemicals! I know you're probably thinking, yeah but I wash my produce. Have you ever done the science experiment where you dip celery into water with food coloring and watch the color travel up the whole stalk? Unfortunately, a lot of produce is very porous and the chemicals seep right on into the fruit or vegetable so while washing is a good thing it's not protecting you from all the chemical exposure. But organic is more expensive right? Yes, in some cases it is (although farmer's markets are sometimes insanely cheap) so here is how I decide. There is a list called the Dirty Dozen. This is a list of the 12 dirtiest and 12 cleanest fruits and vegetables. The link I provided for you here, gives you the full list of 49 fruits and veggies. It starts with the cleanest and ends with the dirtiest. If it's on the dirty list I always buy it organic. If it is on the clean list often times I will buy non-organic. The staples in our house that I always buy organic are apples, celery, strawberries, spinach, kale, and lettuce. Again, as with the animal products not all local farmers can afford to be certified organic so if you are at the farmer's market talk to the farmers and ask them if they use chemicals. However if you are at the grocery look for this label to ensure it is organic.

Just remember nobody is perfect and sometimes organic may not be available for what you want. Just do your best and what feels right for your family. That's what I do!

So now onto my day. I have actually had a bad headache all day and just haven't felt well. Bummer. It is so pretty out. I prepared a part of my breakfast last night. It is called Vegan Overnight Oats. Now, you can certainly make this non-vegan as well by using cow milk or yogurt and it would be just as fantastic! It is very good, if you like oats. It is also, super easy! Today, I topped mine with soy yogurt, carob chips, and pecans.

Lunch was a wrap with a Sunshine burger (I get these in my Farm Fresh Delivery Bin) with half an avocado, spinach, tomatoes, onions, and ketchup. I put ketchup on just about everything! Local Folks Food's ketchup is my favorite local ketchup with no high fructose corn syrup. I think Heinz is making one now also without high fructose corn syrup.

I had this juice for a snack. It was kale, spinach, apple, lemon, celery, and cucumber. This is my favorite juice! If you are here in Indy, and would like to try this fantastic juice look for the Natural Born Juicers at the farmer's market. Ask for the Ultimate Green's drink with extra apple! That is what inspired me to make my own version at home. Visit their website to see when and where they will be each week. They travel around to several farmer's markets in town.

I hope you look at my blog as a fun learning tool to make small changes (or big) in your own and your family's health. Certainly, you don't have to do what I do, but maybe it will give you some ideas of things you might like to do. Again, I am no expert and am learning all of this information as well. I love hearing about things you are doing to better your health too! This is a journey for us all!

Be well,

~A