Our modern world with instant communication and easy transportation enabled us to eat and buy vegetables and fruits from all over the world. That often means that we do not know what we are eating. We are talking about the fertilizers, insecticides and pesticides widely used in agricultural industry to feed the fast growing humanity. We in Singapore are not exceptions. We also use dangerous chemical in fruit and vegetable production, although at least the government has strict control on what is used and how much of it. Unfortunately, some fruits and vegetables need much more chemicals to grow big, bright colored and, of course, more expensive. Knowing which ones contain more chemicals can help us avoid having them on our plate and buy vegetables that are least dangerous:

1. Sweet Bell Pepper
2. Celery
3. Lettuce
4. Spinach
5. Potatoes

This list was created in the USA by the Environmental Working Group, after 47,000 tests, so we can be pretty sure it reliable.

Pesticides are used to kill insects, fungi and plants considered weeds. They have been linked to all sorts of diseases affecting nervous system, hormone systems, skin, lung and eyes. They are also considered as being carcinogens.

All listed vegetables are highly nutritious and common part of our daily diet, and avoiding them is almost impossible. Also, how would life look like without juicy roasted peppers, or fresh lettuce, not to mention potatoes, fried, baked, pureed or whatever. The easiest solution is to eat vegetables from the ‘bad’ list and stay healthy is to buy them from organic growers. Organic producers do not use any chemicals to grow their produce. Instead, they use integrated pest management, they focus on treating soil by rotation practice and mulching, by using plants combinations and many other techniques, some of them thousands of years old.

Unfortunately, the cost of organic food is fairly higher than that of normal vegetables from the market. The reason is that organic farmer can produce only a small quantity at the time, spending much time and effort on producing each piece on our plate. Normal agricultural industry keeps prices low by producing large quantities using heavy machinery. So, to continue to eat our favorite veggies and not to completely empty our wallets, we have to be smart. The best strategy would be to eat vegetables that are organic when it comes to our absolutely favorite kind. Others we should avoid, and if we really cannot resist them, we should wash them thoroughly or peel them. Of course, pealed vegetables loose most of their nutrients, so we have to keep that in mind in our ‘contra pesticides’ strategy.

One additional piece of information can help in the strategy: there are vegetables that are found with the least pesticides, for one reason or another. They are:

1. Onion
2. Avocado
3. Frozen Sweet Corn
4. Asparagus
5. Frozen Sweet Peas

So, eat and buy vegetables, they are good for you, but be careful what you choose, and make sure you wash them. If you can afford it, buy vegetables grown by organic farmers, that way you will be sure to completely avoid eating pesticides, and you will be helping the environment as well.