How Bad Is It To Eat Unwashed Fruits & Vegetables?
"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links."
Say you buy a bag of apples at your local orchard and want to chomp into one on the spot. Or you’re ready to chop up a cucumber for a salad. Do you really need to pause to wash your fruits and veggies?
The consensus among food-safety experts is yes, you should always wash your produce before eating or serving it.
In fact, you should even be rinsing the items with thick peels, like oranges, because salmonella can adhere to the peel, and you don’t want to transfer it onto the flesh of your fruit that you’re eating, explains Suzannah Gerber, USDA-NIFA research fellow at Tufts University Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, and the author of Plant-Based Gourmet.
Here's the general rule: All produce—whether you grew at home, bought it at the store, or picked it up from the CSA or farmers market—should be washed under running potable water, says dietitian Toby Amidor, M.S., R.D., C.D.N., the author of Health Shots.
When it comes to produce with a rough outer skin or grooves like potatoes, avocados, and melons, use a stiff-bristled brush to scrub the produce while washing it with water, Amidor says. But, there’s no need to use soap or detergent to wash your produce. In fact, the Food and Drug Administration warns against doing so because fruit is porous and you don’t want it to absorb chemicals.
Here’s more on why you should always give your produce a good rinse (and sometimes a scrub, too) plus intel on what happens if you regularly skip washing your fruits and veggies.
What Are The Risks of Not Washing Your Fruits and Vegetables?
When you consume unwashed produce, you’re essentially rolling the dice, says C.L. Mike Schmidt, an attorney from Schmidt & Clark LLP, who has handled more than 100 food-safety cases.
“It’s not just about dirt; the real concern lies with pathogens—bacteria, viruses, and parasites—that might be clinging to those fruits and vegetables,” Schmidt says. “These contaminants can lead to foodborne illnesses, some of which can be quite severe.”
For example, E. coli and Salmonella are notorious culprits, he says, that have been linked to outbreaks traced back to unwashed or improperly washed produce. Taking a couple of extra minutes to reduce your risk of getting sick is definitely worth it because bouts of vomiting and diarrhea from food poisoning are quite unpleasant to say the least.
Skipping out on washing your fruits and veggies could also potentially expose you to pesticides, chemicals, fertilizers, too, explains Trevor Craig, a food safety expert with Microbac Laboratories.
Researchers recently published a study in the American Chemical Society’s journal Nano Letters that found simply washing your fruits and vegetables in the sink "cannot wholly remove pesticides" because these substances that repel pests can "penetrate the peel layer into the pulp layer." The good news is washing and peeling your fruit can get rid of almost all of the pesticide residue.
Another thing: Washing produce will also remove visible dirt or debris that you don’t want in your food, Craig says, since you probably don’t want the extra grit in your salad.
Which Produce Should You Never Skip Washing?
Craig says he recommends washing all produce, but some items require a little extra attention.
Apples, for instance, are on the Environmental Working Group's "dirty dozen" list, since they often test positive for pesticide residues, he says.
Even thick-skinned fruits like bananas and avocados benefit from washing.
“Their thick skins protect the flesh from direct contamination, but bacteria on the surface can be transferred to the edible parts when cutting or peeling,” Craig explains.
Fruits and vegetables with textured or rough surfaces, like potatoes or melons, may need a more thorough scrub to remove dirt and potential contaminants from their crevices, Craig says. And leafy greens and berries should also be carefully washed because of their direct exposure to soil and potential handling.
Also, if you stay up to date on recalls, you may have also noticed a pattern that it seems E.coli and Listeria have been especially common for leafy greens and herbs, while salmonella seems to be the risk in harder skinned produce, Craig points out.
What Happens If You Eat a Lot of Unwashed Produce?
Eating contaminated produce can potentially lead to foodborne illness (a.k.a. food poisoning), Amidor says.
It’s a numbers game here: “The more unwashed produce you eat, the higher your chances of taking in a pathogenic microorganism which can make you sick,” Amidor says.
Tips for Washing Your Produce
Here are a few more tips that will help you prep like a food-safety pro:
How To Wash Leafy Greens
Rinse under cold running water, separating the leaves to remove dirt and bacteria. For tougher greens like kale, soak them in a water bowl for a few minutes, then rinse, says Ashley Keyes, a health advocate and the executive chef of the C.H.O.I.C.E.S., a healthy food organization in Atlanta, Georgia.
“One common mistake is washing produce too far in advance, which can cause some fruits and vegetables to spoil faster,” Keyes says. “It's best to wash produce just before eating or cooking it.”
How To Wash Berries
Gently rinse under cold water just before eating. Avoid soaking berries, which can become waterlogged and lose flavor and texture, she says.
How To Wash Vegetables
Scrub root vegetables like potatoes and carrots with a vegetable brush under running water. A thorough rinse for vegetables with smooth skins, like tomatoes or cucumbers, should suffice, she says.
How To Wash Fruits
Rinse fruits like apples, grapes, and citrus under running water, she says. For fruits with thick skins, like melons, scrub the surface before cutting to prevent bacteria from transferring from the skin to the flesh, she suggests.
“One common mistake is washing produce too far in advance, which can cause some fruits and vegetables to spoil faster,” she says. “It's best to wash produce just before eating or cooking it.”
You Might Also Like
