Pesticides and herbicides are sprayed on or added to food crops each year. There is a growing concern that in addition to these pesticides directly causing cancers, exposure to these chemicals through food consumptions damages your body’s detoxification mechanisms, thereby increasing your risk of getting cancer and other diseases.

Some pesticides can act like the hormone estrogen, thus being one suspect of the growing epidemic of estrogen-related health problems, including breast cancer. Some evidence also suggests that these chemicals increase the risk of developing lymphomas, leukemia, and pancreatic cancer as well as playing a role in low sperm counts and reduced fertility in men.

Avoiding pesticides is especially important for preschool-aged children. Why? They eat more food relative to their body mass and they consume more foods higher in pesticide residues such as juices, fresh fruits and vegetables. A recent study that analyzed levels of breakdown products of organo-phosphorus pesticides (a class of insecticides that disrupt the nervous system) in the urine of thirty-nine urban and suburban children 2 to 4 years of age found that concentrations of pesticide metabolites were one sixth as high in children who ate organic fruits and vegetables as those eating conventional produce. After this study parents of small children were warned to limit or avoid conventionally grown foods known to have high residues, such as cantaloupes, green beans (including canned and frozen), pears, strawberries, Mexican-grown tomatoes and winter squash and apples.

Next time you buy groceries think about your health and wellness. Look for organic products. Here is the database to find certified organic farmers in New Brunswick: www.acornorganic.org/pages/databaseregional.html

Our next blogg: our recommendations for avoiding pesticides in your diet.

Disclaimer: This information is for educational purposes and is not meant to diagnose or treat illness. The author, publishers cannot accept responsibility for loss or damage suffered by individuals as a result of following advice in this article.

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For more information on nutritional planning or complete nutritional assessments contact:

CJM LeBlanc HealthWorks, Centreville Mall, 121-342 Main Street, Shediac, N.B. E4P 2E7, tel: (506)533-8885, fax: 532-8644, e-mail: charlotteleb@rogers.com, web site: http://www.wellness-healthworks.com/