When I was writing the briefs for this month’s Nexus, I came across some alarming news: a study by a coalition of food safety organizations reported that food poisoning extends far beyond the immediate symptoms, and can result in life-long, serious consequences, including permanent liver damage, neurological problems, paralysis, brain damage, mental retardation and blindness.

What’s worse, children account for half of all food-borne llnesses in the United States, and are more likely than adults to be affected by these devastating long-term consequences. An estimated 87 million people per year get food poisoning, and 371,000 are hospitalized. Of those, 5,700 die. It’s enough to make you sick.

And it goes beyond pathogens in our peanut butter. Our food is riddled with artificial colors and flavors, GMOs, pesticides, hormones, antibiotics and endocrine disruptors. Want more numbers? Check these out:

•5: Billions of pounds of pesticides used in the United States from 2000 to 2001
•91: Percent of tested apples that still contained pesticide residues
•22.7: Millions of cows that were treated with added growth hormone.
•17.8: Millions of pounds of antibiotics used in animals.
•6: Billions of pounds of bisphenol-A endocrine disruptor produced every year
•93: Percent of adults whose bodies showed residues of bisphenol-A when tested.
•90: Percent of fish in some areas of the Southeast United States that are intersex because of environmental estrogen exposure.
•85: Percent of U.S. corn that’s genetically modified.
•92: Percent of soybean crops planted with biotech seed varieties.

Meanwhile, our food is increasingly laced with more mundane, but nonetheless harmful, compounds like trans-fats and high-fructose corn syrup. And then there are the events
that can’t be quantified in numbers, like the cruelty endured by animals raised for food.

After all the news about our troubled food supply, many of us have lost our appetites.
What are we supposed to eat? In the words of Michael Pollan, author of the brilliant Omnivore’s Dilemma: eat food, not much, mostly plants. How this translates to your plate:

• Fruits and vegetables. They’re the gold standard for clean food, and should constitute the bulk of our diets. This is the food upon which we evolved; our earliest ancestors ate the
leaves, stems, roots, seeds, flowers and fruits of plants. They don’t require cooking, and they have more antioxidants than any other food. And since they’re at the bottom of the food chain, plants have the lowest concentrations of environmental toxins.

• Grains. We live in a carb-loving world. But how clean are grains? After the one-two punch delivered by Food, Inc. and Omnivore’s Dilemma, cornbashing is de rigueur. But given the joys of a soft, warm corn tortilla, or the small miracle of fresh, sweet summer
corn, it’s hard to banish it out of hand. Here’s the problem: many people seem to be sensitive or outright allergic to corn, and some suppose that’s because it’s so prevalent in our food supply. And, as we saw earlier, corn is overwhelmingly likely to contain genetically modified organisms. The solution, it seems, is to eat only whole, organic corn, or minimally processed organic corn products—like fresh corn tortillas, or polenta. As for other grains, skip the wheat and processed grains, and stick to the real thing, like oat
groats, buckwheat, quinoa, amaranth and wild rice.

• Meat: quality and quantity. From 2008 to the first quarter of 2009, the Food Safety Inspection Service of the USDA recalled more than 1.5 million pounds of beef, pork and poultry products that were contaminated with E. coli, listeria and salmonella. Meanwhile,
up to 70 percent of U.S. antibiotics go to healthy animals raised on industrial farms, to offset crowding and poor sanitation. And the quality of grain-fed meat is much lower than
that of grass-fed varieties. If you do eat meat, it is absolutely imperative that you buy high-quality. Get your flesh foods from local producers, and choose only organic, grass-fed beef or buffalo, and organic (pastured is best) chicken.

• Dairy. Milk, cheese, butter, yogurt and other dairy products just aren’t clean. They come from domestic cows, many of which are given genetically engineered hormones (rBST or rBGH) to increase their milk production. These hormones are banned in most
countries; only South Africa, Mexico and, shockingly, the United States still allow them.

