Some fruits and vegetables absorb chemicals more than others, and are therefore, more harmful to our health. Here's our list of the Top Fruits & Vegetables you may want to avoid unless you can buy them from local and organic sources.

• Pesticide Usage. It is unfortunate the amount (over 1 billion tons) and types of pesticides used to grow the majority of crops in this country. While some pesticides like DDT have been banned, other pesticides requiring farm workers to wear protective gear are still used. And given the growth of genetically modified food and seed, corporations have created chemicals that specifically need to be sprayed to make crops such as corn and soy grow.
  
  Pesticides like iprodione found in peaches, captan found in strawberries and dieldrin found in potatoes and winter squash are classified by the EPA as probable cancer causing agents. Other pesticides like methyl parathion found in apples, grapes, peaches and pears have killed huge populations of bees and bird wildlife.

• Chemical Absorption. While washing fruit and vegetables can reduce the residue amounts of some pesticides, it does not get rid of them. Some pesticides are created to bind to the outside of the fruit or vegetable and so they don't wash off. Other chemicals get into the fruit or vegetable so peeling does not rid the food of its danger.

• Top Fruits & Vegetables to Buy Organic. There has been a lot of testing by organizations like the Environmental Working Group, to see which fruits and vegetables are most likely to test positive for pesticides and which tend to have multiple pesticide residue on them. Here's the ones that score the worst: 
  
  • Peaches
  • Strawberries
  • Apples
  • Nectarines
  • Grapes
  • Pears
  • Rasberries
  • Cherries
  • Spinach
  • Potatoes
  • Bell Peppers
  • Celery