The Dirty Dozen and Clean 15

Hey there Food Hippies.

When asked about the best place to start your Real Food journey, I almost always say with the Dirty Dozen list.  This post is a duplicate of the Dirty Dozen Clean Fifteen page featured on my nav bar, but my theme won’t let you Pin images on a page, only in a post. So I’m going to sneak this into the mix so that if you happen upon it, you can pin the image below that I worked hard pretty on.

In my opinion, this is quite possibly one of the most important lists that you could memorize when it comes to eliminating harmful toxins from your diet.  An amazing organization called the Environmental Working Group (which is an “organization of scientists, researchers and policymakers”), developed a list of which common produce items have the highest amounts of pesticides and other harmful chemicals.

They discovered that by switching to organic produce for the foods listed on “The Dirty Dozen“ list can “reduce the amount of toxins you consume on a daily basis by as much as 80 percent.”  I’m not sure about you, but I’m all for not being a walking chemical factory.  Americans already consume 6-9 pounds per year of chemicals.  That’s not including what we absorb through our skin.  That’s something kind of sobering to think about, isn’t it?

In addition to “The Dirty Dozen” list, the EWG put together another list called  “The Clean 15″.  This list is meant to help you, the consumer, know when to buy organic and when it is unnecessary.  These lists were compiled using data from the United States Department of Agriculture on the amount of pesticide residue found in non-organic fruits and vegetables after they had been washed. Click “here” to learn more about the EWG and their newly published Shopping Guide.

According to the EWG: “The fruits and vegetables on “The Dirty Dozen” list, when conventionally grown, tested positive for at least 47 different chemicals, with some testing positive for as many as 67.  For produce on the “dirty” list, you should definitely go organic — unless you relish the idea of consuming a chemical cocktail.”  [According to little ol’ me- I generally prefer the taste of organic produce so unless it’s an emergency situation, I just always buy organic.  After switching over to an almost fully organic and non-GMO diet, I noticed that food just started tasting better, and my veggies tasted veggier and my fruits tasted fruiter.  TSM noticed the same thing as well regarding taste. There you have it- I just made up two new words!  And you thought you were only going to get recipes and knowledge from me.]

Click==> Dirty Dozen & Clean 15 Guide <=== to gain access to this list in PDF form.  My list mirrors what is on the PDF version.  You can also pin the image above.

 

“The Dirty Dozen” list includes:

(This means buy these items ORGANIC)

 

• Apples

• Celery 
• Cherry Tomatoes

 

• Cucumbers
• Hot Peppers
• Imported grapes
• Imported Nectarines
• Peaches 
• Potatoes
• Strawberries 
• Sweet bell peppers 

Plus:

Spinach, Kale & Collard Greens  

and Summer Squash & Zucchini

 

 

“The Clean 15” list includes:

(This means you can purchase NON-ORGANIC versions of this produce if you so desire)

 

• Asparagus
• Avocados
• Cabbage  
• Cantaloupe 
• Sweet corn
• Eggplant
• Grapefruit 
• Kiwi fruit 
• Mango 
• Mushrooms
• Onions
• Papayas
• Pineapples 
• Sweet peas  (frozen)
• Sweet potatoes 

**The information for this page was gathered from The Environmental Working Group’s website.  Here and also here. **

 

Dirty

 

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