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Abby's Magazine - July / August 2014 | Page 23 Are you interested in raising kids organic? There are a lot of areas in life that can be altered to accommodate a more organic lifestyle. This can improve the health and longevity of your children. Organic Food for Kids Perhaps the most important way to affect the health of your children is through the foods they eat. Non-organic foods are laden with all sorts of dangerous chemicals, such as pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides. These can cause long-term health problems and researchers are discovering more and more dangers related to the unsavory chemicals that are found in conventionally grown foods. It's not just produce that is the problem, either. Meat and grains can also contain additives that can affect the long-term health of your child. Organic Meats Intensively grown meats, such as chicken, beef, pork and turkey, have been tested and shown to contain high levels of hormones, insecticides, and antibiotics. Through conventional farming practices, animals are raised in environments where their living conditions cause them to be far more prone to disease and parasites than animals raised in natural settings. Because animals are more likely to get sick from being packed in too tightly and eating diets that are completely unnatural to them, conventional farmers must load them up with medications to keep them "healthy" and sellable. Of course, these medications end up in the meat that you eat. Are Organic Grains Important? Grains can also contain their fair share of chemical residues, from farmers who spray their crops with the same pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides they use for fresh produce. Even though many grains are sloughed of their husks during the refining process, the residue remains and can get into your system when you eat them. Nutrition and Organic Foods Beyond the chemicals that can find their way into your body, there's another reason to choose organic: studies have found that foods grown via organic methods are actually higher in nutrients than foods grown by conventional methods. In fact, some foods can contain twice as much nutritional material than their chemically-raised counterparts. That's a big deal when you think about how much effort you put into eating healthy! Even small snacks can become better for your kids when they're made with quality ingredients. Little Kids and Organics Small children are especially susceptible to the dangers of chemicals, both in food and their living environment. What choices can you make for your family that will help them to live a long, happy life? • Baby clothing is the one thing that is in contact with your newborn 24 hours a day, so you want it to be chemical-free, right? Make sure your little one is wrapped in only safe fabrics. • Organic infant formula is very important addition to your child's diet when they're small. If you feed your baby formula, only give them a brand that you know is safe. • Let's teach our kids how to make healthy lifestyle choices. Helping children to develop good decision- making skills early can save them a lifetime of difficulty later on! Raising Kids Organically By: Stephanie Stiavetti © Justin Horrocks / Getty Images