I've always been very interested in nutrition. That’s what initially brought me to the public health fields back in the day. I am not a certified nutritionist or anything like that so I don't talk about it a lot on the podcast. But today I want to talk about the Dirty Dozen. The Dirty Dozen is a report that is released by the Environmental Working Group. What they do is they study conventional fruits and vegetables and they rank them based on the amount of pesticide residue that is found on each of them. If you're trying to eat more organic food, it is a good list to follow. So when you're shopping, you can prioritize how you spend your money in shopping organic. I mean, I'm sure you wish you could buy everything 100% organic. But let's be honest, that doesn't always happen, right? So what I do is I look at the list every year and when I go shopping, these are the fruits or vegetables that I choose to buy organic. Then I'm a little bit more flexible with the ones that aren't on the list. 

I do want to say that the Environmental Working Group is a nonprofit that puts out environmental related studies. Many people are against the Environmental Working Group and some people love them. The way I look at it is they are a resource. So you have to analyze what they're putting out. You also should look at other organizations and what they are putting out because each organization is going to have their angle, they're going to have their reasoning behind what they do and you need to make sure that you align with it. So that's the way I look at things like this. I'm not either pro or against certain organizations, I just try to use their information and do analysis on whether it aligns with what my personal beliefs are. And I do think that the Dirty Dozen is a really great resource so that you can prioritize your shopping.

If you don't have a photographic memory, which I'm sure you don't, what I would do is take a screenshot of the list above and then just save it in your phone. So when you're shopping, you can remember these vegetables and fruits. I have found that strawberries are almost always on the list. So are blueberries, peaches, and nectarines. So it's a really easy thing to remember every time I see conventional peaches or nectarines offered, I think oh, I can't get that because it's not organic. Those are on the Dirty Dozen. So that's how I work when I prioritize my shopping for organics. I hope you found this helpful. 

As always, I always appreciate you being here and listening and sharing with your friends who are also trying to be a little bit more green and clean in their life. And I always like to finish out the podcast by a little blessing saying Namaste. The light within me sees and honors the light within you.