I'm not really sure it's a 'garden' question? But I was thinking of changing my diet to organic only??

I was wondering if this is really worth the extra cost and what the benefits really are and where you even begin???

I saw a woman on TV tonight that had had cancer and she was an organic vegan, no smoking or caffine or alcohol and into yoga. OK this is a MASSIVE all round lifestyle change but she looked really 'WELL' and you have to start somewhere.

What do you think?

Bev, we eat as much as we can organically. Our veggies are purchased as often as we can from the farmer's market or grown in our own garden. I took the year off this year for veggie garden, but was able to get lots of stuff grown organically.

I try to purchase as much fruit and veggies as I can in the organic departments in our grocery stores, when I can't get locally grown.

All my wheat that I grind myself is organically grown.

Eggs are purchased from a local farmer.

Even our meat, we have changed as much as possible. I'm vegetarian, but the kids and dh still eat meat, but I try as much as possible to purchase meat that was raised on the open range.

Sometimes though, the cost is prohibitive. It is coming down though seeing as more and more people are going this route.

I'd like to more but the prices keep me away. :(

We drastically changed our way of eating after reading some of Dr. Don Colbert's books. He has a website you can check out - http://www.drcolbert.com/ He is a Christian, but even if you are not there's a lot of wonderful info to be gleened from his books. Just reading about all the pesticides that are sprayed each year and all the hormones and antibiotics that are pumped into animals that we eat (and their by-products) was enough to cause us to make hefty changes.

We stopped eating beef and pork altogether. We still eat chicken and turkey plus most seafood (certain types of fish we will not eat). I have a family history of breast cancer so all of the info really hit hard with me. We buy free-range as much as possible (eggs, poultry), and buy mostly organic (the selection at our health food store is quite limited when it comes to organic fruits and veggies which amazes me - that's just the place I would expect to find a very large selection - instead they carry a lot of conventional at a high price so we still purchase things from a local produce store even though they're not organic).

Yes, it's quite expensive to eat this way. I never imagined I would pay $4.59 for a 12-count package of cheese singles or $4.59 for a half gallon of orange juice (Horizon organic oj, which btw is the best orange juice! yum!), $3.19 for a half gallon of milk, $1.59 for a pound of apples, etc. but after all the info I have read I believe it's worth it (especially since I have a young child).

One thing Dr. Colbert says you can do if you absolutely cannot afford to buy organic (or cannot find a good selection sold where you live) is to wash all fruits and veggies with Ivory soap to help remove pesticide residue.

I look very forward to getting a homestead with well water so we can have our own garden (we plan to do organic gardening). We have a large enough yard now to have a large garden, but our sprinklers are tied into reclaimed water (mandated by the city we live in) and I have been warned repeatedly to never eat anything that has been grown with reclaimed water (it's basically sewage water that has not been filtered all the way pure).

Aussie mamma, thanks for that site. I've bookmarked it for later reading.

Funny you should ask Bev....I've been pondering this myself quite a bit lately. I'm to the point of wanting to feed our own beef avoiding steroids and antibiotics as much as possible. I've even been talking to dh about the possibilities of what a business in that area would do. We grow lots of our own veggies but we still eat "mainstream" or whatever you wanna call it, food.

I would like to go organic as well. With a lean toward vegetarian. I started to grow my own food as much as possible. This year all I got was tomatoes, but there is always next year LOL.

As far as buying the organic, I wish it would come down just a little more in price! I was buying 1/2 gallon of milk for $2.89 when I can get regular non-organic a whole Gallon for less. :(

http://www.homesteadgarden.com/quilt.jpg

We try to eat as much organic food as we can afford. We have an organic supermarket here with an organic butcher next door, so obtaining organics is quite easy. The problem is the price. I'm a vegetarian but my son and husband are not and although they say the organic meat I buy is the best they've even eaten, it's too expensive to buy on a day-to-day basis. I always buy organic meat for Christmas, birthdays and when we have family gatherings. At other times I buy from a small butcher who gets his meat from a farmer nearby. I NEVER buy from supermarkets. Not only is it more expensive than the little butcher but I always worry about the way the animals have been treated prior to their deaths. My guess is that animals from a small processor would be treated better than those with a very high turnover. :carrot: I do know that beef producers try to grow their cattle as fast as they can, most try for two offspring a year and then give them growth hormones to accelerate their growth. They also pack in as many cattle as they can manage into their lots which increases the risk of disease. Antibiotics are given as a matter of course to help prevent disease from developing and spreading. Ever wondered why people are becoming resistant to antibiotics? This is one of the reasons why. If there are antibiotics in the food you eat, you get a dose too. All the normal beef handling procedures apply to chickens too. If you can't afford organics, free range is the next best option. This way animals and chickens at least eat a "normal" diet. Don't be fooled by "grain fed" beef either. Cows are grass eaters, their systems are not meant to eat grain. :carrot:

