Consideration about modern produce

Amazoniac

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Modern produce are breed to be more attractive. Increasing the sugar content of foods often sacrifices some nutrients to compensate for it. The food then becomes more attractive to predators of all kinds. Consequently it has to increase its anti-nutrients for protection.
Simplifying, increasing sugar equals more toxicity and less nutrition.
The exceptions to having an negative impact for us would be the roots that can be consumed raw for its antibiotic effect.
Just a speculation. Does anyone notice any flaw in any part of this?
 

tara

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Well breeding just for increased sugar may well have it's drawbacks, including in terms of other nutrients and resilience to environmental conditions, depending on how the breeding is done. I think some breeding is done to deliberately reduce anti-nutrient/toxic chemical content.
But for a given plant, my understanding was that higher brix generally corresponds to favourable growing conditions, higher mineral content, greater resistance to pests and diseases, and longer shelf-life/slower rotting.
 

pboy

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tara said:
Well breeding just for increased sugar may well have it's drawbacks, including in terms of other nutrients and resilience to environmental conditions, depending on how the breeding is done. I think some breeding is done to deliberately reduce anti-nutrient/toxic chemical content.
But for a given plant, my understanding was that higher brix generally corresponds to favourable growing conditions, higher mineral content, greater resistance to pests and diseases, and longer shelf-life/slower rotting.

yes, sugar content has little to nothing to do with anything toxic about the plants. There is a misconception about sugar and breeding and all that being put out these days. There are a few plants like that, such as apples and bananas, but the wild predecessors to most fruits are just as sweet in nature as they are in cultivated conditions, especially tropical fruits. There are many wild fruit bearing plants you can probably find even in or around most cities and they are just as sweet as anything in the market. Sugar being high generally correlates to the health of the plant, so the higher the brix and more sugar that's free rather than bound in semi starchy material is actually an indicator of ripeness, likelihood of minerals, and health of the plant.

However, the way plants are cultivated these days does have many toxic drawbacks. Not only the pesticides and insectisices and all that that is on and in the plant, but the soils are generally deficient in nutrients, because these pesticides also chelate minerals in the soil making them unavailable to plants and bacteria, so they get starved. Not to mention they don't properly refertalize the soil, so the plant might grow and look semi alright, but its lacking trace minerals most of the time. Also...a big, not usually talked about factor, is that any plant that senses a stress....aka most of the stuff done in modern cultivation, such as being in a mono crop, not being in its natural environment, lack insects and soil microbiome, and of coruse GMO plants that have viral genes injected into them...all of these things increase the plants toxins, at the cost of nutrition. So wild fruits of certain types might even be sweeter than the cultivated ones. This is why a lot of people are allergic to fruits like bananas, kiwis, avocados, and many more...its because of the allergens produced by the stressed and chemically assaulted plants. If its really sweet and tastes pure, its actually a good thing
 

pboy

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johns74 said:
^you forgot they take it from the tree before it ripens.

yea lol, I understand they want to get it to market without bruising or rotting, but...that almost ruins the whole point of the fruit! Id actually rather it be where there was only ripe fruit available, it would be like 1 shelf, but at least youd know it was worth it when you got it. The way produce is set out now and way they pick and ship it is kind just an illusion most of the time...some of it has some benefit, but not up to par with what it should be. I think if most people actually tried tree ripe fruit that was healthy, theyd have a different opinion on the value of it, and value of it to their health. When you eat a fruit that doesn't taste that good and is hard and stringy and stuff, it takes away from seeing the harmonious effect humans and fruit share in nature...its more like the general attitude of you work hard and labor and you produce some tough semi edible stuff! Rather than like...wow , this is a gift...its like the fruit speaks to you when you hold it and eat it
 

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