Strawberries topped the 2018 list of the dirtiest fruits and vegetables called the Dirty Dozen. The foods featured on the list are the ones that have the most pesticides.
The list is being published by the Environmental Working Group since 2004, which ranks the pesticide contamination of 47 popular fruits and vegetables.
Dirty Baker's Dozen
The Environmental Working Group's list of the dirtiest fruits and vegetables shows that 70 percent of conventionally grown fruits and vegetables contain up to 230 different pesticides or their breakdown products. The list was compiled by analyzing the produce samples tested by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
At the top of the Dirty Dozen sat strawberries. EWG found that one sample of strawberries tested positive for 22 different pesticides residues. It also found that one-third of all conventional strawberry samples contained 10 or more pesticides.
The Dirty Dozen list is rounded out by spinach, nectarines, apples, grapes, peaches, cherries, pears, tomatoes, celery, potatoes, and sweet bell peppers. On the list, more than 90 percent of peaches, grapes, apples, nectarines, spinach, and celery were found to have pesticide residues.
A thirteenth entry on the list was also included this year - hot peppers. They were added to the list this year because they contain traces of highly toxic pesticides. Hot peppers were found to be contaminated with insecticides that are toxic to the human nervous system.
EWG found that almost 70 percent of conventionally grown fruits and vegetables were found to contain traces of pesticides. Pesticides pose health risks for those that are exposed to them.
Low exposure can cause nausea, abdominal cramps, diarrhea, dizziness, anxiety, and confusion but are reversible. Chronic exposure to pesticides can lead to respiratory problems, memory disorders, skin conditions, depression, miscarriage, birth defects, cancer, and neurological conditions.
Clean 15
EWG also released a list of the fruits and vegetables that are found to have the lowest amount of pesticide residue. At the top of the list were avocados. EWG found that fewer than one percent of conventional avocados tested positive for pesticides.
Rounding out the list of the most pesticide-free fruits and vegetables includes sweet corn, pineapples, cabbage, onions, frozen sweet peas, papayas, asparagus, mangoes, eggplants, honeydews, kiwis, cantaloupes, cauliflower, and broccoli.
There is an asterisk on several of the fruits and vegetables on the list. EWG points out that a small portion of sweet corn, papaya, and summer squash sold in the United States is produced from genetically modified seeds.
