How Organic Does Your Food Have To Be?

A Belsandia reader asked me recently if there is really such a big difference between organic and non-organic food. She wants to be vegan but finds it hard to afford costly organic foods all the time.

So, how much of a health impact does organic food actually have?

The health benefits of eating organic lie in the fact that certain pesticides and growth chemicals inhibit the nutrients in some fruits and vegetables. It is not clear to what degree, but generally the nutritious value of your produce appears to be lower in conventionally grown foods. It's already good if you don't eat meat and fish, as these are by far the most highly polluted foods.

You don't need to buy everything organic, as there are some foods that are worse offenders than others. Also try multiple different places to get these foods cheaper. While I love Whole Foods, I only buy specialty products and great offers there, to spread my budget further. If you have a Trader Joe's or Fresh & Easy in your neighborhood, these grocery stores often have good deals on some organic produce. In Las Vegas, I also get some organic options at the Smith and Vons stores ever so often, albeit rather pricey. In the Eastern US, I found some organic options at Giant, Safeway, and Publix too.

By far the best for your organic and environmental food choices would be a local organic farmer, where you can buy produce in bulk.

But even if your budget options for healthy organic foods are limited, remember that not everything has to be organic. There are some foods that absorb chemical pollution more than others, and these should be bought organic wherever possible. With other foods it does not matter quite that much, so you can select these as conventionally grown from your trusted budget grocer.

Here is a list of the 12 worst contaminated foods with pesticides - get these organic if you can. At least peal the skin off the ones you can't get organic:

The Top 12 Offenders – Buy These Organic:
Celery
Peaches
Strawberries
Apples
Blueberries
Nectarines
Bell Peppers
Spinach
Cherries
Kale/Collard Greens
Potatoes
Grapes (Imported)

If you do consume soy products, I recommend to get these organic as well, as soy is almost always GMO and is heavily treated with pesticides too. It can make a difference here.

Below are the least contaminated foods, which you can buy non-organic too.

The Clean 15 Foods – Lowest in Pesticides:
Onions
Avocado
Sweet Corn
Pineapple
Mangos
Sweet Peas
Asparagus
Kiwi
Cabbage
Eggplant
Cantaloupe Melon
Watermelon
Grapefruit
Sweet Potato
Honeydew Melon

I have compiled some additional "eating healthy on a budget" options here for further tips and ideas.

Vegetarian Diets and Climate

A reader of Belsandia.com asked me the other day if there is a scientific background for the fact that it's harder to eat vegetarian foods in cold climates. He stated that he has no trouble at all to stick to a vegetarian diet in warmer countries and temperatures, but that it pulls him towards the meat when he travels to colder countries, or when the temperatures at home are freezing.

Why is that the case?

While I don't know of any studies about this, I can think of the following reason why we are drown to heartier foods when it's cold outside:

I actually agree that eating vegtarian foods is easier in warmer temperatures, as we naturally gravitate to lighter, fresher meals and more fruits and vegetables then. However, eating great healthy vegetarian and vegan dishes that provide adequate nutrition is just as easy and satisfying when it's cold outside.

The trick lies in knowing what to eat to keep your body warm and to feel full and satisfied, while getting the right nutrition. When it's cold we often reach for foods that have more fat, as we instinctively seek to build-up our body's fat layers for better cold insulation. So we vegans  reach for more legumes, grains, nuts, and seeds. Vegetarians who eat cheese may gravitate to those dishes more.

How to do get healthy vegetarian meals when your body is longing for warm comfort foods?

A great option to warm up from the inside out is a thick, spicy vegetarian chili. Take a look at this chili recipe if you like to create it yourself.

The focus on colder days should be more on grains and legumes, which offer large quantities of protein and many protective vitamins and minerals. Bean casseroles, refried beans (without lard), lentil soup, green pea soup, pasta, quinoa, and barley dishes are all hearty and highly satisfying in winter. I personally love seweet potato dishes in al variations too.

If you travel a lot, go for soups, stews, curries and baked items in colder climates. A hot gravy is often key to feeling warm and comfortable, but these can be vegetarian or vegan too.

