Eating Healthy is Harder Than You Might Think

Many people think that eating organic is only for the rich and the fussy. They believe that the USDA and the FDA do a fine job of regulating foodstuffs and keeping the general public safe.

In general, this is true. But there is one exception: cottonseed oil. Any byproduct of the cotton plant, for that matter.

It's not that cottonseed is bad for people in its natural form - on the contrary - it is naturally hydrogenated and contains many antioxidants. The problem is that the plant is not classified as a food, and, therefore, the pesticides used on cotton are not subject to the same regulatory standards as the pesticides used on food.

Cottonseed oil manufacturers assert that the oil can be purified, but scientists at the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition say that it's not clear whether or not pesticides can be removed.

Cottonseed oil appears in our food supply in two main ways. First, cottonseed oil is used in many different kinds of processed foods - crackers, cookies, salad dressings, potato chips and more. For example, most Nabisco products contain cottonseed oil.

The second way that cotton enters our food supply is through food fed to cows, more specifically a substance called "gin trash." Gin trash is a natural substance - plant byproducts from cotton production given to cows for roughage. These materials can contain pesticide residues that are absorbed by the cow's digestive systems, and passed on to humans through milk and meat.

How can you avoid ingesting potentially harmful pesticides? Simple: Don't purchase any processed food that contains cottonseed oil; don't cook with cottonseed oil; and, finally, consume only organic beef and dairy products.