We have organic vegetables almost all year. We produce most of our potatoes, pumpkins, tomatoes, lettuce, all herbs, cucumbers, radishes, carrots, celery, corn, squash, spinach, chard, ginger, garlic, onions, bananas, lemons and passionfruit. We've just planted oranges, mandarins and avocardos and will soon add raspberries, strawberries and peaches. When I can't grow my own, I buy organic fruit and veges. :carrot:

I buy organic flour to bake bread and for general cooking. I buy organic cereal for breakfast and we drink organic tea. We also have a filter on our water tap and drink plenty of filtered water. All my family are very healthy and the best part of all of this is that I think organic food is much tastier.

Even reducing the pesticides, hormones, and antibiotics a little bit is helpful. Do what you can, don't worry about what you can't.

I'm not really sure it's a 'garden' question? But I was thinking of changing my diet to organic only??

I was wondering if this is really worth the extra cost and what the benefits really are and where you even begin???

I saw a woman on TV tonight that had had cancer and she was an organic vegan, no smoking or caffine or alcohol and into yoga. OK this is a MASSIVE all round lifestyle change but she looked really 'WELL' and you have to start somewhere.

What do you think?

Well, I'm a registered nurse and I don't think organic vegans are necessarily exempt from Cancer. Cancer can strike us without warning, despite our food preferences. Eating a good balanced diet, preferably organic, is an excellent idea, but I am a believer in Protein, as our cells, muscle, tissue, etc. are comprised of Protein. How do we renew our skin cells, organ cells, hormones, etc. without Protein? Legumes are an excellent source of Protein, but our body is largely comprised of Protein and water, so good sources of Protein are essential to good health, in my humble opinion.

my hd and I have changed a lot this year I had a health scare in jan. and he had a hip replacement last year we are both over weight . So I quit drinking alcohol even wine , pop coffee . hd still drinks them once in a while but has came on board with eating healthy organic as much as possible. I look at it this way we will save a lot of money in health care in the future we both take high blood pressure meds he has sleep apena so it will help save money and maybe our lives
we walk everyday rain or shine and are losing pounds weekly I feel a lot better .
also I like the idea of by local, no chemicals and how they treat the animals
we are not vegans but have incorporated a lot of meatless meals which save money. I cook everyday no matter how busy plan ahead and shop smart knowing my prices it is only my hd and myself kids are grown. but we also are planting a big garden which will take time and effort but we think is worth it so we know where our vegetables come from also shop farmers markets. there are a lot of great websites out there to help . I am no expert but I know there are lists that tell you what are the vegetables that have the most and least amount of chemicals etc. Start small and do what you can. its worth it in my opinion. organic whole grains fruit, veggies and meat they can be affordable if your careful . and your health is worth it! good luck :carrot: :banana: :chicken:

Congratulations flowergirl! Well done. I really enjoyed reading your post.You have obviously made many positive changes to your lives and are now feeling the benefits. It's all about healthy choices. Good for you...and welcome!:wave:

Hey, good for you! Yes, It can be done.

It's best to start small. Give up one thing at a time so you don't feel deprived. My husband and I started 4 years ago by giving up sodas and replacing it with raspberry ice tea.. Then we moved to sweets and replaced them with sliced fruit mixed in yogurt. We didn't like the negativity in our home so we changed our lifestyle and gave up television. (we only watch rented films from Block buster or the Library) 5 months ago I gave up milk and that wasn't easy. I had major withdrawls. Now I drink soy milk but only occasionally because it's quite expensive. 3 weeks ago after watching a cow slaughtered on the movie 'Fast food Nation', I gave up meat. Now I only eat fish. I'm learning to make whole wheat gluten from my vegetarian son and his wife. I like the taste and like the fact that it's healthy. I'm feeling better than ever!

You can do it... Best of Luck!