New SAT Writing and Language Practice Test 28

The Hype of Healthier Organic Food

Some people buy organic food because they believe organically grown crops are more nutritious and safer for consumption than Q1the people who purchase their conventionally grown counterparts, which are usually produced with pesticides and synthetic fertilizers. In the name of health, Q2spending $1.60 for every dollar they would have spent on food that is Q3grown in a manner that is considered conventional. Scientific evidence, Q4therefore, suggests that consumers do not reap significant benefits, in terms of either nutritional value or safety, from organic food.

Although advocates of organic food Q5preserve that organic produce is healthier than conventionally grown produce because it has more vitamins and minerals, this assertion is not supported by scientific research. Q6For instance, one review published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition provided analysis of the results of comparative studies conducted over a span of 50 years; researchers consistently found no evidence that organic crops are more nutritious than conventionally grown ones in terms of their vitamin and mineral content. Q7 Similarly, Stanford University researchers who examined almost 250 studies comparing the nutritional content of different kinds of organic foods with that of their nonorganic counterparts found very little difference between the two.

Evidence also undermines the claim that organic food is safer to eat. While researchers have found lower levels of pesticide residue in organic produce than in nonorganic produce, the pesticide residue detected in conventional produce falls within acceptable safety limits. According to such organizations as the US Environmental Protection Agency, the minute amounts of residue falling within such limits Q8have no negative impact on human health. Q9

Based on scientific evidence, organic food offers neither significant nutritional nor safety benefits for consumers. Proponents of organic food, of course, are quick to add that Q10their are numerous other reasons to buy organic Q11food, such as, a desire to protect the environment from potentially damaging pesticides or a preference for the taste of organically grown foods. Research regarding these issues is less conclusive than the findings regarding nutritional content and pesticide residue safety limits. What is clear, though, is this: if a consumer s goal is to buy the healthiest and safest food to eat, the increased cost of organic food is a waste of money.