Food for Thought

Why do you come to a raw food website? I believe it is because you are making the connection between what you eat and your health. We are learning more and more every day about our food sources work and how they affect us and our planet.

Did you happen to see the news this week? One of the breaking stories talked about a newly discovered link between the pesticides that we spray on our food crops and ADHD. ( According to The Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics)

In examining the relationship between organophospates, (certain toxic pesticides) and the rate of ADHD, a link was discovered. Organophospates cause damage to the nerve connections in the brain.  The chemical works by disrupting a specific neurotransmitter, acetylcholinesterase, a defect that has been implicated in children diagnosed with ADHD , which is exactly how they work against the pests they kill. It is interesting to note that organophospates are also used in the production of nerve gas.

Who is most vulnerable? Our babies and children. Their brains are still developing. Which fruits and veggies are most likely to contain high amounts? Peaches, apples, bell peppers, celery, nectarines, strawberries, cherries, pears, imported grapes, spinach, lettuce, and potatoes. The smart thing to do would be buy organic when eating them. Yes, it costs more but honestly, think of the payoff. You are talking about how your child will walk through life.

I have a lot of experience with ADD. My youngest approached me when she was about to go into 8th grade by saying”Mom, I think I have ADD”. My first response was, no…you are just fine. Then I took a step back. I started watching her. She was not getting good grades, mostly c’s and d’s at the time. It was confusing to me because I knew she was highly intelligent.

I took her to a specialist in ADD. After two full days of extensive testing, including brain scans, we got the results. She did have ADD, which often goes undiagnosed in young women because they don’t have the “H” or hyper association. Society still doesn’t expect the level of studiousness for young girls as it does for boys, so her teachers had just labeled her as “spacey”. Yes, spacey because her brain was not functioning correctly. She underwent treatment and that year and ever since has been an incredible student scoring near the top of her class.

ADD and ADHD have been on the rise. In part, because it is a convenient diagnosis. But ADD and ADHD are real. And if your child has it, it can be horribly debilitating. Think of it this way. You are going to do and fix a car. You are given a tool box full of all the tools you need to fix the car. But somewhere between leaving the house and arriving at the car, someone has taken half of your tools out of your box. You are still expected to fix the car exactly the same way, and with the same speed that the people with full toolboxes do. Extremely frustrating and difficult.

Let’s get back to the extra cost of the organic produce. It is time to ask ourselves what our priorities are. Isn’t the few extra dollars that you spend worth it for your children (and yourself)? Isn’t helping their toolbox to stays intact important? It is about quality of life. It is food for thought. As always, it is about educating ourselves and being responsible for how we walk on this earth. Sticking our heads in the sand is no longer an option. There is strength in knowing.

The Environmental Working Group has a very good, down-loadable shopper’s guide to pesticides (here). They also have great articles on environmental health. Check it out, there is some great reading there.

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I read this article and found it very interesting, thought it might be something for you. The article is called Food for Thought and is located at https://rawmazing.com/post/food-for-thought/.

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