Organic Diet Causes Pesticide Levels to Plummet in Children

Mitch kennedy, ND

If you needed that extra nudge to “go organic,” here it is: in a recent U.S. EPA-funded study, 23 Seattle-area youngsters were switched to an all-organic diet, and the blood levels of pesticides declined to essentially zero after only five days. When the kids started eating conventionally grown food again, their pesticide levels rose again. The study, published in Environmental Health Perspectives, focuses specifically pesticides used in agriculture, not those used on residential lawns and gardens. This more tightly focuses the possible sources of exposure. The study did not conclusively declare that pesticides have any negative effects on children.

Mitch Kennedy, ND has a family practice in Avon, Connecticut, and is the first ND with clinical privileges at the University of Connecticut, a teaching hospital. Before graduating from Southwest College, Dr. Kennedy earned an international reputation as a leader in pollution prevention, showing industries around the world how preventing pollution saves money.