It can be a not-so-delicious dilemma: Doctors and nutritionists regularly urge Americans to eat more fruits and vegetables-five or more servings each day-to protect against various diseases. Yet produce is the food group with the highest incidence of pesticide-chemical residue.
Research links pesticide residue with potential cases of cancer, neurological problems, immune system disruptions and hormonal imbalances. The likelihood of toxicity increases for children, who are smaller than adults and still developing.
Life just isn’t always a bowl of strawberries, the fruit most targeted by researchers.
Environmental Working Group, a non-profit environmental research organization based in Washington, D.C., published a comprehensive “Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce” in 1996 (a free brochure is available from the organization’s Internet site-www.ewg.org-or write: EWG, 1718 Connecticut Ave., Suite 600, Washington, D.C. 20009; 202-667-6982).
The report, which used data from U.S. Food and Drug Administration studies, provides some practical guidance about the produce at your grocery store.
The Environmental Working Group analysis labeled strawberries with a “toxicity score” of 189 of a possible 200, far greater than bell peppers and spinach (both at 155), U.S.-grown cherries (154) and peaches (150).
“We’re not saying don’t ever eat another strawberry,” said Richard Wiles, vice president of research at Environmental Working Group, “but that you should eat a variety of conventionally grown fruits and vegetables, especially watching the items at the top of our list.”
The 1996 report found more than half of the health risks associated with pesticides are concentrated in 12 fruits and vegetables (see accompanying chart). If you can minimize or eliminate these items, the researchers suggest you’ll have a significant reduction-roughly 50 percent-in disease risk.
“Our basic recommendation is to buy organic produce whenever you can get it,” Wiles said.
Wiles said investigations of organic fruit have revealed no violations of various no-pesticide state regulations. The organic-produce industry figures to get an even greater credibility boost when a uniform federal code goes into effect this month.
A recent laboratory test conducted for the Boston Globe detailed additional bad news: Tested strawberries contained four pesticides, two of which are known to cause cancer. Even so, all residues are well below federal limits.
Wiles said that federal levels are too liberal, comparing them to “setting the speed limit at 1,000 miles per hour.”
Surprisingly, Wiles did not confirm the common notion that imported produce is more likely to have pesticide residues. He explained that USDA standards are the same for all fruits and vegetables, but that federal inspection at our country’s borders can sometimes be inconsistent because of budget constraints. He doesn’t see a significant difference between foreign and domestic fruit.
In any case, nutritionists and doctors are wary to overstate any reason to discourage people from eating fruits and vegetables. More produce is a focal point of any healthful eating plan.
“Given all of the scientific and medical evidence to date, the benefits of eating fruits and vegetables far outweigh the risks of pesticides,” said Cindy Moore, director of nutrition services at the esteemed Cleveland Clinic Foundation and spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.
Moore said she is not convinced that organic produce is better for one’s health but doesn’t discourage clients who adopt that perspective and pay a little more.
“What’s important when buying produce is purchasing it from a reputable grocer who can answer your questions about its origins,” noted Moore. “You should know something about how the fruit or vegetable was grown, processed and handled.”
Whether they’re organic or not, it’s important to wash fruits and vegetables thoroughly before eating them. The privately funded Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio found that washing produce with a mixture of water and mild dishwashing liquid or peeling skins and outer leaves (of leafy greens) eliminated virtually all pesticide residues on about half of 17 common fruits and vegetables.
Peeling does the trick for apricots, bananas (provided you don’t transfer residue from your hands to the inner fruit), carrots, pears and potatoes. Scrubbing or some friction clearly helps when washing, though that can be difficult with more delicate produce. Detergent helps remove the most tenacious outer residue, though some of the tested produce (strawberries, spinach) have some pesticide infiltration at the cellular level.
“Be careful about how you peel and remove the skin,” said Moore. “When you cut into a cantaloupe, the knife is moving from the pesticide residue to the fruit you will be eating. Scrubbing the skin will make a big difference.”
PRODUCE PROBLEM
Here are the conventionally grown fruits and vegetables with the highest rate of pesticide residue, from a study by the non-profit Environmental Working Group:
1. Strawberries
2. Bell peppers (green and red)
2. Spinach (tied with peppers)
4. U.S.-grown cherries
5. Peaches
6. Mexican-grown cantaloupe
7. Celery
8. Apples
9. Apricots
10. Green beans
11. Chilean-grown grapes
12. Cucumbers
