Should You Buy Organic Apples?

By Nicci Micco, September/October 2009

Plus, 4 ways to reduce your exposure to pesticide residues.

READER'S COMMENT:

"your are very misinformed and misleading others- apples are on the top " dirty dozen list" each person should really do there own research and Any pestisides are bad for you, they are not natural, if they kill bugs, they will kill you...

Healthy Apple Recipes:
Easy Apple Recipes
Healthy Apple Desserts
Healthy Apple Pie and More Fall Pie Recipes
Heart-Healthy Apple Recipes
Apple Buyer's Guide
The Family Tree: Celebrate Fall with a Trip to the Apple Orchard

David Wallinga, M.D., director of food and health for the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, recently told me that scientists believe that some pesticides wreak their damage by operating as free radicals, compounds that damage tissues in ways that can lead to the development of cancer and other diseases. Minimizing your exposure to pesticides will reduce this free-radical damage, of course, says Wallinga, but so will consuming more antioxidants, which mop up free radicals. Apples—whether they’re organic or conventional—are full of antioxidants, specifically flavonols, anthocyanins and vitamin C. And you can reduce your exposure to potential pesticide residues on them by doing the following: