Organic Foods Contain Higher Levels of Certain … between organic and conventional farms."' This...

Environmental Medicine

Organic Foods Contain Higher Levels ofCertain Nutrients, Lower Levels of Pesticides,and May Provide Health Benefits for theConsumer

WalterJ.Crinnion, ND

WallerCrinnion, ND~

19S2graduateofBastyr

University; practice since

1982 with a special focus on

treating (hronic diseases

caused by environmental

toxit burden; conducts

post-graduate seminars in

environmental medicine;

professor and chair of the


Program, Southwest College

of Naturopathic Medicine,

Tempe, AZ; contributing

Review

Email: w.trinnioniia)scnm.edu

AbstractThe multi-billion dollar organic food industry is fueled byconsumer perception that organic food is healthier (greaternutritional value and fewer toxic chemicals). Studies of thenutrient content in organic foods vary in results due todifferences in the ground cover and maturity of the organicfarming operation. Nutrient content also varies from farmer tofarmer and year to year. However, reviews of multiple studiesshow that organic varieties do provide significantly greaterlevels of vitamin C, iron, magnesium, and phosphorus thannon-organic varieties of the same foods. While being higher inthese nutrients, they are also significantly lower in nitratesand pesticide residues. In addition, with the exception ofwheat, oats, and wine, organic foods typically provide greaterlevels of a number of important antioxidant phytochemicals(anthocyanins, flavonoids, and carotenoids). Although in vitrostudies of organic fruits and vegetables consistently demon-strate that organic foods have greater antioxidant activity, aremore potent suppressors of the mutagenic action of toxiccompounds, and inhibit the proliferation of certain cancer celllines, in vivo studies of antioxidant activity in humans havefailed to demonstrate additional benefit. Clear health benefitsfrom consuming organic dairy products have been demon-strated in regard to allergic dermatitis.fy;/fem Meí//íei/2010;15(l):4-12)

IntroductionOrganic food consumption is one of the fastest

growing segments of U.S. domestic foodstuffs.Sales of organic food and beverages grew from $1billion in 1990 to $21.1 billion in 2008 and are ontrack to reach $23 billion in 2009.' Consumersgenerally perceive tbese foods to be healthier andsafer for themselves and the environment.^'^ Aplethora of studies in the last two decades baveassessed whether organic foods have bigher levelsof vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals tbanconventionally raised foods and whether they have

fewer pesticide residues. Far fewer studies havebeen conducted to assess either the potential oractual health benefits of eating organic foods.

Factors Affecting Nutritional Contentof Produce

Determining tbe potential nutritional superior-ity of organic food is not a simple task. Numerousfactors, apart from organic versus inorganicgrowing, influence the amount of vitamins andpbytochemicals (phenols, flavonoids, carotenoids,etc.) in a crop. These factors include the weather(affecting crops year-to-year), specific environmen-tal conditions from one farm to the next (microcli-mates), soil condition, etc. Another major factornot taken into account in the published studies wasthe length of time tbe specific plots of land hadbeen worked using organic methods. Since it takesyears to build soil quality in a plot using organicmethods and for the persistent pollutants in theground to be reduced, this can significantly affecttbe outcome of comparative studies. The impor-tance of these different factors is apparent from areview of tbe recent studies examining the nutrientcontent in tomatoes.

Differences between Growers and Sou QualityOf six recent studies of nutrient content of

organic tomatoes, only one showed no significantdifferences between organic and conventionalfarms."' This study, conducted in Taiwan, did findtbat wbile there was no difference in lycopenelevels between tbe types of farms, farm manage-ment skills and site-specific effects (e.g., geograpbi-cal area and orientation to the sun) did make adifference in how much lycopene was present. ACalifornia study of four different growers in oneyear found organically raised tomatoes have

Volume 15, Number 1 Alternative Medicine Review 4


Key words; organic, pesticides,health food, nutritional value,herbicides

significantly higher levels of soluble solids andtitratable acidity but lower red color, ascorbic acid,and total phenolics.^ They also noted that differ-ences among growers reached statistical signifi-cance. The authors did not note farm managementskills as a possibility for the differences, suggestingit was due to differing soil conditions as well as thetype of tomato used.

