Does Organic Really Matter?

Does organic really matter? Should it be something we think about when feeding our bodies, with what we put on our skin, with the household products we're using? Today I want to start this conversation with you and, hopefully, provide you some insight and information that will help you answer this question for yourself. And of course, present this controversial subject in a non-obsessive manner that will help to encourage you, and not stress you out.You've no doubt heard the rage of all things organic lately. But with all the hype there's also a lot of fear that is used to stress the need to go 100% organic. So, as with everything I talk about here on the blog, let's try to find that happy middle ground when it comes to organic.

What does it mean when something is labeled "organic". When something is labeled or certified as organic, it has gone through a process of regulation that involves no use of pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, sewage sludge, genetically modified organisms (GMOs), or ionizing radiation as well as animals who aren't given growth hormones or antibiotics.Why is there a differentiation between organic versus inorganic? Quite frankly there's a difference with food being organic or inorganic because there's a difference in how farms are run. It's easier for some to produce mass amounts of crops and provide a large quantity of meat with conventional inorganic farming.

With inorganic production, the farmer can more easily provide a "healthy" looking crop because pesticides keep bugs and animals from eating from the produce. With animal farming, the use of growth hormones and antibiotics helps to ensure the health of the animals despite them being in such small, confined areas as well as growth hormones to produce more meat & fat. More meat on an animal = more to sell = more money for farmer. Not to mention there's a bit of government help for those who do conventional farming.

But we know that there's a definite crisis with how antibiotics are used as well as what hormones can do to our bodies. Antibiotics are wonderful when used to treat very specific infections such as a strep throat to prevent rheumatic fever. But when used regularly and with wide-spectrum ones, resistance can occur in our bodies which messes with our innate immune system. And exogenous hormones (those not made by our own bodies) can disrupt our naturally produced hormones leading to hormone dysregulation.

My intent with sharing all of this with you is by no means to scare you or stress you out, just to inform you. But we have to be informed of the origin of things we're putting in our bodies. This was something I never would of thought about caring about in the past. For me, health meant low calorie, low fat, and low carb everything. But what has come with learning my body and learning what true health is, quality of food and products just naturally begins to matter.Some people hear the things above about pesticides and hormones and all the crap in conventional food and freak out, stressing about any morsel of food that gets in their body that's not organic or anything they put on their skin that may be "toxic". But here's where that "gray space" comes into play. Just like you can trust your body and your natural weight, your set point, to help you calm down with eating a slice of chocolate cake here and there, you can trust your body to do what it needs to do to detoxify itself and still function healthily while eating conventional food and putting non-organic products on your skin. Going out to a restaurant and eating a hamburger made from conventionally farmed ground beef is not going to put you over the edge to no longer being healthy just like eating everything that has an organic label doesn't make you healthy.

The gray space, that happy medium that I talked about right at the beginning, is a place where you feel at peace with all foods and with your body with that being your driving factor of how you care for your body. For me, since learning about some of the things above, I've chosen to try and eat organic and grass fed animal products and organic produce as often as I can at home. It's something that I feel good about spending a little extra money on and, honestly, budgeting and planning for each month. I've also tried to "clean up" some of my personal products and home products because of this knowledge and the desire to care for my body in that way. Does it mean that I never eat an inorganic apple or use drugstore mascara? No. And I don't freak out about it. Because, again, our bodies are darn smart! And they can handle a bit here and there.

I can't talk about organic food and products without mentioning that the unfortunate thing is organic does oftentimes come with a higher price and not everyone can afford to eat and use everything organic. Again, you're no better a person for choosing organic and just because you don't doesn't make you unhealthy.Here's what I hope you'll take away from this post. I hope you'll desire to think through what products you buy and the foods that you choose at the grocery store as an informed consumer. I hope your decision for organic vs. inorganic will be one made out of love for your body. I also hope that knowledge will be your power, not your weakness. 

I'd love to hear from you! What's your experience with shopping organic? Is it something you do? Have you thought about it? If so where's your heart at with it?