Why Become Organic? - Benefits of organic food
Organic Foods benefits the environment, the producers or farmers and the consumers.
Extolling the virtues of organic food has largely been through ‘word –of –mouth’, although attempts have been made by the media and by the proponents or advocates of organic food.
There are compelling reasons to become an organic food convert. Most health experts claim that organic food is natural and pure, highly nutritious, has a superior taste and is entirely safe. It lays claim to several health benefits, as it has copious amounts vitamin C that the conventional food cannot lay claim to. Raw organic food is also known to cleanse the blood stream by eliminating toxic wastes. Besides, organic food farming is known to be entirely environment friendly.
A.Organic food is Environment- friendly
The long- term effects of soil contamination are likely to be disastrous to the future generations. Today’s mantra of – ‘destroy all, consume all’ means there is unlikely to be a living planet, as we have known it for millions of years. The large-scale production and usage of organic food will definitely go a long way in sustaining and preserving the ecological balance of our bio-system.
The short- term benefits of organic food include the following:
- Local wildlife is not harmed.
- The ground water and soil is not contaminated.
- The diversity of the ecosystem is preserved
- Less energy is consumed during farming
- Waste production is minimized.
- The environment is free from pollution.
B. Organic food is Farmer- friendly:
Constant exposure to chemicals such as, organophosphate pesticides and fertilizers can be detrimental to the health of farmers leading to a wide variety of serious health conditions.
The gastrointestinal system, eye, skin, respiratory and the nervous system can be affected. Continuous exposure also increases the incidence of congenital birth defects, depression, miscarriages and cancer.
C. Organic food is Consumer- friendly:
A diet comprising of non-organic food exposes the consumer, particularly infants and small children, to pesticides. A study conducted on school children fed on conventional food revealed that they exhibited alarming levels of pesticides in the blood, which drastically reduced when the children were put on an organic diet. Pesticides act as mutagens, which increase the risk of cancer and other serious medical condition.
