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Is Organic Food A Healthier Or Just A Lifestyle Choice? An increasing number of people are switching to organic food. In Britain, the organic market has boomed in recent years, growing by an average of 25 percent annually, and is now worth nearly 2 billion pounds a year. The organic food is not cheap and is typically about 30 percent more expensive in Britain. For particular products such as cherry tomatoes and carrots, it is about double the price, while supermarket organic milk is 18 percent more expensive. People who like organic food believe organic fruit and vegetables are healthier since they are grown without the use of conventional pesticides and artificial fertilizers. On the other hand, people opposing to such move feel that getting organic food is just a lifestyle choice because there is no clear evidence to support it is more nutritious than other food. Perhaps, the new study reported in Britain’s Sunday Times on October 28, 2007 may end such debate that has been going on for some time. The study found that organic fruit and vegetables contain as much as 40 percent more antioxidants. It is scientists’ belief that antioxidants could cut the risk of cancer and heart disease. Organic foods are also found to have higher levels of beneficial minerals such as iron and zinc.
The study, which was funded by European Union at the cost of 12 million pounds, took 4 years to find out the differences were so marked that organic food would actually help increase the nutrient intake of people not consuming the recommended 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day. The researchers grew fruit and vegetables, and reared cattle on adjacent organic and non-organic sites on a 293-hectare farm attached to Newcastle University, and at other sites in Europe. They found that the level of antioxidants in milk from organic herds were up to 90 percent higher than in that from the conventional herds. In addition to the finding of up to 40 percent more antioxidants in organic vegetables, they also discovered that the organic tomatoes from Greece had significantly higher level of antioxidants, including flavonoids, a substance thought to reduce heart disease. Such findings seem to go against the advice given by the British government, which is among those who believe buying organic food is just a lifestyle choice and there are no significant differences between organic and ordinary food. From the point of view of FSA (Britain's Food Standards Agency), even if the findings were sound, the government would still need to assess the impact on health. They maintain that the most important issue is still whether people are eating a healthy balanced diet, and not whether or not they are eating organic food. Building on the people’s will to pay more to maintain good health, the estimated retail sales for Singapore's organic food market reached about US$40 million in 2007, and across Asia, the market size is estimated to hit close to US$1 billion in 2008, base on the statistics from Britain's Organic Monitor. What is your choice now? Would you switch to organic food just based on the aforesaid findings? Besides weighing the cost and benefits, you should not forget that adopting a healthy lifestyle with healthy diet and adequate exercises is still the key for heart disease prevention. Relying solely on organic food while carrying on unhealthy lifestyle might not make your heart happy, anyway.
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