Differences Due to the Weather Conditions fromYear-to-Year

A three year study at the University of California(UC), Davis, found significant differences inphytochemical levels of tomatoes among varietiesand from year-to-year.'' Organically raised Burbanktomatoes were found to have significantly higherlevels of ascorbic acid (26% higher) and theflavonoids quercetin (30% higher) and kaempferol(17%). But the other tomato cultivar (Ropreco),while showing 20-percent more kaempferol in theorganic variety, had a less robust overall showing.This three-year study also revealed significantdifferences in nutrient content of the tomatoesfrom year to-year within each plot. So, while thegrowing practices stayed the same, the weatherconditions from year-to-year changed the outcome.

Length of Time Using Organic MethodsAnother UC-Davis study on flavonoid content of

tomatoes (no ascorbic acid levels tested) wasconducted using dried tomatoes that had beenarchived over a 10-year period.^ The tomatoes weregrown in experimental plots as part of the Long-Term Research on Agricultural Systems (LTRANS)project. Over the decade of crop production, it wasfound that organic tomatoes averaged 79 percentmore quercetin and 97-percent more kaempferolthan the conventionally grown tomatoes.Interestingly, while the flavonoid levels in toma-toes from conventional plots stayed relativelyconstant over 10 years, those from organic plotskept increasing each year. The increase in fiavonoidlevels corresponded with increasing levels oforganic matter in the soil and the reduction ofmanure application after the plots became rich inorganic matter. It is also interesting to note that, inthe previously mentioned study,'' the plots thatprovided Burbank and Ropreco tomatoes withhigher flavonoid levels had been in organic-onlycare for 25 years prior to the beginning of thestudy, indicating the longer the soil has beenworked using organic methods, the greater thenutritional difference from conventionally grownplots. Therefore, it appears that measuring produce

from non-mature organic farms is not a validmethod of comparison of the nutrient content oforganic foods versus conventional foodstuffs.

Two other recent studies examined the differ-ence between organically and conventionally growntomatoes. The Italian study revealed that organictomatoes have more salicylates than conventionaltomatoes, but less ascorbic acid and lycopene." Thestudy specified that the tomatoes were grown indifferent parts of the same farm with sufficientdistance between the organic and non-organicplots to "prevent the drift of chemical treatments."How this was determined to be a safe distance wasnot revealed, and since chemicals have been shownto literally travel the globe, this is a questionahlestatement. The study also specified that the organicplots had been "organic" for only three years, whichmeans they were not fully mature organic farms.This could account for the difference between theseresults and those of other tomato studies. TheFrench study found results that were more consis-tent with the California studies, showing organicvarieties had higher levels of ascorbic acid, carot-enoids, and polyphenols than conventionally-raisedtomatoes.^

Understanding these factors puts studies oforganic versus conventional growing practices intobetter perspective. Without an appreciation ofthese issues, the outcome ofthe study may notaccurately reflect the true nutritional differencesbetween agricultural methods.

Vitamin and Mineral ContentSeveral reviews on nutritional differences

between organic and non-organic foods have beenpublished in the last decade.'" '' Earlier studieslooked primarily at the mineral and vitamincontent, while recent studies looked at phytochem-icals (phenols, etc.) in the foods. The research onvitamin and mineral content will be discussed here.Factors affecting variability discussed above mustbe kept in mind, something the earlier studies didnot take into account. Factoring in these variableswould presumably strengthen the findingsreviewed below.

