What we should do as a Smart Consumer to make our fruits and vegetables free from pesticides?

Fruit and vegetables are among the healthiest foods on the planet. Although, unfortunately, in the modern day, they too have a downside, the pesticides. The residual amount of these chemicals are present on them when you buy them from a grocery store. The sad and shocking part is that even after washing these fruits and vegetables continously for 15 seconds in running tap water doesn't remove these chemicals residue. Eating them without properly removing pesticide residue may lead to food poisoning, diarrhea, hormonal issues, skin and hair problems and even long term deadly diseases of brain, lungs, kidney and cancer. It is a very big issue and in this article I'll share with you the best and practical ways to resolve this issue.

Use of Chemicals

In the past few decades, the use of pesticides have increased tremendously to meet the need of over-growing population. Almost every crop is treated with pesticides.

What and how this is done?
So basically there are 3 types of chemical agents used in fruits and vegetables to bring out what actually you see at the grocery store. 

     1. Ripening Agents - Fruits like banana and mango are treated by ripening agents.  Ripening agents are mostly calcium carbide (Calcium carbide reacts with moisture and form Acetylene which mimics natural ripener, Ethylene). Obviously this is done so that fruits and vegetables reach the market before season and can fetch more profit. The problem with calcium carbide is that it contains heavy metals like Lead and Arsenic which are harmful for human body. 

     2. Coating Agents - It includes Wax and DPA (Diphenylamin). These are mostly used on every exotic fruits and vegetables which is transported from another region or country to your doorstep. These are highly used on exotic fruits and vegetables. The purpose of doing this is to preserve moisture and consistency of the fruits and vegetables during cold storage and transportation so that they look fresh for longer.

• Wax is a petroleum product and DPA reacts with nitrogen to form Nitrosamine which is a suspected carcinogen (cancer causing).

How to deal with ripening and coating agents?

See the solution of these two problems is very obvious:

1. Do not eat anything which is not in season.

2. Ditch the foreign use and go local. From this you will not only save yourself from chemicals but 

• You are saving your money because local things are always cheaper.
• The food grown locally is more easily absorbed by the body. 
• You'll help the local farmers. 

     3. Pesticides - There are two types of pesticides:-

• Systematic Pesticides - Put at the bottom of a tree nearer to the roots, so that they are absorbed by the plant. And they will be in the leaves, stem, fruit and flowers for about 10-15 weeks. These pesticides protect the plant from the pests that penetrate into the skin of crops to suck out the liquid inside. 
• Contact Pesticides - These pesticides are sprayed on the surface of the plants, fruits and vegetables. These are main culprits as the residue of these pesticides remain on the fruits and vegetables when you bring them home from the market.

Can Organic Food be a Solution? 

We can get rid of this problem. Now the most obvious solution is to buy organic food. Although it's a safer option from which we can keep us safe from pesticides. But organic foods are also treated with bit pesticides but it is healthier than other fruits and vegetables. Considering the soaring prices of 'Organic Foods', it might not be a practical option for many of us.

Remove 98% of Pesticides Residue

Step 1 : Put all contaminated fruits and vegetables in a container.

Step 2 : Pour enough water so that they are properly soaked.

Step 3 : Put 1tbsp of Baking Soda in it.

Step 4 : Leave the soaked fruits and vegetables in the container for about 15-20 minutes.

Step 5 : Wash them thoroughly with running tap water.

Why to use baking soda? 
Baking soda is known for its alkalizing nature which reduces the effect of pesticides to as much as 98%. Even many studies have proven this. 

This is an easy yet very effective method of removing pesticides from fruits and vegetables. So next time and every time you buy fruits and vegetables make them go through this process. 

Some More Tricks

The are some more tricks that will help you to minimize the effects of pesticides.

• Peel off - Before washing something like cabbage or onion, always peel off the first layer and then wash it using baking soda solution. 
• Wash Before you Peel - If a fruit or vegetable has skin which you won't be using, even then do not skip washing it with baking soda solution. For an example, if you cut an unwashed muskmelon, some particles of pesticide residue may move inside from the surface. 
• Keep the lid open - If you want to further diminish the effect of systematic pesticides, keep the lid open while cooking vegetables. According to Agricultural Scientists, the pesticide residue from inside or outside the vegetables moves upward with the steam. 

Well it can't be said that using all these practices, we can make our fruits and vegetables 100% free from pesticides but there are no doubt about that these are highly effective methods to reduce the effects of pesticides and other chemical agents to as much as possible. And frankly this is the best we can do as a smart consumer. 

Additional Information

Some foods, heavily treated with chemicals are:

• Banana 
• Mango
• Apple
• Brinjal
• Cauliflower 
• Brinjal
• Papaya
• Tomatoes

Some foods lowly treated with chemicals are:

• The fruits and vegetables which are grown under ground such as onions, potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, reddish etc.
• Even the green leafy vegetables do not require much pesticides. So you have another reason to eat them more often.

This was just for your awareness although I would highly recommend you to wash all the fruits and vegetables in baking soda solution. 

Even a small amount of pesticide residue can be difficult for our body to get rid of it. 

As a smart consumer let's be aware and do as best as we can.