By Irene Hayton

One of the things that we recommend to patients is to choose organic foods whenever possible, but often this is not feasible due to cost and/or availability. The next best option is to choose locally grown fruits and vegetables, and summer is the best time of the year to do so because local farmers’ markets are generally more abundant.

Eating locally has several advantages that benefit your health, your community, and the environment. For one, it fits well with Dr. Matsen’s recommendation of “eating according to climate” because you’re eating foods that grow in the area in which you live. This helps to avoid ileocecal valve problems.

Eating locally also supports your local economy and the farmers in your community, and it contributes to the future of family farming in your area. When you shop at local farmers’ markets, you often have the opportunity to meet the farmers who grow the food being sold and you can ask for information such as whether pesticides are used or not.

Because fruits and vegetables that are available at local farmers’ markets aren’t being shipped long distances to be sold elsewhere, they:

• are less likely to be sprayed with chemicals to preserve them during shipping, and are therefore more beneficial for your health and the environment;
• are picked when they’re ripe—rather than being picked prematurely so that they’ll survive the long trip—so they are fresher, tastier, and more nutritious;
• are better for the environment because they don’t need to be transported by truck or plane, thereby cutting down on pollution.

Some of us are fortunate enough to live in areas where there are farms nearby that sell their produce to the general public. Or you can search online for farmers’ markets in your community. To find one in British Columbia, check the following website: www.bcfarmersmarket.org/findamarket.asp