What is making us take cognizance of the dangers caused by polluting the environment is the toll it is taking on our children. More than four million children could be saved every year if there are proper environmental management policies in place. Even though children below the age of five account for only 10% of the world’s population, they are the unfortunate victims in 40% of the cases.

Contaminated water and unsatisfactory sanitary conditions have caused the death of nearly two million children every year, in the form of diarrhoeal diseases. Respiratory infections are the cause of another two million deaths. According to a recent study in France, when pregnant women are exposed to household pesticides they increase the risk of Leukemia in their unborn children. Study groups have shown that even when children are exposed to a permissible level of pesticides, it is still harmful because of their yet-to-be-developed immune system – this makes children the most vulnerable.

What you could do as a parent towards making your child more resilient is feeding your baby organic food – food that is made without using harmful pesticides. The food should not be processed and should not contain any added salts, sugars, fillers etc.

For a farm’s produce to be pesticide free, it should not have used synthetic fertilizers or pesticides for 3 years. See if the grower uses natural pest controls such as ladybugs. Earthworms are used to aerate the soil and the post harvest processing should be kept at a minimum. Ask if the produce was tested for nitrites which get converted to Nitrates. Nitrates cause anemia in kids. Crop rotation, usage of natural fertilizers and compost are indicators that the produce is healthy.

However, produce from organic farming costs a lot more than that produced conventionally. This is because almost twice the land is required for the same amount of food to be grown. But this is a point to not even be considered because the future of your child could be at stake. Your kid’s health is worth a lot more than just a few dollars.