Buy These Organic!

While you may strive to buy all organic produce, some items are not always available or may be out of your price range. Below is a list of recommended foods to prioritize buying organic, as their conventional counterparts are known to have the highest concentration of pesticide residues:

- Strawberries (very high concentration)

- Peaches (very high concentration)

- Bananas (concern about chemical used for ripening in transport)

- Bell peppers

- Spinach

- Cherries

- Nectarines

- Celery

- Apples

- Apricots

- Green beans

The following foods are known to have the lowest pesticide residues, so use them to substitute the above items when organic is not available:

- Broccoli

- Onions

- Sweet corn

- Avocado

- Asparagus

- Cabbage

- Eggplant

- Blueberries

- Pineapple

- Mango 

Remember to wash all fruit and vegetables well, though note that washing will not necessarily remove pesticide residues, which may be intentionally waterproof to resist rain (commonly used on apples). Use the lists above to help you minimize your exposure, since chemical pesticides are known to impact health, including neurological disorders, cancer, and reproductive problems. Children are more vulnerable to the impacts, because their bodies are developing and because they receive a higher dose per pound of body weight, so be particularly careful in protecting them. A University of Washington study showed that children who ate organic food had one-sixth the level of pesticide residues present in urine tests than children who ate conventional produce.

Buy organic whenever possible. Your health and the environment will thank you for it! For more information on the results of pesticide residue testing, visit the Environmental Working Group.