The Importance of Organic Food

Organic Food

What is Organic Food?

organic vegetables

Organic food is food that has been produced as naturally as possible without the use of artificial chemicals in the forms of insecticides, weed killers and

fertilisers. This is not only in respect of plant life, but includes animal welfare. This means that organically reared animals are fed organic foodstuffs and are raised in free-range conditions.

Why is Organic Food important?

We are part of the whole web of life. Everything is dependent on everything else. While it is obvious that we need clean water and fresh air, it is perhaps not so obvious that our food needs to be as pure as possible for optimum health. Organically grown produce encourages wild life. Without abundant wild life our planet would be an impossible place for humans to survive in. For example, the destruction of Rain Forests to produce palm oil is disastrous for wild life. Look at how our UK hedgerows have been dug up to provide vast expanses for crops to produce artificially grown cereals and environmentally unfriendly crops such as the unfortunately named Rape Seed plant. This is at the expense of creatures such as birds, who rely on hedges to build nests, as places of refuge from predators and places where insects can thrive.

“The UK is at a crossroads in terms of its relationship to pesticides.

The EU’s pesticide regulations are among the strongest in the world and there is a real danger that, after Brexit, the government will choose to weaken those standards thereby increasing the exposure of the British public, including children, to potentially harmful chemicals.Crop Spraying

However, the EU’s system is imperfect and Brexit is also an opportunity toove away from the current situation where it is almost impossible to avoid pesticide residues in our food.

After Brexit, the UK government should prioritise human health and reduce the exposure of the general public, and children in particular, to pesticides.”

What will happen after Brexit?

As you can see from the above quote, although the EU is imperfect, they do impose strict controls on food safety and quality. There is a suggestion that if we leave EU regulations we could be free to ensure our food is as organically grown as possible. However at the moment I am not reassured by the thought of the present Government and its attitude to such things.

On the above site it is pointed out that the pesticide industry are not going to like the idea that food production should avoid artificial interference and will resist “Agroecology”


Hormone Disruptors

Not only are they present in many household products such as plastic and can liners, they are present in weedkillers such as glyphosate (“Round Up”) by Monsanto. Small amounts are probably not that dangerous, but these chemicals are all around us so how do we make sure we limit our exposure? The answer is to choose organic wherever possible. It has not been possible to test what the effects of the cocktail of endocrine disruptors has on the human body. We hear of the decrease in human fertility, the increase in cancer and respiratory problems

We hear that fertility counts in western men is falling and nobody knows why. Cancer rates are also increasing and nobody knows why.

Humans generally act as though there are no consequences to how we are behaving. It doesn’t take a genius to wonder if there is some connection between wantonly going against nature and what happens when we do.

If you imagine that the human is a cell in the body of a being called Earth and that cell goes rogue and starts infecting the life support systems, such as the air and water, and then creates masses of concrete structures to cover the surface (like plaque). This sounds a lot like how cancer cells operate.Cancer Cells

What is so insidious with these chemical additives is that you can’t see them. Take bread for example. You can buy a wholemeal loaf and think that this is a healthy option, but in the production of the flour the crops will have been sprayed with glyphosate more than once.

Obviously we cannot do without technology to feed a hungry world, but let us put our minds to work to avoid poisoning the population.

My osteopathic training took place at what is now known as the College of Osteopathic Medicine, but was originally called The British College of Naturopathy and Osteopathy.

Naturopathic principles say that only Nature heals and that prevention is better than cure. By this Naturopaths aim to work as closely as possible with nature for a healthy life so in my practice I always encourage patients to consume organic produce as much as possible as part of their treatment.

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