A new study found that taking up a Mediterranean diet rich in fruits and vegetables can significantly increase your intake of pesticides.
Following a traditional Mediterranean diet, rich in traditionally farmed produce, can lead to increased intake of pesticides, potentially affecting your health, a new study found.
The new international study, led by Professor Carlo Leifert, from Southern Cross University, in Lismore, New South Wales, evaluated the effects of following a healthy Mediterranean diet, comparing the effects of consuming traditionally farmed produce or certified organic products.
The study found that people consuming traditionally farmed fruits and vegetables, as part of a Mediterranean diet, experienced a 10-fold increase in pesticide intake, compared to people who consumed certified organic produce. According to Professor Chris Seal, from Newcastle University, in the UK, who co-led the study, the findings provide important insights about how our diet may be affecting our health.
“This study provides clear evidence that both our diet and the way we produce food may affect the level of exposure to synthetic chemical pesticides and ultimately our health,” Prof Seal said.
About the study
The study was based in Crete, Greece, and followed two small cohorts of participants over the course of two weeks. One group followed a Mediterranean diet made entirely of organic foods, whereas the other group consumed a comparable diet, based on conventionally farmed products. Both groups followed a Western diet before the start of the study and after completing it.
To measure pesticides levels in participants, researchers measured urinary pesticide residue excretion (UPRE). Some of the key findings reported by the study include:
- Switching from a “Western” to a Mediterranean led to more than 3-times higher total insecticide and organophosphate intake.
- Traditionally farmed fruit, vegetables and wholegrain cereals were the most significant dietary sources for synthetic chemical pesticides.
- Consuming a Mediterranean diet made from conventional food results in 10 times higher total pesticide intake than a Mediterranean diet made entirely from organic food.
The findings hint at the potential health impact of following a diet rich in traditionally farmed products, which may carry unsafe levels of pesticides. According to Prof Per Ole Iversen, from the University of Oslo, and co-author of the study, their findings provide compelling evidence of the importance of watching out for our exposure to pesticides from dietary sources.
“There is growing evidence from observational studies that the health benefits of increasing fruit, vegetables and wholegrain consumption are partially diminished by the higher pesticide exposure associated with these foods. Our study demonstrates that consumption of organic foods allows consumers to change to a healthier diet, without an increased intake of pesticides,” Prof Iversen said.
According to Prof Leifert, exposure of pesticides from traditionally farmed products may help explain the low incidence of obesity and other conditions observed in people who consume organic products.
“Many of the synthetic pesticides detected in both food and urine samples in this study are confirmed or suspected endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDC). The 10 times higher pesticide exposure from conventional foods may therefore provide a mechanistic explanation for the lower incidence of overweight/obesity, metabolic syndrome and cancer associated with high levels of organic food consumption in epidemiological/cohort studies,” Prof Leifert said.