I’m sure you saw last week’s story about a Stanford University study that found little evidence that organic foods are healthier than more conventionally grown food.

Now, that’s not completely accurate… but you have to read the full study to find that out. I’m not going to get into the merits of the study… it’s just too confusing.

But I’ll ask you this: should you care?

I pick and choose what organic produce to buy based largely on the non-profit Environmental Working Group’s annual “Dirty Dozen” report.  Like most people, I want to avoid pesticides and other chemicals used in conventional farming, if possible.

If farmers use pesticide-free organic growing methods, there are more nutrients in the soil, which increases the nutritional content of the food. But at the same time, using pesticides to help produce reach its peak ripeness enables those fruits and vegetables to be packed with more vitamins than those that are less-ripe.

But even conventionally grown produce contains less pesticide residue than the maximum allowed by the Environmental Protection Agency. Still, I’m not completely comfortable with what the government sets as an allowable amount of pesticide.

I told you it was confusing.

So what’s the answer? Buy organic if you can afford it. If you can’t, review the EWG Dirty Dozen list and make sure you thoroughly wash your produce before eating it. Above all, just like your Mama told you growing up: ”Keep eating your fruits and vegetables! They’re good for you!” (Regardless of how they’re grown!)