Organic food and impact on human health: Assessing the status quo and prospects of research (original) (raw)
Related papers
2015
In this report, we try to approach the question “Is organic food healthier than conventional food?” from a scientific perspective. We can conclude that science does not provide a clear answer to this question. A small number of animal studies and epidemiological studies on health effects from the consumption of organic vs. conventional feed/food have been performed. These studies indicate that the production system of the food has some influence on the immune system of the consuming animal or human. However, such effects are not easily interpreted as positive or negative for health. The chemical composition of plants is affected by the production system; however, the relevance for human health is unclear, and when one focuses on single compounds such as vitamins, the picture is diffuse with small differences between production systems but large variations between studies. The composition of dairy products is definitely influenced by the organic vs. conventional husbandry systems due...
The Influence of Organic and Conventional Food on Human Health
Food and Nutrition Sciences, 2021
Organic food offers immense benefits to consumers as it contains a higher content of nutrients and antioxidants. The benefits of organic food over conventional products have been demonstrated by in-vitro experiments, whereby statistical analysis has shown that both types of food can have equivalent benefits. One of the important disadvantages of conventional food is that it contains heavy metals and also does not contribute toward prevention of cancer in consumers. It is not clear yet if consuming organic food combats obesity; we have attempted to gather some literature to clarify this aspect as well.
Human health implications of organic food and organic agriculture: a comprehensive review
Environmental health : a global access science source, 2017
This review summarises existing evidence on the impact of organic food on human health. It compares organic vs. conventional food production with respect to parameters important to human health and discusses the potential impact of organic management practices with an emphasis on EU conditions. Organic food consumption may reduce the risk of allergic disease and of overweight and obesity, but the evidence is not conclusive due to likely residual confounding, as consumers of organic food tend to have healthier lifestyles overall. However, animal experiments suggest that identically composed feed from organic or conventional production impacts in different ways on growth and development. In organic agriculture, the use of pesticides is restricted, while residues in conventional fruits and vegetables constitute the main source of human pesticide exposures. Epidemiological studies have reported adverse effects of certain pesticides on children's cognitive development at current leve...
Organic Food and Health: A Systematic Review
The current knowledge regarding effects of organic food on health is unclear. In this study we have focused to yield a consolidated knowledge on health related aspects of organic food. We searched for the MeSH term " organic food " in Pubmed search engine (other terms used for search are: Organic food-18296 articles, organic food and health-4018 articles). Studies done on organic food, related to health, free full papers available in English were included for review. From the total of 2,215 articles, 1805 were excluded due to studies which were not related to organic food, studies without abstracts. Out of remaining 410 studies, 338 studies were excluded due to non-availability of full studies. Finally, 32 studies were selected after removal of articles not related to health. Out of 38 studies included, 9 studies focused on humans, in which 3 studies showed decreased pesticide content, 6 studies showed decreased risk of pre-eclampsia, hypospadias, cardiovascular diseases, etc. 14 studies focused on nutritional quality which showed increased lutein, PUFA and n-3 PUFA, antioxidants, analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties, etc. A total 9 studies focused on microbiological aspects which showed increased prevalence of microbial contamination, increased antibiotic susceptibility, etc. From the available studies, the effect of organic food on health is not convincing enough to recommend widely. More follow-up studies on humans, with large sample size might possibly enlighten the concept of organic food and its effect on health in future.
Organic food quality and impact on human health
During the last decades consumers" trust in food quality and safety has drastically decreased, mainly due to several food scandals and growing ecological awareness. Consumers have started to look for safer foods, produced in environmentally friendly, authentic and local systems. Organically produced foods are believed to satisfy these demands. Organic crops contain less nitrates and pesticide residues, but more dry matter, vitamin C, phenolic compounds, essential amino acids and sugars than conventional ones. Organically produced milk contains usually more dry matter, fat, calcium, selected vitamins and beneficial conjugated linoleic acids (CLA) compared to conventional milk from high input systems. Meat from organically raised cattle, pigs and sheep was found to contain less total fats and saturated fatty acids but higher content of unsaturated fatty acids and better n-6/n-3 fatty acid ratio. The health effects of organic vs. conventional foods have been investigated in severa...
