Pulse Brain · Growing Health Evidence Index
Tier 4 — Narrative / commentaryPeer-reviewed

Organic food consumption and health: a review

Curl, C.L. et al.

2019

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Summary

This review, published in Nutrients in 2019, synthesises available evidence on the relationship between organic food consumption and human health. It draws on observational and epidemiological studies to assess whether consuming organically produced food is associated with measurable health benefits, including reduced pesticide exposure and altered nutrient intake. The paper likely concludes that evidence is suggestive but methodologically limited, given confounding by health-conscious behaviours among organic consumers.

UK applicability

Although the review is international in scope, its findings are broadly applicable to UK policy discussions around organic food labelling, dietary guidance, and pesticide regulation, particularly in the context of post-Brexit agricultural standards and the UK National Food Strategy.

Key measures

Pesticide biomarker levels; dietary nutrient intake; disease incidence or risk; organic food consumption frequency

Outcomes reported

The review examines associations between organic food consumption and health outcomes, including pesticide exposure, nutrient intake, and disease risk. It likely synthesises epidemiological and observational evidence on populations consuming organic versus conventionally produced food.

Theme
Nutrition & health
Subject
Organic food & human health
Study type
Narrative Review
Study design
Narrative review
Source type
Peer-reviewed study
Status
Published
Geography
International
System type
Human clinical
Catalogue ID
XL0750

Topic tags

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