The Nugent Report is hosted by Dr. Steve Nugent, a renowned psychologist, author, public speaker and expert on science, health, wellness and nutrition. Dr. Nugent’s mission with this podcast is to provide objective information about a variety of topics in wellness and nutrition, as well as to increase public awareness of health and nutrition in relation to the realities of the modern diet and dietary needs vs. 21st Century stresses and the environment. He got his start in radio during his days as a Marine and has trained in electronic journalism, television, technical direction and more.
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The Nugent Report is hosted by Dr. Steve Nugent, a renowned psychologist, author, public speaker and expert on science, health, wellness and nutrition. Dr. Nugent’s mission with this podcast is to provide objective information about a variety of topics in wellness and nutrition, as well as to increase public awareness of health and nutrition in relation to the realities of the modern diet and dietary needs vs. 21st Century stresses and the environment. He got his start in radio during his days as a Marine and has trained in electronic journalism, television, technical direction and more.
Episode 15: Natural, Organic, Semisynthetic, Synthetic
Natural, organic, semisynthetic, synthetic; what does it all mean?
You might be surprised to know that organic doesn’t actually mean safer, more nutritious or chemical free. You may also be surprised to know that not all things that are natural are organic.
Are you confused yet? Stay with me friends, it will all become clear very soon.
Most of my audiences worldwide have heard me speak about the dangers of thinking in absolutes. Here are some examples of why absolutism is a problem, particularly in science. The majority of people surveyed around the world believe that if it comes from a plant, it’s always healthier, natural always works better than synthetic and that synthetics are always bad for you. All of those assumptions are false. I know… Some of you are having of what I call yeah but moments right now. You’re thinking to yourself “yeah but so-and-so says, yeah but I heard that, yeah but my favorite Guru says... Control the yeah but moments please, we’re about to talk about objective facts.
The scientific definitions and commonly used marketing definitions are often very different. My purpose in this piece is to give you a clear understanding of what each of those categories means so you can make the best possible choices for your personal health program.
Let’s start with life on planet Earth. Nobody is sure what life might be like on other planets, but life on planet Earth is all carbon-based. Everything that is alive or ever was alive contains carbon molecules. One definition of organic is living organisms, but a more accurate scientific definition of organic would be anything that contains carbon molecules. Now someone is going to say, “but fossil fuels contain carbon molecules”. Keep in mind that fossil fuels were once plant material. The common misconception from marketing is that the dinosaurs were the source of today’s fossil fuels but that is not only incorrect it doesn’t even make sense. There were never enough dinosaurs to decompose into the enormous levels of fossil fuels on this planet, all fossil fuels came from living plants. That’s why fossil fuels contain carbon. And yes, that does mean that they would technically fit the definition organic. Realistically however no one would use that classification.
People all over the world have come to believe the marketing definition of organic, natural and synthetic. The common marketing definition of organic is that it is either plant or animal which has been raised without pesticides, hormones etc. the implication then is that the word organic means, safer and cleaner. People also believe that it means more nutritious. Theoretically if plants and animals are fed properly, they should end up being more nutritious, but that’s not guaranteed by the use of the word organic.
For many years, there were several US states that had their own definition of the word organic, each one was slightly different than the other. Finally, the US Department of Agriculture established their definition. They say that “Produce can be called organic if it’s certified to have grown on soil that had no prohibited substances applied for three years prior to harvest. Prohibited substances include most synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. In instances when a grower has to use a synthetic substance to achieve a specific purpose, the substance must first be approved according to criteria that examine its effects on human health and the environment.”
Understand my friends, this definition does not specify that there must be a guarantee that no prohibited substances such as pesticides are present on the produce you buy, because there is no possibility of making that guarantee on planet Earth. When you buy something labeled organic there is a measure of faith involved.
The Nugent Report
The Nugent Report is hosted by Dr. Steve Nugent, a renowned psychologist, author, public speaker and expert on science, health, wellness and nutrition. Dr. Nugent’s mission with this podcast is to provide objective information about a variety of topics in wellness and nutrition, as well as to increase public awareness of health and nutrition in relation to the realities of the modern diet and dietary needs vs. 21st Century stresses and the environment. He got his start in radio during his days as a Marine and has trained in electronic journalism, television, technical direction and more.
