Should you buy organic?

Written and provided by one of our talented team of experts – Annabel Sparrow

Is your gut instinct telling you that you should buy organic? It’s more expensive so it’s got to be healthier and better for our gut right? Or is it all just marketing hype? With lofty price increases of up to 200% more for an organic label, it’s definitely worth exploring …

What is an organic food?

Before we gut going, let’s take a quick minute to explain what actually makes food organic. 

In a nutshell, organic farming only uses natural substances and farming methods, aiming to have a minimal environmental impact whilst maintaining natural resources. Wordy we know, but this leads to an end result of more environmentally, socially and economically friendly products. 

To achieve organic certification, only organic pesticides are allowed, whilst artificial chemicals, hormones, antibiotics, additives and GMOs cannot be used. 

All sounds pretty gut, right? But does this make organic food better for our health? Let’s take a deeper look …

Is organic food more nutritious?

Ready to put your science hats on? Here’s what the research says, so far, in support of organic food and nutritional differences. 

Polyphenol power: when compared with their non-organic counterparts, some organic fruits and veggies have been found to have slightly higher levels of antioxidant polyphenols. (1)

Polywhat? Found in some plant-based foods, they’re a natural chemical, praised for their disease-fighting/preventing properties. Hurrah! We like to think of them as mini-superheroes in your body fighting off the bad guys. 

Yipee for omega-3: some studies have found organic dairy, in particular cow’s milk, may contain higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids, iron and vitamin E, compared to non-organic. However, they were found to have less of other nutrients such as selenium and iodine. (2) 

Omega-3 fatty acids, are classed as ‘essential’ as we cannot produce them on our own, so they must be obtained through diet or supplements. They’re also pretty great, and wear many important hats, including supporting our brain function, heart health and inflammation regulation. 

Further possible pros: some observational studies (following groups of people overtime) suggested, when you chow down on organic food, there is an associated lower risk of certain issues, such as; allergies, infertility and metabolic syndrome (e.g. diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity)(3).

Ready for a hat change? This all sounds great, but it’s always important to put those critical-thinking hats on too. 

Firstly, it’s important to note that whilst nutritional benefits were found in some studies, they were marginal, therefore, we can’t say they would have a significant health difference over time. 

A lot of the positive research was from observational studies, which in their nature, are at a higher risk of bias, making the results less reliable, and ultimately not concrete to make definitive conclusions on. 

Additional, systematic reviews (looking at lots of papers on this topic), have concluded there is no strong evidence to suggest organic foods are significantly more nutritious than non-organic (4,5). 

Food for thought indeed, but that isn’t the only thing to consider when choosing organic. What about pesticides?

Pesky Pesticides

No drum roll is needed here, as a result of the different pesticide use, organic crops have less pesticide residue, but what does this mean for our health? And, what can we do about it?

One study (although small) did show when 16 people (both adults and children), switched to an organic diet, there was a reduction in the amount of pesticides found in their urine (6), (see it’s not ALL poo chat here)!

Additionally, some research does suggest, that high exposure to pesticides in early life, may harm cognitive development, but findings are mixed (7). 

It’s important to note that in most countries the use of pesticides in non-organic products is tightly regulated and is deemed safe. However, we do still recommend you thoroughly wash your produce before consuming to remove the majority of the pesticide residue – get those scrubbing brushes at the ready!

Interested in finding out more?

Read more on the impact of organic and non-organic food on our beloved gut microbes, on our app. You can download it for free below.