Organic Foods: Health and Environmental Advantages and Disadvantages
PEDIATRICS, 2012
Organic Trade Association. Organic products are now sold in specialty stores and conventional supermarkets. Organic products contain numerous marketing claims and terms, only some of which are standardized and regulated. In terms of health advantages, organic diets have been convincingly demonstrated to expose consumers to fewer pesticides associated with human disease. Organic farming has been demonstrated to have less environmental impact than conventional approaches. However, current evidence does not support any meaningful nutritional benefits or deficits from eating organic compared with conventionally grown foods, and there are no well-powered human studies that directly demonstrate health benefits or disease protection as a result of consuming an organic diet. Studies also have not demonstrated any detrimental or disease-promoting effects from an organic diet. Although organic foods regularly command a significant price premium, well-designed farming studies demonstrate that costs can be competitive and yields comparable to those of conventional farming techniques. Pediatricians should incorporate this evidence when discussing the health and environmental impact of organic foods and organic farming while continuing to encourage all patients and their families to attain optimal nutrition and dietary variety consistent with the US Department of Agriculture' s MyPlate recommendations. This clinical report reviews the health and environmental issues related to organic food production and consumption. It defines the term "organic," reviews organic food-labeling standards, describes organic and conventional farming practices, and explores the cost and environmental implications of organic production techniques. It examines the evidence available on nutritional quality and production contaminants in conventionally produced and organic foods. Finally, this report provides guidance for pediatricians to assist them in advising their patients regarding organic and conventionally produced food choices.
Contribution of Organically Grown Crops to Human Health
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2014
An increasing interest in organic agriculture for food production is seen throughout the world and one key reason for this interest is the assumption that organic food consumption is beneficial to public health. The present paper focuses on the background of organic agriculture, important public health related compounds from crop food and variations in the amount of health related compounds in crops. In addition, influence of organic farming on health related compounds, on pesticide residues and heavy metals in crops, and relations between organic food and health biomarkers as well as in vitro studies are also the focus of the present paper. Nutritionally beneficial compounds of highest relevance for public health were micronutrients, especially Fe and Zn, and bioactive compounds such as carotenoids (including pro-vitamin A compounds), tocopherols (including vitamin E) and phenolic compounds. Extremely large variations in the contents of these compounds were seen, depending on genotype, climate, environment, farming conditions, harvest time, and part of the crop. Highest amounts seen were related to the choice of genotype and were also increased by genetic modification of the crop. Organic cultivation did not influence the content of most of the nutritional beneficial compounds, except the phenolic compounds that were increased with the amounts of pathogens. However, higher amounts of pesticide residues and in many cases also of heavy metals were seen in the conventionally produced crops compared to the organic ones.
Organic agriculture: does it enhance or reduce the nutritional value of plant foods?
Journal of the Science of Food and …, 2001
The possible differences between organic and conventional plant products are examined from the view of possible effects on human health. It is concluded that nutritionally important differences relating to contents of minerals, vitamins, proteins and carbohydrates are not likely, primarily since none of these are de®cient in typical First World diets, nor are present levels of pesticide residues in conventional products a cause for concern. However, there is reason to believe that contents of many defence-related secondary metabolites in the diet are lower than optimal for human health, even for those where too high levels are known to be harmful. High biological activity resulting in adverse effects on growth of animals and children may be directly linked with promotion of longevity. There is ample, but circumstantial, evidence that, on average, organic vegetables and fruits most likely contain more of these compounds than conventional ones, allowing for the possibility that organic plant foods may in fact bene®t human health more than corresponding conventional ones. The authors de®ne testable scienti®c hypotheses which should be further investigated to provide more de®nitive answers to the question.
Organic Food in the Diet: Exposure and Health Implications
Annual Review of Public Health, 2017
The market for organic food products is growing rapidly worldwide. Such foods meet certified organic standards for production, handling, processing, and marketing. Most notably, the use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and genetic modification is not allowed. One major reason for the increased demand is the perception that organic food is more environmentally friendly and healthier than conventionally produced food. This review provides an update on market data and consumer preferences for organic food and summarizes the scientific evidence for compositional differences and health benefits of organic compared with conventionally produced food. Studies indicate some differences in favor of organic food, including indications of beneficial health effects. Organic foods convey lower pesticide residue exposure than do conventionally produced foods, but the impact of this on human health is not clear. Comparisons are complicated by organic food consumption being strongly correlated ...