At most every juice bar and natural-foods store, customers queue up for shots of bright-green, pungently flavored wheatgrass juice. Sprouted from the seeds of the wheat plant, wheatgrass is said to deliver a dizzying array of health benefits: Proponents claim the vitamin-rich juice can aid in diabetes management, detox your system, bring down high blood pressure, improve digestion, keep cholesterol in check, and even prevent gray hair.
While there's little scientific support for such health claims, research has shown that wheatgrass may benefit people with ulcerative colitis (a painful digestive disorder). If you're a fan of juicing for health, don't forget to include antioxidant-rich foods like blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries along with chlorophyll-packed wheatgrass.
If you are going to eat strawberries, it’s much better to look for organic ones. The top 12 most chemically polluted fruits and vegetables, according to ewg.org, are: Peaches, Apples, Sweet Bell Peppers, Celery, Nectarines, Strawberries, Cherries, Kale, Lettuce, Imported Grapes, Carrots, and Pears.
One advantage of growing your own Wheat Grass is that you can make sure it’s done without harmful chemicals.
AS far as the research goes on green foods, it would be hard to find any food more nutritious than spinach.
I work for the California Strawberry Commission and would like to share some facts: The EWG ranking of produce is based on a flawed assumption that the presence of a pesticide residue poses a hazard. In fact, the presence of a residue does not in itself constitute a risk. Limits for maximum allowed residues are set by the US EPA with a significant safety margin to protect the health and well-being of consumers, taking into consideration special populations, such as infants and children.
• If present at all, residue levels found on produce are significantly below levels considered safe by US EPA and WHO.
• When residues are found, they are at such low levels that a person would have to eat 10,000 servings or 100 eight-pound boxes of fresh produce at one meal to ingest enough residues before seeing any measureable reaction.
• Pesticide residues are regularly monitored by FDA, USDA and DPR.
Consumers should feel good about purchasing fresh strawberries – just make sure to give them a nice, fresh rinse and enjoy!
Bob S.,
Just because something is labelled “Organic” does NOT mean that it is pesticide free. Very few things are grown pesticide free and it would be labelled if so.
If it is labelled “Organic” but not “Pesticide Free”, then they used pesticides. The approved pesticides for organic farming can be worse for you, often containing metals like Copper, than modern pesticides.
Just because something is more “Natural” doesn’t make it better for you.