Organic vs. Not Organic

My LLND gave me a print out on the foods I should be eating/not eating etc .

It says on it to reduce or eliminate gluten - isn't this pizza dough, bread, pasta etc? I REALLY do not want to eliminate this! Do you eliminate all gluten? Important?

Select dairy products that are organic and or/free-range, buy fruit and vegetables organic. I have a family of 6! My husband, 4 children and me... buying all organic is not financially possible. I cannot afford to buy our fruit and veggies all organic, it will double my bill and my husband is the only one working. It doesn't really feel right for me to be buying organic fruit/veggies for me and not my kids, either. So, is fruit/veggies still good for you even if they are not organic? HOW important is it to buy organic or am I OK eating non organic fruit/veggies?

Not everyone has the same reaction to gluten, so the best thing you can do is try to eliminate it and see how you feel. When I eliminated it, my brain fog cleared up substantially. When I reintroduced it, I got really gassy (sorry it that's TMI). So that tells me I'm sensitive to it. There are lots of gluten-free substitutes for pasta, bread, etc. They tend to be more expensive, so I have them less often, as a treat. I don't know if you have Aldi stores in Canada, but it you do, check it out. They have a line of gluten-free products. They also carry quite a bit of organic produce. I always get fresh organic carrots, apples, spinach, and kale there. They also carry frozen organic berries. I save quite a bit of money by shopping there.

JessicaMommy, this has to feel overwhelming. I agree with Dr. Weil's dirty dozen for fruits and vegetables, but that doesn't take care of the gluten.

Check out your grocery store for rice or quinoa pasta. They aren't bad at all. Udi makes a nice gluten free bread. More and more grocery stores are getting gluten free items. cookies, crackers, etc.

I went on a gluten free diet to see if I was gluten intolerant and I found out I love lettuce wrapped anything! I used corn tortillas and I eat my hamburgers without a bun. Actually I like it better. Those empty carbs of the air bun did nothing for my waist line.

It sounds hard, but make it a game and you be smarter than the task. I'm telling you once again lettuce wraps are the bomb. I grate carrots, cucumber, chicken slices and diced avocado. I love mine wrapped in romaine lettuce, I think it makes a nice taco type holder. I love Thai peanut sauce on mine for that spiciness.

If you get stuck, drop me a line. I love to cook and if you tell me what you have in the fridge, I am really good at figuring out what's for dinner.

Oh and those wraps require napkins! LOL Since you have kids, they will really love making them all by themselves.

Don't drive yourself crazy - the stress of it will be worse than any diet change will be good.

Do what you can at the pace that you can.

In general, yeah, the healthiest diet you can create for yourself will go a looong way in getting better, but I hear you on the cost thing - it's so incredibly expensive! There are little tricks here and there - farmers markets, buying fresh in season and freezing things, buying whole chickens and cutting them in pieces instead of buying the more expensive packaged chicken breast, etc.

JessicaMommy said...
Why should I avoid the dirty dozen?

Maybe I should start making smoothies in a the AM with frozen fruit. Not sure what wholesale club is, so guessing we don't have it in Canada.

As Dr. Weil says in the link I provided:

"the pesticides used on many crops remain a major health concern. By choosing organic foods, you can reap the health benefits of fruits and vegetables without exposing yourself and your family to potentially harmful chemicals. Pesticides present real health risks, particularly to children and those with health concerns. The toxicity most commonly associated with pesticides in animal studies include disruptions in the normal functioning of the nervous and endocrine system, and increased risks of cancer."

The Dirty Dozen are the 12 produce items most heavily laden with pesticides.

The Clean Fifteen are the 12 produce items for which minimal/no pesticides are used.

The wholesale clubs in my area are BJ's and Costco. I just Googled Costco and there are locations in Canada.

