Numerous studies are being carried out to determine whether organic produce is safer to eat. One possible difference in the chemical make-up of organic vs. conventional products has been identified in a study recently published by scientists at Washington State University. The authors, who work at the School's Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources, found that mushrooms grown organically have higher levels of two compounds known to repel insects. Check magic organic shrooms to find the best.
Mushrooms may not seem like an important source of nutrients, but they contain significant amounts of minerals such as potassium and selenium, dietary fiber, and vitamins D and B. They also provide certain phytochemicals with antioxidant properties. But more relevant here: they contain these anti-insect compounds, suggesting that organic mushrooms might be more insect repellent than conventional counterparts.
Research on organic mushrooms
The researchers, led by WSU research assistant Rosalee Hellberg, carried out the study with the organic Golden Oyster Mushrooms (Agaricus bisporus) grown at the university's experimental farm in Prosser.
The scientists compared Golden Oyster Mushrooms grown organically on wheat straw to conventionally grown ones on manure. This is one of the best methods for growing medicinal mushrooms because of the precision and control that can be maintained in the growing environment. They measured levels of phenols and examined whether or not insects fed on either type of mushroom. Their findings were published in the online journal PLoS One (http://www.plosone.org/).
"[Our results] suggest that organically-grown mushrooms contain higher levels of some bioactive compounds with potential impact on health," Hellberg said. "We also found that insects fed on organic mushrooms produced smaller F1 offspring than insects feeding on conventional mushrooms."
It is good to know there are studies conducted comparing organic and conventional foods, though it would be more exciting if the results turned out in favor of organic foods instead of just showing one difference between them (as was shown here). However, I am curious about this claim that "insects fed on organic mushrooms produced smaller F1 offspring than insects feeding on conventional" mushrooms.
That claim is a lot of information to cram into one sentence, and the public needs to have more detailed explanations on these studies, not just short summaries from news reports. I cannot find any other sources besides this original article, so if anyone else has read more on this study, please add the details in the comments!
I'm going back through some of my older posts and making updates or improvements where applicable. Although originally I had set up this page as a free resource for people who were reporting on organic vs. conventional foods, I soon found that even when they don't cite me, many people copy the information here in its entirety. I started to feel conflicted about this when I realized that although others were using my page, they weren't linking back to me even though my work was cited. So then, I decided to provide a summary on my own, inspiring the information verbatim without giving any credit.
My philosophy is that if you want to make any difference in the world, one of the most important things you can do is be honest with yourself and others because otherwise, there's no way for your ideas or efforts to have integrity. There are already too many people out there who aren't trying to make a positive contribution but are instead focused on making money off someone else's hard work by providing.