Lairon's review'" reported that, regardingminerals, organic foods have 21-percent more ironand 29-percent more magnesium than non-organicfoods. When vitamins were studied, ascorbic acidwas the most common vitamin found in higherquantities in many organic fruits and vegetablestested. Worthington" reached much the sameconclusions, stating that four nutrients were foundin significantly higher levels in organic produce

5 Alternative Medicine Review Volume 15, Number 1


- ascorbic acid averaged 27-percent higher, iron21-percent bigber, magnesium 29-percent higher,and pbosphorus 13.6-percent bigher. BotbWorthington and Lairon reported the studies tbeyreviewed showed conventional foods were typicallyhigher in nitrates - 15 percent bigher in cotiven-tional foods according to Wortbington. Thesystematic review by Dangour'^ tbat was publishedin the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition alsoreported significantly bigber nitrate content inconventionally grown foods, although the authorschanged the term from nitrate to "nitrogencompounds." They failed to find significant differ-ences between organic and conventional foods forascorbic acid, iron, or magnesium, but did reportbigher phosphorus levels in organic produce.Unfortunately, this widely publicized review didnot include references for the 55 studies used forits conclusions, so validation of tbe findings is notpossible. For tbis reason, this article will focus onconclusions for vitamin and mineral differencesfrom the otber reviews.

Regarding nutrients the other reviews agree on,organic foods bave more vitamin C, iron, phospho-rus, and magnesium than conventional foods.Wbile tbis is an important finding, it is cast in abrighter spotlight when it is recognized that duringtbe last 50 years vitamin C, pbosphorus, iron,calcium, and riboflavin content bas heen decliningin conventional foodstuffs grown in this country.^^Since quantities of some nutrients seem to beincreasing in organic foods, organic foods appearto provide better nutrition.

Phytonutrient ContentIn the last 20 years the importance of the

phytonutrient content of foods bas been estab-lisbed. Tbese compounds, including carotenoids,flavonoids, and other polypbenols, bave been thefocus of much study, and many are now providedas dietary supplements. Flavonoid molecules arepotent antioxidants."^ '" Tbe carotenoid lycopenehas been sbown to help reduce cancer risk.'^ Theantbocyanin compounds in berries bave heenshown to improve neuronal and cognitive brainfunctions and ocular health and protect genomicDNA integrity.^" Because of the bealtb benefits ofphytonutrients, tbey have been tbe focus of muchrecent research on tbe nutritional value of organicfoods (Table 1).

Pesticide ContentWorld pesticide use exceeded 5.0 billion Ihs in

both 2000 and 2001 (total cost, $64.5 hillion) witbtbe United States accounting for 1.2 billion lbs peryear at an annual cost of $11 billion.^'' While thetotals are staggering, so too is the infinitesimalamount of those five billion pounds a year tbatactually make it to the target pest - less than 0.1percent.*" No one has accounted for where theother 99.9 percent ends up, and it is known tbesecompounds can travel thousands of miles aroundtbe globe.•"•"•' Both tbe amount of pesticide residueon foodstuff and the amount released into tbeatmosphere are factors tbat sbould he consideredwhen individuals purchase organically raised food.

Although organic farming methods prohibit theuse of synthetic pesticides, tbe produce can beexposed to chemicals already in the soil fromprevious use and from compounds tbat percolatethrough tbe soil. Except for crops grown undercover, organic farms are also subject to exposurefrom pesticide drift from neighboring farms andglohal transport of chemicals. This exposure occursfrom compounds tbat settle to tbe ground duringbotb tbe growing season and tbe off season, andexposure can continue during transport anddistribution. Tbe level of various heavy metals inorganically raised produce was higher in cropsgrown in open fields compared to the same cropsgrown in a greenhouse.'^ The researchers notedtbis was due to atmospheric contamination; rootvegetables also absorbed toxins from the soil.

While no pesticides or herbicides can he used togrow crops tbat are certified organic, tbese cropsare not free of insecticide residues, altbougbsignificantly less so than tbe same foods grovi/n bynon-organic methods (including integrated pestmanagement systems).