BJ's is closer to me and they sell some awesome organic fruit mixes....one is mixed berry and the other is tropical fruit. I use them in my daily lunchtime smoothie along with organic whey protein, organic milk (my local grocery store is cheaper than BJ's on this), organic chia seeds and organic coconut oil (the latter 2 I get at BJ's) and 1/2 banana (that I don't worry about being organic since bananas are on the clean fifteen list).

JessicaMommy said...
CD- just read the link you posted - so the dirty dozen has the highest pesticide load and should be bought organically? I can't afford that. :( I want to eat from the dirty dozen but now I feel like I'm poisoning myself if I do - geeze ..

We were typing at the same time.

I think most people have financial issues with organic produce. I know I do.

As I said from the get-go....we do the best we can with what we have.

I found the wholesale club price on frozen organic vegetables to be less expensive than buying boxed frozen vegetables at the grocery store. Same deal with the fruit.

Admittedly, the wholesale club selections are high volume (3 lb bags is not uncommon) and the selections are limited.

Still, I'm able to buy the following frozen organic item at the wholesale clug: broccoli, peas, corn, french fries (yes lol), chopped spinach (great in eggs) and mixed vegetables....as well as those fruit mixes I already mentioned.

And, I'm also able to save money and buy the following fresh organic items from the wholesale club: salad mixes, spinach, carrots, 3-4 different types of apples.

There might be a few others but this is what I can remember right now lol

I've read that the next best thing to buying organic is to buy at local farmer's markets. Local farmers don't use anywhere near the amount of pesticides that commercial growers do....if at all. And, I'm sure you recognize that the fresher the produce, the higher the nutrient content - that's why frozen is optimal, too.

Please don't stress about this....you just want to get headed in the right direction. It's really best to make small, liveable changes.

Post Edited (cd3764) : 8/27/2015 9:03:11 AM (GMT-6)

Some of the fruits and veggies that we end up buying non-organic can be made "less toxic" to a point by washing the thoroughly with half water and half apple cider vinegar. I live in a very rural area and organic produce is only available from the health food stores, and I'm simply not rich enough to only eat the products I'd buy at the health food store!! I mean, I'd love to for many reasons, but reality keeps me from even attempting it - or I'd have to go without eating at least half the week!!

So as has been stated, do your best, but don't stress over it. When I was healing from these infections, I wasn't gluten free or dairy free (although I did solely use raw goat milk products). We can only do what we can, and to worry about what we can't do surely won't help us heal.

If you just keep trying new things that you can afford that will help you heal, that's what's important - and when you are fixing meals for a family, it's not really practical for the sick person to be making several separate meals for themselves on top of what they fix for the rest of the family. Not to mention the way it makes them feel!! I know because even though there are only my hubby and I that I fix meals for, I can no longer eat many of the things I still cook for him because I have developed a soy allergy!!

Just remember to do your best and don't stress!

Note that gluten free does not mean organic. We have given up bread. For carbs we eat white rice from California (low in arsenic), organic soba noodles, organic white and sweet potatoes.

If you investigate the paleo diet (there are lots of recipes on stalkerville) you will find lots of grain free ideas:

http://stalkerville.net/

Pesticides do so much damage to our beneficial gut bacteria, and therefore to our immune response. Please take the time to read some of these articles by Stephanie Seneff:

http://people.csail.mit.edu/seneff/

Seneff actually thinks that glyphosate is causing the upsurge in celiac and gluten intolerance. Even low level inflammation in the gut, but not full blown celiac, can adversely impact immune response.

