In article ,
BRD wrote:

Hello,

I just joined this site because of a lot of research I've done in
nutrient deficiencies among the 'civilized' areas of the world. What
I've found out, is that the majority of the foods that are grown today
are severely deficient in what a normal healthy human needs. The main
reason behind this is the type of soil being used to grow foods.
Artificial things mostly. The soil is able to grow things BIG and
FAST, but they are lacking the vitamins and minerals we need, because
this soil isn't as good for our food as natural soil is.
The so-called 3rd world countries use no fertlizers that aren't 100%
natural, and no extra additives to the soil that could be absorbed by
the food. These cultures have better overall health, don't have the
same types of diseases that we get, and are thinner, with lower blood
pressure, and live longer. They're thinking this is something as simple
as vitamin/mineral deficiency in the soil that our Farmers use to grow
the food we typically buy at the Supermarkets.
So, what I'm asking you all is where can I look for good natural soil
to grow food in? If testing, what should I be looking for in these
tests? I'm wanting to start to grow hopefully the majority of the food
I eat one day. I live in New Mexico, so good soil is probably hard to
come by.

The only scientific studies that I've seen that support this idea relate
more to the plants' responses to insects and (possibly) disease
organisms. Apparently some of the phytochemicals that are beneficial
to us are produced to repel or otherwise thwart, repel, or otherwise
ward off parasitic organisms. In these studies, the "organically grown"
plants were more subject to direct attack than the plants that were
protected by various pesticides; the latter plants had no need to produce
some nutritionally beneficial phytochemicals. Sorry I don't have the
references readily available...

While I haven't done an extensive search, I don't know of any scientically
valid studies that show that nutrient densities are enhanced in organically
enriched soil. If someone knows of some (or studies that counter this
hypothesis), please post the references!

-frank
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