If it Moos, then go ORGANIC

I think it is most important to go organic when buying your meat and dairy products. All of your creamy treats like cheese, yogurt, ice cream, and of course milk should come from hormone and antibiotic free cows. And of course the cows themselves, as well as all other animals should also be free of these contaminants.

Why? Well here's what I found:

1. American dairy farmers inject rBGH to dairy cows to increase milk production. While European nations and Canada have banned rBGH to protect citizens from these hazards.

(Taken from www.babyorganic.com)
Scientific research confirms that antibiotics fed to farm animals are creating antibiotic pathogens that are passed on to those who eat the animal products.

In 1994, the FDA approved the sale of genetically engineered recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone (rBGH). When injected into dairy cows, rBGH forces cows to produce more milk. Cows injected with rBGH produce milk with significantly higher levels of a potent chemical hormone called IGF-1. Scientists warn that elevated levels of IGF-1 could pose serious hazards for humans, including breast, prostate, and colon cancer.

Yikes! That's enough to scare me off of non-organic meat and dairy.

Pros to Eating Organic Foods

The most obvious reason to why we should buy organic foods is to avoid pesticides, antibiotics and hormones that have been sprayed on or pumped into our food system. But what's the big deal? Our bodies can handle a few measley chemicals, can't they? Well, it depends on where you stand on long term illness. If it is something you never think about, then think about this. It can take up to thirty years for diseases like cancer to manifest into a diagnosable form from its beginning stages. To date there are no studies that will link pesticides to disease (says the article in the March issue of Time Magazine written by John Cloud). However, it is no secret that these chemicals cause damage on a cellular level. It also is known that after many years of this kind of damage all sorts of malfunctions can occur.

So to do our best in avoiding as much damage to our bodies that we can control, then eating organically is a step in the right direction!

Eat Organic, Eat Local, I'm so Confused......

Do you ever look down at your plate and wonder where your food actually comes from? My guess is that most of us don't. Perpetual dieters may be guessing how many points, calories, or grams of fat there are on their plate. Those "foodies" out there may be wondering how the chef prepared the meal and which wine goes best with it. I even have a friend who is concerned if the cow she is eating was killed in a "humane" way or not. Is that even possible? Then of course there are those of us who gobble down our food without a second thought of its origin before bursting the buttons on our jeans.

By now, everyone pretty much knows that organically grown foods are becoming more and more popular. Even Wal-Mart is jumping on the bandwagon and has begun offering them in stores. If you aren't yet aware however, there is a debate going on whether we should buy organic or local foods.

For the next couple of weeks I will do my best to shed some light on this debate and how we can all make better choices for ourselves and for the planet. I also invite you to add your questions and comments to make for a more exciting debate.