January 12, 2006

Some parents will be concerned about the amount of pesticides that make their way into their children’s bodies from their diets, and may opt for more organic produce as a result. In a recent study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, researchers in the US assessed whether a switch to organic food makes any appreciable difference in the levels of pesticide residues in children.

Urine samples of 23 children were tested for the presence of the residues of two common pesticides of the organophosphate type (malathion and chlorpyrifos) over a 15-day period. For the first three and final seven days of the testing period, children ate their normal diet. During the five days in between, children’s normal diets were mostly substituted for organic foods.

The researches found that during the five days when the children were eating a mainly organic, diet, levels of the residues of the two pesticides tested fell from significant to non-detectable levels. Levels were found to rise immediately again on the reintroduction of the conventional diet. The authors of this study concluded that eating an organic diet led to dramatic and immediate protection from pesticide exposure and is likely to have health benefits in the long term. n — Dawn / Observer Service

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