Organically Grown Food

Every now and again I harp on about the value of organically grown food versus non-organically grown food and now, an interesting report from Rutgers University has landed on my desk. The report tabulates in milligrams per 100 grams of dry weight mineral count comparing the two forms of growing.

Now you can see that any extra cost at time of purchase converts very soon into better value, and in the end actually costs less in health costs. Here are the figures using a cabbage and lettuce as examples so that you can see more graphically what people mean when they talk about the difference between organic and "balanced diet" (i.e. not necessarily organic.

Back in 1973 Drs R F Keefer and R N Singh, researchers in agriculture and nutrition at the West Virginia University, USA reported:
“We are finding that the amounts of trace elements in sweetcorn are dropping dramatically due to the kinds and amounts of fertilisers employed. This will have far reaching consequences on the health of man and animals for the future."

As early as 1949 Sir Lionel Picton, in New York reported that the answer to diseases, such as heart trouble, cancer, diabetes, arthritis, high blood pressure, lay in natural, chemical free food grown in fertile soil.

The role of trace elements in immunity and infections was discussed in 1982 at the National Institute of Health in the US. Some of the findings are to be taken to heart:
Most of these deficiencies had even more marked effects on immune responses in children and the elderly.

More than anything the report concluded that deficiencies had a significant effect on our body's ability to properly digest and convert protein into energy. When this goes wrong, you can see it in yourself as bloatedness, an over-extended stomach and a general lack of energy throughout stressful periods.

The complex interaction between diet and health is paramount, and yet we take it for granted. Seems we will have to re-learn how to eat and grow food again?