The Most Contaminated Foods You Can Buy at the Grocery Store

Bell peppers are high in vitamins and antioxidants, especially vitamin C and carotenoids. Some of their health benefits include improving eye health and reducing the risk of some chronic diseases. Both may contain trace amounts and sometimes significant doses of countless pesticides with deleterious effects on humans.

Grapes are a great source of the antioxidant resveratrol, which some studies suggest may help prevent certain cancers including breast, liver, stomach, and lymphatic cancers. One of the main pesticides grapes contain is Imidacloprid, a strong bee toxin.

Apples – particularly their skin – contain a high concentration of the flavonoid quercetin, which has been studied extensively and is shown to inhibit the proliferation of multiple types of cancer including prostate, breast, lung, cervical, and colon. An apple a day may keep the doctor away, but apple-lovers should be aware that the fruit typically contains numerous pesticides, including Diphenylamine or DPA (which has no known toxicity), Thiabendazole (which may be carcinogenic and contain developmental or reproductive toxins), and Pyrimethanil (suspected of being carcinogenic).

Nectarines are rich in vitamin C, vitamin A, and fiber, among other nutrients. The fruit may help with boosting immunity and lowering blood pressure. The main villain here is formetanate hydrochloride, a neurotoxin.

Carotenoids in leafy greens like kale can also boost the body’s antioxidant defenses, helping to prevent cell damage and inhibit the formation of carcinogens. At the same time, ironically, about half the samples tested contained a suspected carcinogen, Dimethyl tetrachloroterephthalate, or DCPA.