Pesticides?

[Snoopy]

   As part of my diet, I've been trying to eat lots of vegetables.  A dietitian suggested beginning each meal with two vegetables.  I don't know what else it accomplishes, but by the time I finish eating a carrot and a stalk of celery, I barely have time to eat more fattening food!
   I especially like chomping away on the celery.  But I've recently been told that the celery sold in my area is loaded with pesticides.  I remember pesticide exposure amongst farm workers being associated with kidney disease. 
   But has anyone suggested that non-occupational pesticide exposure, from a diet rich in vegetables, might be harmful to us one-kidney types?
         Be well, Snoopy

[Fr Pat]

Dear Snoopy,
     Hi. I'm not a medical professional, but I don't recall ever reading anyplace about possible kidney damage from pesticides on vegetables. Do you know if thorough washing of the celery would remove more of any pesticide residue? Or scraping off some of the surface? Or is the pesticide inside throughout the vegetable? Don't know myself.
   Fr. Pat

[Clark]

Agricultural pesticide use in Central America is the presumed cause of relatively high rates of end stage renal disease among the residents of the area, not just the field workers. This is a long term story without resolution to date that I know of, and no peer reviewed confirmation of the causal link.


Clean what you eat to your personal standards of cleanliness and you shouldn't have too much to worry about. Most pesticides are water soluble and on the surface, so a rinse and a light scrub should be enough. Most nutrition studies have verified that the advantages to humans of whole vegetable consumption far outweigh the risks due to pathogens, contaminants, or natural toxins. Life is risk. Make informed decisions according to your tolerances of the mix of risks in every activity or inactivity.


Agreed, the increasingly wide range of new chemicals being introduced into the food supply over the past half century is cause for concern. Best wishes balancing your risks.