Levels of pesticide residue on foods in tbeUnited States are monitored through the PesticideData Program of the U.S. Department ofAgriculture (USDA). A review that utilized tbeUSDA data, along with data from ConsumersUnion and the Marketplace Surveillance Programof the California Department of PesticideRegulation, reported tbat organically raised foodsbad one-third the amount of chemical residuesfound in conventionally raised foods.''^ Wbencompared to produce grown with integrated pestmanagement techniques, tbe organic produce badone-half the amount of residue. In addition,organic foods were mucb less likely tban



Table 1. Nutrient Content of Foods; Organic versus Non-Organic^

Food

Potatoes in Czechoslovakia

Highbush blueberries in New Jersey

Strawberries, marión berries, andcorn from an organic farm in Oregon

Black currants from five conventionaland three organic farms in Finland

Syrah grapes from France

Grape juice from Brazil

Golden Delicious apples(three-year study}

Plums

Peaches and pears (three-year study;five-year-old orchards)

Red oranges from Italy

Varieties of wheat from India

Oats from Sweden

Milk

Grana Padano cheese from Italy

Nutrient{s) Tested

Ascorbic acid; chlorogenic acid (the polyphenolthat is responsible for much of the antioxidantactivity of coffee, and that has been shown toprotect paraoxonase1 activity^')

Sugars, malic acid, total phenolics, totalanthocyaninS; and antioxidant activity

Ascorbic acid and total polyphenols

Total polyphenols

Anthocyanin content

Total polyphenols; resveratrol

Total antioxidant activity (polyphenols provide 90percent of the total antioxidant activity)^^

Ascorbic acid, alpha- and gamma-tocopherol,beta-carotene; total polyphenols

Total antioxidant activity, total polyphenols,ascorbic acid

Total polyphenols, total anthocyanins, ascorbicacid, total antioxidant activity

Protein, starches, gluten

Total polyphenols

Omega-3 fatty acids (alpha-linolenicacid [ALA]and eicosapentaenoic acid}

Conjugated linoleic acid ÍCLA}, ALA

Results

Organically grown potatoes had lower levels of nitrate and higherlevels of ascorbic acid and chlorogenic acd.^^

All nutrients tested were higher in organic than conventionallygrown blueberries.^

All three foods had significantly higher amounts of ascorbic acid andtotal polyphenols than their conventionally gmwn counterparts.^^

Slight but not statistically different amounts of total polyphenolsfrom organic farms (4.73 versus 4.24 g/kg}; no information on howlong the farms had been organic.^^

Conventionally grown grapes had higher levels of anthocyanins; noinformation of history of the organic vineyards.^^

Significantly higher levels of total polyphenols and resveratrol inorganic juice.^^

Two of three years the antioxidant activity of organic apples was15-percent higher than conventional apples; no difference in thethird year. ^

Organic orchards with soil left as natural meadow, ascorbate,tocopherols, and beta-carotene were highest; in organic orchardswith Trifolium groundcover, total polyphenols were highest,although highest levels of total polyphenols were in theconventional plums.'"

Higher antioxidant, total polyphenols, and ascorbic acid in organicfruit.^1

Organic oranges had higher levels of total polyphenols, totalanthocyanins, ascorbic acid, total antioxidant activity.^^

Higher protein, more easily digestible starch, and lower gluten inthe organic wheat; no information on history of the organicfarms.^^

No significant difference between organic and non-organic;differences from year-to-year and among cultivars; no informationon history of the organic farms.^^

Organically raised dairy cattle yielded higher levels of omega-3s;^^-^ no difference in vitamins A or E.'^

Higher levels of CLA and ALA in cheese samples fromorganic milk.^^



non organic produce (by a factor of 10) to have twoor more residues. Only 2.6 percent of organic foodshad detectable multiple residues compared to 26percent of conventionally grown foods. Data fromthe Pesticide Data Program reveals conventionalproduce with the highest percentages of positive(insecticide residue) findings were: celery (96%),pears (95%), apples (94%), peaches (937o), straw-berries (91%), oranges (85%), spinach (84%),potatoes (81%), grapes (78%), and cucumbers(74%).-" The study found that an average of 82percent of conventional fruits were positive forinsecticide residues compared to 23 percent oforganic fruits. Regarding vegetables, 65 percent ofconventionally grown produce tested positive,compared to 23 percent for organic vegetables.

Fruits and vegetables with the highest andlowest percentages of residues in the USDA studyare similar to the listing of the most and least toxicfoods available on the internet through theEnvironmental Working Group (Table 2). ' Table 3lists the least toxic produce.

