To organic or not to organic
The world is a different place today, isn’t it?
I’m all for it, true. I believe in recycling and am fairly rabid about it, I use green cleaners, I buy and eat healthy foods, I shop locally whenever I can.
But sometimes it makes me crazy. The good stuff that you’re supposed to do, or that you want to do, just ain’t cheap. I want to buy the kind of food that’s going to be the healthiest — for Devin especially. I search the labels on everything I put in the cart. He gets the low-sugar yogurt, I check the fiber in cereals, I try to steer away from things like fruit snacks (although I cave occasionally).
I haven’t hopped fully on the organic bandwagon just yet. I’ve wanted to. I’ve bought quite a few organic items, sure. But the prices just kill me sometimes. It’s hard enough to walk out of Meijer without spending at least $100. So I’ve eyed the organic apples, strawberries, grapes and the like. But I’ve continued purchasing the regular ones. With plenty of guilt.
I don’t want to obsess about it. I grew up eating all of the crap that’s banned from our household these days. Plenty of processed stuff. Velveeta. Cheez-whiz. Ho-Hos. Twinkies. Butternut white bread. Sugar Smacks. Frosted Flakes. Creme puffs. Kraft spaghetti and macaroni and cheese. Each and every one. And I’ve survived up to this point.
But I wouldn’t eat most of that stuff today. (Although I do indeed crave creme puffs from time to time.) And I don’t want Devin eating most of it. So I sprang for the organic apples this time around. They sure are pretty!
Oh come on, who doesn’t crave Mac and Cheese or Frosted Flakes every once in a while? 😉 Plastic cheese and twinkies not so much. But seriously, here is a good blog I read… momgogreen.com A friend of a friend who lives out in SF – she does lots of research and makes daily-ish suggestions on how you can be more green as a parent (and as your own self). Its got some good info in it. Especially about those darn aluminum free deoderants that don’t really work worth a darn. She claims she’s found a good one. I’ve yet to find it in the store!
I saw a great list somewhere when I was pregnant about which fruits and vegetables were most contaminated by pesticides, and which were the least . The idea was that if you couldn’t afford to buy everything organic, you’d at least know which foods were worth the extra money. Strawberries, for example, are LOADED with pesticides, so I always buy those organic. I believe peppers were high on the list, too, but I have a hard time finding organic peppers anywhere. I’ll see if I can dig up the list for you.
Here it is: http://www.foodnews.org/walletguide.php
Don’t waste your money on organic mangoes and onions. 🙂
http://green.msn.com/galleries/photos/photos.aspx?gid=164>1=10931
Yet another link that lists the top 12 to buy organic and why.
beef, milk, coffee beans, peaches, apples, sweet bell peppers, celery, strawberries, lettuces, grapes, potatoes, tomatoes