Brittany+and+Jarod

__What are the health benefits of eating organic vegetables vs. non-organic vegetables?__

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According to some studies, organic plant have more phosphorus. Regularly grown crops had higher nitrogen. There wasn't much difference in levels of vitamin C, phenolic compounds, magnesium, calcium, potassium, zinc, total soluble solids (mostly sugar),and copper. However, another study published by The Organic Center that found that phenolics, vitamin C, quercetin, and antioxidants were higher in organic food. ======

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-Phosphorus is needed for bone and teeth formation. Phosphorus helps digest riboflavin and niacin, helps with the transmission of nerve impulses, helps your kidneys excrete wastes properly, gives you a good amount of energy, and may help prevent cancer. Phosphorus provides our bodies with phosphate, which helps create and manage energy, synthesize protein, fat and carbohydrates, contract muscles, and maintain the body's fluid and electrolyte balance. Not getting enough phosphorus can lead to health problems such as: anxiety, bone problems, fatigue, irregular breathing, irritability, numbness, skin sensitivity, stress, teeth weakness, tremors, weakness, worry, and weight changes. You can also get malaise, stiff joints, and bone pain. It may cause glucose intolerance, irregular heartbeat and difficulty breathing. Lack of phosphorus results in bone loss just as calcium deficiency does. ======

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-You need Vitamin C for the growth and repair of tissues. It is necessary to form collagen, an important protein used to make skin, scar tissue, tendons, ligaments, and blood vessels. Vitamin C is essential for the healing of wounds, and for the repair of cartilage, bones, and teeth. Calcium is an antioxidants, which are nutrients that block damage caused by by-products when our bodies change food into energy. The build up of these by-products is largely responsible for the aging process and can contribute to various health conditions such as cancer, heart disease, and many of inflammatory conditions like arthritis. Antioxidants also help reduce the damage to the body caused by toxic chemicals and pollutants such as cigarette smoke. ======

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When a plant is being eaten by an insect, it produces antioxidants. When pesticides are used the plants don't need to protect themselves as much, so there is less antioxidants in foods that aren't organically grown. In a study done there was a 58.5 percent increase of antioxidants in corn grown organically, organic marionberries had 50 percent more antioxidants, and organic strawberries had 19 percent more. ======

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Pesticides can be dangerous. They have shown to cause damage to the nervous system, some organs, developmental and behavioral abnormalities, disruption of hermone funtion, immune dysfunction, and cause harmful neurological effects. Pesticides accumulate in the fat deposits in the body where they can remain for a long time and continue to effect our health. According to the Food Standards Agency there is no health benefits to organic food, however they didn't look at the pesticide residue or the environmental implications of organic food. After looking at 160 studies occurring over 50 years, researchers also found that there were no health benefits to organically grown food. ======

"Organic food has no added nutritional benefit, says Food Standards Agency - Telegraph." //Telegraph.co.uk: news, business, sport, the Daily Telegraph newspaper, Sunday Telegraph - Telegraph//. Web. 04 Feb. 2010. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/5932100/Organic-food-has-no-added-nutritional-benefit-says-Food-Standards-Agency.html. "The Dangers of Pesticides to Humans." //Organic food, skincare and natural product directory for consumers - PureZing!// Web. 04 Feb. 2010. [].

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Environmental Health Perspectives, Oct. 2009. Web. 22 Jan. 2010. [[[] 9b6a40029883%40sessionmgr13&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=8gh&AN=44707564#db=8gh&AN=44707564#db=8gh&AN=44707564#db=8gh&AN=44707564|]]. ======