http://www.mdpi.com/1099-4300/15/4/1416

"Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup®, is the most popular herbicide used worldwide. The industry asserts it is minimally toxic to humans, but here we argue otherwise. Residues are found in the main foods of the Western diet, comprised primarily of sugar, corn, soy and wheat. Glyphosate's inhibition of cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes is an overlooked component of its toxicity to mammals. CYP enzymes play crucial roles in biology, one of which is to detoxify xenobiotics. Thus, glyphosate enhances the damaging effects of other food borne chemical residues and environmental toxins. Negative impact on the body is insidious and manifests slowly over time as inflammation damages cellular systems throughout the body. Here, we show how interference with CYP enzymes acts synergistically with disruption of the biosynthesis of aromatic amino acids by gut bacteria, as well as impairment in serum sulfate transport. Consequences are most of the diseases and conditions associated with a Western diet, which include gastrointestinal disorders, obesity, diabetes, heart disease, depression, autism, infertility, cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. We explain the documented effects of glyphosate and its ability to induce disease, and we show that glyphosate is the “textbook example” of exogenous semiotic entropy: the disruption of homeostasis by environmental toxins."

http://www.agriculture.gov.sk.ca/Default.aspx?DN=d9acb467-df4a-4f2c-acf4-c358055cc207

GMOs are sprayed liberally with glyphosate, and all conventional mass produced grains and legumes are sprayed with pesticides to enhance desiccation before harvest. When these grains/legumes are eaten, you are literally dosing your beneficial gut bacteria with an antibiotic. The same goes for animals raised in feed lot operations and fed these conventional grains/legumes. Pesticides are stored in the fat and tissue and we end up consuming those pesticides when we eat.

Besides acting as an antibiotic, glyphosate also acts as a chelator. Grabbing onto minerals in food and rendering it unavailable for use in the body. Little wonder so many of us have mineral depletion and have to supplement magnesium, zinc etc.

In my opinion, we need to ensure anything made with any grain or legume is organic.

Our health and the health of our immune systems is being destroyed by the pesticides used in large monocrop farms.

More and more small farmers are becoming organic, and lots of organic produce can now be found at farmers markets, grocery stores and can be grown in your own back yard.

If we don't start looking after ourselves and voting for organic produce/meat with our pocket books, we are going to be in big trouble.

Please google "Mercola glyphosate" and start reading.

It is such a bummer that organic is so much more expensive. Yes Costco and trader joes offer so many organic options.
We were gluten free for almost two years. I have recently introduced some organic sprouted wheat bread which has been ok.
Now that my daughter has eaten gluten free for almost 2 years, she naturally chooses not to eat gluten. Like the hamburger without the bum:)
Lucky to live in California hippy like town lots of organic.

For many though, the best way isn't to "take the plunge" and dive into it full force - but to gradually add in/replace things in your diet with gluten free and organic items.

And don't forget that you can visit farmers markets, find places that still do gleaning, go to "You Pick" places, go to farmers markets and buy or raise say tomatoes - and can them!! I even used a food dehydrator to dry tomatoes and then grind them up into a powder for use instead of tomato paste - or you can only partially dry them for use as "sun dried" tomatoes.

I grew my own green beans this year too - and blanched and froze them because I didn't want to mess with pressure canning this year. It's been only one step at a time for me to introduce these changes - partly because of the availability of organics in my area (almost none) and partly because of trying to be careful to not over do since I'm still healing from adrenal fatigue.

Some farmers do community supported agriculture, which can be cheaper. I do get tired of the organic label jacking up the price of things. Once salmon became a "health food", it went way up in cost. We used to get wild salmon for under $10.

You can grow your own and if you don't have the energy to do the work, try an Earth Box planter, which is a self watering container. It cuts down on the work a lot. There's another brand that I believe is a little cheaper. Grow Box might be the name. I didn't care for the planter being 2 pieces. The castors on the EB caused the pot to crack in that area, but they did replace it. I wouldn't put the castors on again unless they improved that part of the pot. We made a wheeled platform for ours. earthbox.com www.agardenpatch.com/ There are also videos on making your own for less money. I grow 6 pepper plants in mine so I can place them in the sunniest areas, with no mole damage or deer eating them.

Good post rowingmom

Thank you everyone! Lot's of good information to go through. I booked marked this thread and will go through it when I have some time to myself - I may have more questions on the subjects as I read through. Thank you again for all the good info!