Weekly Written Analysis 4: Organic Foods

Over the years the concept and popularity of eating healthy has continued to grow. The fear of ingesting dangerous pesticides that are being sprayed on our foods and the growth hormones that is being given to animals has convinced many Americans to start shopping at natural food stores and to purchase organically grown food. For years we have watched young girls start to physically develop faster than they have in the past and the suspected reason for this could be a result of the steroid hormones being passed to our children when they are fed meat from animals that were injected with hormones to help animals gain weight faster. Excessive hormones are also suspected of causing cancer (Cornell University 2008). The question is, if the pesticides that are being used and the hormones that are being given to animals are so dangerous then why the FDA isn’t doing a better job at monitoring this? The FDA has approved six different types of steroid hormones for the production of food in the U.S. and some of these hormones are naturally made by animals so there is no possible way for the FDA to monitor the usage levels (Cornell University 2008). Thankfully there are plenty of natural food stores popping up around the country to give consumers a choice in developing healthier eating habits. Although organically grown food can be more expensive it a safe choice and makes the money spent worth it.

Reference
Cornell Univeristy. (2008). Retrieved March 14, 2008, from
http://envirocancer.cornell.edu/Factsheet/Diet/fs37.hormones.cfm