Table 2. The Environmental Working Group's 12 MostToxic Fruits and Vegetables (in order of toxkity)

PeachAppleBeil pepperCelery

NectarineStrawberriesCherriesKale

LettuceGrapes (imported)CarrotPear

Table 3. The Environmental Working Group's Least ToxicProduce

OnionAvocadoSweet cornPineappleMango

AsparagusSweet peasKiwiCabbageEggplant

PapayaWatermelonBroccoliTomatoSweet potato

Not only have repeated studies shown thatorganic foods have lower levels of insecticides, clearevidence also indicates reduced pesticide exposurelevels in consumers of organic foods. The reducedlevel of organophosphate pesticide (OP) on organicfoods was demonstrated by a study of Seattlepreschoolers.''^ In that study, 39 children weredivided into two groups - those whose diets wereat least 75-percent organic and those whose diets

consisted predominately of conventionally grownfoods. Children eating organic foods had a six-foldlower level of organophosphate pesticide residuesin their urine than those who ate more convention-ally. The same research group tested preschoolersbefore and after changing their diets from conven-tionally grown to organic foods. When the shiftwas made to organic diets the urinary levels ofmalathion and chlorpyrifos became undetectableuntil their conventional diets were restored. Fivedifferent OP metabolites were measured with meanlevels of 0.01, 0.2, 0.3, 4.6 and 5.1 fig/L while onconventional diets.''**

Potential Health Benefits of OrganicFoods

Since organically raised food typically has higherlevels of health promoting phytonutrients andcertain vitamins and minerals and lower levels ofinsecticide residues, one could assume that theywould provide health benefits. Unfortunately,studies looking at the potential health benefits oforganic foods are scarce, and all but one are focusedon implied health benefits. The majority of thesestudies look at antioxidant activity in humans,although some in vitro studies examined theanticancer potential of some organic food products.

AntioxJdant StudiesTwo studies examined whether drinking organic

wine provides greater protection against LDLoxidation than conventional wine. Neither study(both by the same group of researchers in the sameyear) found a difference between organic andnon-organic wine; however, red wine of eitheragricultural method provided greater inhibition ofLDL oxidation compared to white wine.'* ' °

A double-blind crossover trial of six GoldenDelicious apple consumers was conducted todetermine the difference in antioxidant activitybetween organic and non organic groups.'^' GoldenDehcious apples have some of the lowest polyphe-nol content of any apple. ' In this study there wasno difference noted in total polyphenol levelsbetween organic and conventional apples, and thusno difference in antioxidant activity. Informationon the maturity of the organic orchards was notavailable for review. As a follow-up study, fruitsfrom mature organic orchards with higher polyphe-nol content, as noted above,-^ could be used withsubsequent measurements to determine whetherhigher phenol levels would alter the antioxidantstatus in humans.


Environmentai Medicine

Another small study (n=16) was conducted withsubjects who were eating either a conventional oran organic diet. Levels of flavonoid excretion andantioxidant function were measured." Surprisingly,although tbe organic consumers bad higher levelsof urinary quercetin and kaempferol, tbey showedno difference in antioxidant activity. However,organic oranges witb bigber antioxidant contentprovide greater antioxidant protection in vitro?^

Anticancer PotentiaiIn a study of the potential for vegetables to

suppress tbe mutagenicity of various environmen-tal toxins, including benzo(a)pyrene (BaP, tbe maincarcinogen in cigarette smoke and auto exhaust),organic vegetables were more active tban theirconventional counterparts." Against the chemical4-nitroquinoline oxide, organic vegetables sup-pressed 37 93 percent of the mutagenic activity,while the commercial varieties suppressed muta-genicity by 11-65 percent. Wben measured againstBaP, organic vegetables suppressed 30-57 percentof tbe mutagenic action, wbile commercial veg-etables only suppressed 5-30 percent of tbemutagenic activity. Organic strawberries also blockproliferation of HT29 colon cancer cells and MCF-7breast cancer cells.'"'' For both cancer cell lines theextracts of organic berries were more potent inreducing cellular proliferation than conventionalstrawberries.

