Is organic food benefit oversold/overhyped?

[pippo]

People,

 

Gotta know the scoop on this, and this forum is trusted as a good source of opinions/feedback.

 

One idea- organic foods may be impossible to produce economically in some climates, with their inherant problems with pests, fungi, etc. Also, of course, is the concept that organics contain no pesticide residue. This residue which may be on non organics, of course, is deemed "safe" by the FDA. Anyone know off hand what the ppb/ppt allowable limits are for these residues? Are these limits truly safe, as far as we know?

 

I heard that the average person contains about 5000 different metals/toxins/organics in their body/blood. This comes from everyday interaction with the environment, including a brief visit to a restaurant, car show, sitting in traffic, etc etc. Why are we so dang paranoid about ppt residue?

[CharonY]

What is considered organic farming can vary widely and are not solely limited to the regulation of pesticides used. Specifically for the latter I think that in the EU and US only non-artificial pesticides are allowed, though it does not automatically mean that they may not be harmful to humans. An arguably bigger impact of organic farming is probably a focus on poly- rather than monoculture and different approaches to soil management, but I do not know whether the way they are actually implemented does actually provide ecological benefits.

 

Finally to the issue of exposure, as always it is not the fact that we are exposed to a lot of toxicants that is worrying, but the respective concentrations. There is little doubt that high level uptake is harmful and has little to do with paranoia per se. It is possible that people confuse any exposure with harmful exposure. However, there is the issue that many pollutants accumulate over time and continuous low-level exposure can eventually lead to harmful body concentration. It should also be said that these effects are much more likely to be detrimental to children and especially in utero exposure may be worrisome, for obvious reasons.

[pippo]

Thanks for your imput, char.