The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has just released their updated version of the Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides, detailing the top pesticide-laden fruits and vegetables to avoid. On the Pesticide Dirty Dozen list the juicy peach receives top points for having the highest pesticide load of all the items tested, followed by the apple, sweet bell pepper, celery, nectarine, strawberries, cherries, kale, lettuce, grapes (imported), carrots and pears.
EWG research has found that people who eat the 12 most contaminated fruits and vegetables actually consume an average of 10 pesticides a day. People who eat the 15 least contaminated conventionally-grown fruits and vegetables ingest fewer than 2 pesticides daily.
The Clean 15 list includes onions as the top food to consume with the lowest pesticide loads, followed by avocado, sweet corn, pineapple, mango, asparagus, sweet peas, kiwi, cabbage, eggplant, papaya, watermelon, broccoli, tomato and sweet potato.
The growing consensus among scientists is that small doses of some pesticides and other chemicals can cause lasting damage to human health, especially during fetal development and early childhood, explains the EWG. Scientists now know enough about the long-term consequences of ingesting these powerful chemicals to advise that we minimize our consumption of pesticides.
The Shopper’s Guide developed by EWG is based upon data from nearly 87,000 tests for pesticide residues in produce, conducted between 2000 and 2007 with results collected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. First released in 1995, the 5th edition has been updated to reflect the latest information about pesticides on produce.
Download the guide at: http://www.foodnews.org/
Visit: http://www.ewg.org/
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