Essential Fatty AcidsTbe increased amounts of omega-3 and -6 fatty

acids in organic dairy were noted in Table 1. Thefatty acid content of breast milk from 312 Dutcbwomen was studied to determine whether tbisresulted in a human effect.'' CLA content wasmeasured in 186 women who ate a conventionaldiet, in 33 women who ate a moderate amount oforganic meats and dairy, and 37 women whosediets contained at least 90-percent organic meatsand dairy. Statistically significant increases (from0.25 weigbt % to 0.29 weigbt %) were found for thewomen who ate a moderately organic diet com-pared to the conventional diet, and an even greaterincrease (0.34 weigbt %) for those who ate thestrict organic diet.

Actual Health Benefits of OrganicFoods

Only one article was found that measuredwhether an organic diet makes an actual difference

in buman health. This study, by some of the sameresearchers who examined the CLA content ofbreast milk, studied whether diets containingvarying amounts of organic foods affected allergicmanifestations in 815 two-year-olds.-^'' Foodconsumption for tbe second year of life was studiedbased on conventional (<50% organic), moderatelyorganic (50-90% organic), or strictly organic (>90%organic) diets. When all organic foods were takeninto account, there was a non-significant trendtoward lower eczema risk (OR: 0.76) for those on astrict organic diet. But, wben tbe types of organicfoods were examined individually, consumption oforganic dairy products did result in a statisticallysignificant advantage for lower eczema, thosechildren consuming organic milk and milk productshaving a 36-percent reduction in risk of having thisallergic skin disorder.

Problems to be Resolved for FutureStudies

Although recent articles report minimal orquestionable bealth benefit (including nutritionalsuperiority) of organic foods,'''''' a closer look atthe published literature yields a different, butsomewhat complicated, picture. First, it is difficultto locate all articles pertaining to organic foodsusing PubMed. This is partly due to tbe fact tbatPubMed does not bave a Medical Subject Heading(MeSH) term for "organic food." Instead tbe term

"health food" must he used and paired witb otberterms such as "nutritional value." The referencesfor this review were discovered only after multiplesearches, including "related articles" searches ontbe initial studies. In addition, other pertinentarticles were found in tbe reference lists of thestudies reviewed. Without tbese reference lists, tbeonly article that actually measured bealth out-comes with organic food"'' would bave heen missed.

Recommendations tbat PubMed add a MeSHterm for organic foods can be made at http;//www.nlm.nib.gov/mesh/mesbsugg.html.

Another major problem for a food to be termed"organic" is tbat governmental regulations in theUnited States and tbe European Union set onlyminimal benchmarks for organic certifiahility. TheUnited States requires tbat land not have conven-tional chemicals (non-organic) applied for tbreeyears before certification can be received." But, ascan be seen from the 10-year tomato study at UCDavis,' it can take up to 10 years for an organic plotto mature. The studies on nutrient content of



organic foods reveal that results aregreatly affected by the length of time aplot is handled organically (the amountof organic matter present and thenutrient balance), as well as by groundcover, local geography, weather patterns,and methods peculiar to the farmersthemselves. It is hoped that futurestudies on organic foods will provideinformation on the maturity of theorganic farm itself, so crops frommature farming operations can bedifferentiated from those of newerfields.

SummaryOrganic food consumption continues

to increase as consumers seek foodsperceived as healthier (greater nutri-tional value and fewer toxic chemicals).While the amount of vitamins andminerals will obviously vary from cropto crop and from farmer to farmer,organic varieties do provide greaterlevels of vitamin C, iron, magnesium,and phosphorus. They also tend toprovide greater levels of antioxidantpbytochemicals (anthocyanins, fiavo-noids, and carotenoids), although theselevels have not yet been shown to niakea difference in in vivo antioxidant status.Regarding LDL-oxidation prevention, itappears red wine is more potent thanwhite wine and organic varieties provideno extra benefit. Organic fruits andvegetables appear to have the potentialto diminish the mutagenic action oftoxic compounds and inhibit theproliferation of certain cancer cell lines.For prevention of allergic dermatitis,the consumption of organic dairy andmeats can make a significant differencein health outcomes. In addition, organicfoods have fewer insecticide residuesthan conventional foods.

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