Dr. Mike Israetel, a sports scientist and professor with a PhD in kinesiology, recently appeared on The Rubin Report to discuss common misconceptions in fitness and nutrition. Among the topics covered, his statements about organic produce challenged widely held beliefs about the health benefits of organic foods.
During the conversation with host Dave Rubin, Dr. Israetel addressed the naturalistic fallacy: the human tendency to assume that natural equals good. He explained how this cognitive bias extends to organic food preferences, noting that “a lot of people like organic food and they think organic food is like good.”
When asked directly whether scientific evidence supports health benefits from eating organic versus conventionally farmed produce, Dr. Israetel’s response was unequivocal. He stated, “We do have the data on organic food… There is evidence that organic food is not nutritively different and there is no evidence that it’s somehow better.”
Dr. Israetel referenced comprehensive reviews of the scientific literature, including a Harvard meta-review published in the mid-2010s that combined numerous studies. According to his analysis of these findings, “Some organic produce has some higher levels of nutrients in one category, but then conventionally farmed other foods have slightly higher levels of nutrients in other categories. And so on the aggregate there is neither there is evidence that organic food is not nutritively different and there is no evidence that it’s somehow better.”
He emphasized one certainty about organic produce: “There’s evidence, compelling evidence, irrefutable evidence of one thing. It costs substantially more.”
Beyond the direct health comparison, Dr. Israetel highlighted what he considers a problematic secondary effect of organic food marketing. He explained that people use simplified rules to make decisions, and “one of these kinds of heuristics that’s sunk into the popular culture is that if I’m going to eat healthy, it has to be organic.”
This belief system, he argued, creates barriers for people without substantial financial resources. He described a common scenario: people “go to the store, they see conventionally farmed produce, looks totally fine, they see organic, it’s super expensive, and they’re like trying to be on a health journey maybe, and they’re like, ‘Well, I don’t I can’t afford it.'”
This perception contributes to a broader myth that Dr. Israetel directly challenges: “The idea that healthy food costs more than not healthy food is actually entirely mythological. It’s totally myth.”
He did acknowledge one legitimate advantage of organic produce: “Organic, the organic agriculture process tends to not tolerate transport as well. So organic by definition means more local, which means the food tastes like fresher, which is like a legit thing.”
Regarding pesticide concerns, a primary motivation for many organic food purchasers, Dr. Israetel praised the work of toxicologists, stating they deserve more recognition for ensuring safety. He noted that “one of the number one professions that gets zero love and should get all love in the world is toxicology.”
On pesticide safety specifically, he stated: “They have studied pesticides and pesticide exposure in the United States for like generations.” He emphasized that approval levels exist for pesticide exposure and that “the total aggregate amount of pesticides in your body is incredibly closely monitored.”
According to multiple long-term reviews he cited, “The amount of pesticide the average American consumes is like orders of magnitude lower, like factors of 10 lower that would result mechanistically in any kind of damage.”
Dr. Israetel acknowledged that people who consume different levels of pesticides “really are just not at any risk of anything statistically.” He clarified that while drinking pure pesticides would obviously be harmful, “in the actual industrial farming practices in the United States on average pesticides are not a pertinent concern at all. They’re just not.”
When asked about potential conflicts of interest, Dr. Israetel addressed accusations of corporate influence directly. Regarding agricultural companies, he said, “I’ve actually been to Monsanto’s headquarters” and found “there’s just nothing there just like folks just trying to do a good job. There’s no conspiracy.” He added, “The agriculture businesses aren’t trying to harm you.”
In response to typical social media reactions, he noted: “A lot of the comments will be like how much is Monsanto paying to like nothing. Damn it. I don’t have any money.”
