The world is waking up to the dangers posed by pesticides, specifically those found on fruits and vegetables.
Regulatory bodies such as Health Canada are responsible for establishing maximum residue limits (MRL), however, it’s worth noting that safety limits are often established using incomplete or unreliable data, and the impacts of long-term exposure to the body are exceedingly difficult to study, as well as under-studied.
The sad reality is that we often don’t know exactly how a particular pesticide might affect us. Furthermore, if Health Canada bases their maximum residue limits on flawed data, it may overestimate how much exposure to a specific pesticide we can tolerate.
Health risks associated with pesticides
Long-term exposure via ingestion of pesticides on fruits and vegetables may be linked to a number of neurological and nervous system disorders, including:
- Parkinson’s disease
- Alzheimer’s disease
- certain growth and developmental disorders in children, including Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
- several types of cancer, including breast cancer, ovarian, lung and liver cancers
A recent study even suggests that a common pesticide could be contributing to the global obesity epidemic by impeding the calorie-burning abilities of brown adipose tissue, or “brown fat”. Chlorpyrifos, which is banned in Canada but widely used in other parts of the world, is likely present on many imported fruits and vegetables.
Previous studies have identified hundreds of chemicals in the human body. Alarmingly, these chemicals have also been found in the bodies of newborn babies, likely transmitted from the mother to child via the placenta during pregnancy. This means that many of these chemicals can be passed down from mother to child through generations.
The Dirty Dozen
Some fruit and vegetable crops are so likely to be contaminated with pesticides they’ve earned the nickname “The Dirty Dozen”.
Strawberries, which top the list as having the highest levels of pesticide residue, can contain 22 different types of pesticides on just one sample (one-third of all grocery store strawberries have been found to contain 10 or more pesticide residues).
Spinach comes in second place, with pesticide residue being found on 97 percent of samples, as well as high concentrations of permethrin, a neurotoxin that can cause burning, itching, swelling and numbness or tingling of the skin.
Because these twelve crops—many of which are staples of the North American diet—have the highest levels of contamination, advocacy groups like the Environmental Working Group (EWG) have urged consumers to choose organic options when possible.
However, it’s important to remember that organic does not mean pesticide-free. Organic crops use naturally occurring pesticides, which can also have detrimental effects on human health and the environment. Learn more about organic pesticides.
What is the best way to wash pesticides off fruits and vegetables?
Rinsing with regular tap water only removes about 60 percent of pesticides from the surface of fruits and vegetables, and that’s assuming you’re working with a smooth surface. Berries, with their many nooks and crannies, can harbour dozens of different pesticide residues and microorganisms you can’t reach.
Commercial pesticide remover can leave behind other chemical residues, effectively replacing one potentially harmful chemical with another. Pesticide remover may also leave behind an unpleasant after-taste, it’s pricey, and it isn’t great for the environment (yes, even the organic ones).
So, you want to know how to remove pesticides from strawberries? (And all the rest of The Dirty Dozen?) Study after study, researchers have concluded that the best way to wash pesticides off fruits and vegetables is by using ozone technology.
How fruit and vegetable purifiers work to remove pesticides
Fruit and vegetable purifiers like the Amazing Water Fruit & Vegetable Washer add energy to regular tap water, converting the oxygen in H20, as well as oxygen in the air, into ozone (O3), or “active oxygen”.
Ozone, with its unpaired electron, is highly reactive and will oxidize (take an electron) from virtually anything it comes into contact with, including the pesticides found on fruits and vegetables. Basically, O3 breaks down their molecular bonds, converting them into non-toxic oxides.
By virtue of oxidation, ozone also destroys harmful pathogens like bacteria and viruses and has been proven to be very effective against common disease-causing microbes like E. coli and Salmonella. It also breaks down decomposition agents like moulds and yeasts, which means your fresh produce will stay crisp and fresh for longer. For more information about active oxygen technology and ozone cleaning systems, contact Amazing Water or shop for your own fruit and vegetable washer now.