All that aside, there’s no compelling reason to eat dairy; it’s hard to digest, likely to be allergenic, high in saturated fat, free of fiber, and unnecessary from a nutritional standpoint. If you’re trying to get your daily calcium, remember two things: most dark, leafy greens have as much calcium as milk, and the role of calcium as a panacea for bone health is being routinely questioned. If you do eat dairy, buy it from a local farmer. Purchase a share of a dairy cow. Choose organic milk products from grass-fed cows.

• Eggs. They’ve gotten lots of good press lately; but are they clean? Eggs, even the organic variety, are especially susceptible to salmonella contamination. If they’re raised conventionally, they may also contain pesticide residues and antibiotics, and come from chickens that have been raised in horrifying living conditions. Cage-free and free-range labels are palliative at best; they’re uncertified designations, and don’t guarantee any level of humane treatment. Even organic eggs may come from chickens that have spent most of their lives indoors, in crowded conditions, eating grains—not a chicken’s normal diet. Grain-fed eggs are higher in cholesterol and saturated fat, and lower in vitamins A and E, omega-3 fatty acids, and beta carotene. If you eat eggs, buy them from a small local farmer who lets them eat grass, or look for Certified Humane organic eggs, or pasture-raised eggs. Always cook eggs thoroughly to kill pathogens, and limit your consumption.

• Fish and seafood. In the clean-food debate, fish is not such a catch after all. If it came from the ocean, it’s probably full of mercury. If it came from afar, it’s likely laced with dioxins, pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Having said that, fish is a good source of protein and omega-3 fats. If you do eat it, avoid predatory, top-of-thechain
fish like tuna and swordfish to avoid mercury toxicity; skip the skin, since it’s a main storage area for toxins; and get your fish from a clean, reputable market, with knowledgeable staff that can answer your questions. Eat fish only once a week, and before you buy, visit the Environmental Defense Fund’s Seafood Selector page (edf.org) for safe seafood updates.

• Beans, peas and lentils. Legumes are one of the cleanest foods around. They are a good source of protein; they’re high in fiber, low in fat, and linked with reduced risk of heart disease, diabetes and cancer. Of course, there’s an exception to every rule; in
this case, it’s soy. We’ve seen that it’s likely to be contaminated with GMOs, but even organic soy has issues. Yes, some studies have suggested that soy may reduce the risk of osteoporosis, heart disease and cancer, but as many studies have shown the opposite. Soy
is rich in hormonally active agents called isoflavones, which function as a double-edged sword: they can either inhibit or stimulate the growth of certain kinds of cancer, depending on dosage and individual genetic makeup. Soy also contains compounds that block the absorption of minerals and hamper the action of enzymes that help digest protein.

If you do eat soy, eat it in moderation – about 10 grams a day; choose traditionally fermented forms – tempeh, miso, tamari or soy sauce; stick to whole forms, instead of highly processed products like soy cheese; stay away from soy protein powders,
textured vegetable protein or foods that have added isoflavones; and use only organic soy.

• Nuts. We grew up nibbling on nuts, and for the most part, they’re clean sources of protein and healthy fats. Again, there are exceptions, and in this case it’s peanuts. They may be sprayed with pesticides and are susceptible to salmonella. Even organic peanuts
may be contaminated with aspergillus. This invisible mold produces compounds called aflatoxins, which are carcinogenic. It’s such a problem, that some nutritionists advise never eating peanuts. It has even been suggested that conventionally grown peanuts are a better choice than organic, because fungicides reduce the amount of aflatoxin on peanuts – ridiculous advice, in my opinion. If you do eat them, follow this clean-peanut advice:
buy vacuum-packed varieties to lessen the amount of exposure the nuts have had to air, thus limiting the potential for molds to form. And buy organic, to avoid pesticide exposure.

Lisa Turner is a chef and food writer in Boulder. She also teaches cooking and nutrition classes at Bauman College, and offers catering and nutrition consulting. Visit TheHealthyGourmet.net or InspiredEating.com for more details.