I have often wondered which fruit and vegetables take the biggest hit when it comes to pesticides and which fruit and veg is the most important to buy organic. Environmental Working Group (EWG), a public health advocacy group has released its 7th annual report which analyses USA government data on 53 fruits and vegetables and identifies which have the most and least pesticides after washing and peeling. Although this is USA research, it gives a good indicator to pesticide loads in non-organic fruit and vegetables generally.

Oxybenzone a widely used sunscreen ingredient used for its capacity to absorb UV radiation, appears to be contaminating people as well as protecting them from the sun. A new study by the US Centers for Disease Control and prevention(CDC) analyzed the urine of more that 2500 Americans aged 6 and over found oxybenzone (also known as benzophenone-3 or BP-3) to be present in 97 percent of samples. Although it does protect against solar radiation research now suggests that it can trigger hormone disruption, allergic reactions and cell damage.