Fruits and Veggies Not as Healthy As They Used to Be

Thirty years ago, the saying "An apple a day keeps the doctor away" may have been relevant. Today, we might want to update that adage to include three or four of the fruits.

Turns out your mother's and grandmother's apples — and virtually all other fruits and veggies, for that matter — were significantly healthier than produce grown today. A recent story from Prevention highlights how modern agricultural practices are actually decreasing fruits' and veggies' nutritional values. Research shows that broccoli grown in 1950 boasted about 130 milligrams of calcium. Today's broccoli contains only 48 milligrams of calcium. While chemical fertilizers and selective breeding may prompt produce to grow bigger and faster, these farming methods hinder fruits' and veggies' ability to generate nutrients or absorb them from the soil. Looks like healthy produce went the way of the good ol' days.

Unless we're talking organic produce, that is. Not using chemical fertilizers actually puts more stress on fruits and veggies, a surprisingly good thing. Stressed plants produce phytochemicals, naturally occurring substances like beta carotene and lycopene. According to Prevention, an organic tomato typically contains about 30 percent more phytochemicals than a conventionally grown one. Heirloom varieties of crops (including tomatoes) also boast better nutritional content.

Studies like the ones mentioned in this Prevention article show that conventionally grown produce is oftentimes not as nutritious as organics. But I'll take things one step further and say that conventionally grown goods can be downright bad for you. Many Big Ag-generated fruits and veggies come doused in a host of chemical pesticides and herbicides. These pesticides have been linked to diseases like cancers, reproductive problems, Parkinson's disease, hyperactivity, endocrine disorders, nervous system malfunctions, and other health maladies. The Environmental Working Group goes so far as to say that it's better to not eat produce listed on its "Dirty Dozen" list than to eat non-organic varieties of the fruits and vegetables.

The fact that conventionally grown fruits and veggies lack the nutrients they once had is even more evidence that farming needs to wean itself off of chemicals. This point seems abundantly clear to virtually everyone — scientists, nutritionists, environmentalists, consumers, and small farmers. Now if the federal government and industrial farms would stop denying and start accepting that bigger isn't better, we could really start revolutionizing agriculture.

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons