Are Organic Foods Safer or Healthier?
Authors: Preston K. Andrews
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2013)

Letters19 February 2013Are Organic Foods Safer or Healthier?Preston K. Andrews, PhDPreston K. Andrews, PhDFrom Washington State University, Pullman, Washington.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-158-4-201302190-00015 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:In their Methods section, Smith-Spangler and colleagues (1) state that they “evaluated the extent to which the organic–conventional comparison pairs were of the same cultivar or breed, grown on neighboring farms, and harvested during the same season.” However, in their Results section, they admitted that they included a significant percentage of pairs in their meta-analysis that compared different cultivars and that did not come from neighboring fields (“Among produce studies, 59% ... and 65% ... compared food pairs from neighboring farms or the same cultivar, respectively.”). Thus, 41% of the pairs were not grown on neighboring farms ...References1. Smith-Spangler C, Brandeau ML, Hunter GE, Bavinger JC, Pearson M, Eschbach PJ, et al. Are organic foods safer or healthier than conventional alternatives?: a systematic review. Ann Intern Med. 2012;157:348-66. [PMID: 22944875] LinkGoogle Scholar2. Lester GE, Saftner RA. Organically versus conventionally grown produce: common production inputs, nutritional quality, and nitrogen delivery between the two systems. J Agric Food Chem. 2011;59:10401-6. [PMID: 21910454] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Reganold JP, Andrews PK, Reeve JR, Carpenter-Boggs L, Schadt CW, Alldredge JR, et al. Fruit and soil quality of organic and conventional strawberry agroecosystems. PLoS One. 2010;5:. [PMID: 20824185] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Chang K. Stanford scientists cast doubt on advantages of organic meat and produce. New York Times. 3 September 2012. Accessed at www.nytimes.com/2012/09/04/science/earth/study-questions-advantages-of-organic-meat-and-produce.html on 21 September 2012. Google Scholar5. Brandt K, Leifert C, Sanderson R, Seal CJ. Agroecosystem management and nutritional quality of plant foods: the case of organic fruits and vegetables. Critical Reviews in Plant Sciences. 2011;30:177-97. CrossrefGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: From Washington State University, Pullman, Washington.Disclosures: Employment: Washington State University; Grants/grants pending: U.S. Department of Agriculture Specialty Crops Block Grant, Washington State University BIOAg Grant; Payment for lectures including service on speakers bureaus: Agronomy Society of American annual meeting October 2012; Other: Dr. Andrews is a coauthor on one of the cited articles (3). PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoAre Organic Foods Safer or Healthier Than Conventional Alternatives? Crystal Smith-Spangler , Margaret L. Brandeau , Grace E. Hunter , J. Clay Bavinger , Maren Pearson , Paul J. Eschbach , Vandana Sundaram , Hau Liu , Patricia Schirmer , Christopher Stave , Ingram Olkin , and Dena M. Bravata Are Organic Foods Safer or Healthier? Sari Lisa Davison Are Organic Foods Safer or Healthier? Charles Benbrook Are Organic Foods Safer or Healthier? Donald R. Davis Are Organic Foods Safer or Healthier? Crystal Smith-Spangler , Margaret L. Brandeau , Ingram Olkin , and Dena M. Bravata Are Organic Foods Safer or Healthier? Kirsten Brandt Metrics Cited ByDiscrimination between organic and conventional raw and UHT milk by fatty acid profile in Inner Mongolia,China 19 February 2013Volume 158, Issue 4Page: 295-296KeywordsAttentionDisclosureFoodGeneticsNutrientsNutritionVitamin C ePublished: 19 February 2013 Issue Published: 19 February 2013 CopyrightCopyright © 2013 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF DownloadLoading ...