Organic diet intervention during pregnancy can reduce pesticide exposures

Pregnancy represents a critical window for both maternal and child health, and some previous studies have shown that the consumption of an organic diet during pregnancy can potentially reduce pesticide exposure compared with the consumption of a conventional diet.

Organic diet intervention during  pregnancy can reduce pesticide exposures

Organic foods are crafted from ingredients and processed in accordance with organic standards, which typically limit the utilization of synthetic pesticides and other chemicals potentially harmful to human health. Over the past few decades, the global demand for organic foods has witnessed a significant surge, largely propelled by consumer convictions that organic foods offer advantages for human health.

More studies and research are needed to establish the positive influence of an organic diet on pregnancy, but preliminary conclusions suggest that the consumption of organic foods (either overall or of a specific kind) during pregnancy may have health benefits.

Organic foods, in general, are nutritiously comparable to conventional foods. For example, polyphenol content and antioxidant capacity are higher in organic vegetables and fruits than in conventional products.

The results showed that organic fruits tend to have higher hydrolysable polyphenol contents than conventional ones, with values being 11.5% in orange peels, to 72.6% in papaya peels, higher for hydrolysable polyphenols.

The research shown that participants who received organic (vs conventional) produce had significantly lower biomarkers of pyrethroid exposure. This was the first long-term organic diet intervention study, lasting six months during two trimesters of pregnancy. Exposure was assessed via longitudinal biomonitoring, including an average of 23 samples per participant.

Together, these results suggest that addition of organic produce to an individual's diet, as compared to conventional produce, significantly reduces exposure to pyrethroid insecticides... To our knowledge, this is the first study to evaluate the effect of a long-term organic diet intervention. All previous studies have included interventions lasting one to two weeks; this study evaluated the effect of a 24-week intervention.

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