I suggest focusing on Indian, Thai, Chinese, and Vietnamese foods if you like these flavors and are looking for a hot steaming meal. Almost every restaurant has so far been creating great vegetable curries and hot soups with veggie broth for me while overseas, even if they did not have any of these on the menu.

In Western cuisines, I often start with hot vegetable, bean, or potato soup followed by a dish based on potatoes or noodles. If they don't premake the food, you may get restaurants to create a hearty vegetarian tomato or pesto pasta sauce, or oven-baked pasta.

Some countries are harder than others for vegans (and that includes my native Germany). So I focus on complex carbohydrates, nuts and seeds wherever I can: brown rice, whole wheat pasta, whole grain bread, almonds, walnuts, power bars with sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, etc. Germany also has great winter vegetable dishes made of Brussels sprouts or red cabbage.

Europe is generally great for breads - and the darker and more grains these breads have, the better. These make very hearty sandwiches for the winter too. Just replace the mayonnaise or butter with hummus or veggie spread.

If all is lost and there is no food on the restaurant menu that strikes your vegetarian fancy, why not combine a few side dishes or starters? I have been eating in steakhouses as a vegan during business dinners and enjoyed it! My dinner there would be a colorful array of a potato dish, greens like spinach or broccoli, sauteed mushrooms, some fried veggie, and a big loaf of hot, steamy bread right from the oven. Then I load on the ground black pepper and chili flakes, which spikes the heat level in my body so much that I can take off the sweater. Et voila: I'm a happy vegan even in a steakhouse!

A bit of flexibility and courage to ask for your needs will usually accommodate your vegetarian diet - no matter if you are in minus 30 or plus 30 degrees Celsium around the globe!

Please share your opinion about eating more or less vegetarian foods in colder weather. Do you find it harder to get full, warm, and satisfied with veg food when the temperatures drop? What is your favorite veg dish in winter?

Healthy diets: vegetarian, vegan, raw, macrobiotic - what are their specific health and animal welfare benefits?

In the competitive world of healthy diets, much is left to individual perception and to whatever gets the highest media coverage on your favorite device.

Most people are aware that eating more fruits and vegetables will give them a leg up on the heart healthy scale, but the same percentage of folks still believes that lean chicken and low fat milk is a must to get sufficient nutrients in a healthy diet.

In a society where even government health officials tout the benefits of cholesterol and chemical-ladden meat and dairy products, the real crusader for perfect health is often left to her own devices.

In order to escape the daily onslaught of falsified marketing and misguided nutrition recommendations from so-called experts, the brave one sets out to explore a revolutionary new idea: skip the highly subsidized animal foods and leap into the fantastic multitude of plant-based power foods! 

Those who experiment with healthy vegetarianism get all the required nutrition (yes including sufficient protein - read about the protein myth here) and then some: vegetarians of all flavors score much higher on the scales of health, environmental, and animal cruelty protection. In short: their cholesterol tumbles, they give back to the planet, and they save lives.

But how much do the various vegetarian diets actually contribute to health gains, environmental savings, and animal cruelty prevention?

I have compiled a comparison of the vegetarian, vegan, raw vegan, and macrobiotic diets:
check out their scores and share your comments!

Here is a quick summary what each vegetarian diet consists of:

• Lacto-ovo vegetarian diet - followers eat no meat or fish, but they do consume dairy products and eggs.
• Lacto vegetarian diet - followers consume milk products but no eggs, meat, or fish.
• Ovo vegetarian diet - these people consume eggs but no milk products, meat, or fish.
• Vegan diet - followers consume no animal products of any kind. The vegan diet is completely plant-based. Vegans also avoid the use of animal products for clothing or any other purpose.
• Raw vegan diet - people on this diet eat at least 75% of their diet in raw, natural, unprocessed, unrefined plant-based food that is not heated above 116 degrees F. The remainder of the raw vegan diet can be vegan cooked foods. 
• Macrobiotic diet - people on this diet eat plant foods based on whole grains, vegetables, and phytoestrogens from soy products. The diet focuses on Asian and sea vegetables and most foods are eaten in specific percentages for optimum balance.

Find out more about these vegetarian diets and their pros and cons.