Urban gardens can pose health risks

Urban gardens have grown in Spain and Europe very notably. They are the trend in food revolution in recent years. However, this garden boom has numerous risks.

Do you want to know more about the risks posed by the advancement of urban gardens?

Possible risks

The advancement of urban gardens can pose certain problems and health hazards. One of them is that the soil that is used for cultivation can come from elements that are potentially toxic because they are close to an industrial area where there may be some type of spill. Another risk is that which may be found near roads that are heavily trafficked by vehicles or near landfills.

All these situations mean that the urban garden does not maintain its most optimal levels of quality and they can present health risks from contamination of crops.

Urban soils that do not have any type of control can harbor numerous pollutants such as petroleum products, heavy metals such as lead, pesticides and industrial chemicals, especially in lands that are close to industrial areas, busy roads and landfills. garbage.

This makes the crops, during their growth, absorb these dangerous substances and then they are ingested by the consumer, affecting health. Pollutants usually accumulate in the stem, root and leaves of plants, but depending on each element and its behavior on the ground it acts in one way or another.

Reduce risks

Urban gardens without any type of control do not have appropriate conditions to avoid the risks mentioned above. For example, those crops grown in a greenhouse garden can prevent air pollution.

To extend urban gardens in a correct and healthy way, A preliminary analysis must first be done to assess the viability of the land and the species that can be cultivated.

According to data from Ecologistas en Acción, in recent years the spectacular growth experienced by urban horticulture in all the autonomous regions has been observed in Spain, especially in Andalusia, Catalonia, Madrid and the Valencian Community, and the cities of Barcelona and Madrid are the that have a greater number of zones.

Diseases from contaminated crops

Diseases that can be caused by contaminated crops are usually at a fairly low level. In fact, a large quantity would have to be consumed for it to have a toxicological effect.

The toxic substances of most concern are organic pollutants, such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons or polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), while lead has taken second place, among other reasons, due to the fact that gasoline no longer contains this element.

Lead is still a pollutant to be concerned about, as it is a contaminant derived from road traffic such as copper or zinc. These organic pollutants they do not transfer to plants as easily as inorganic contaminants do.

For urban gardens to be able to expand in a healthy and correct way, the city where it is developed must have good environmental conditions. For example, increasing the number of urban gardens in polluted cities like Madrid can cause real health risks for people who eat the crops.

Before starting to make a garden, the specific characteristics of each garden and the type of crop to be planted should be analyzed.

As the fertile soil of the planet continues to disappear, there will be no other option in the future than to sow in the cities. For this reason, urban gardens have become an educational tool and a good pastime perfect for all ages.

The best option to have an urban garden as healthy as possible is to build the plots in places away from the roads, use organic matter to better fertilize the soils and adjust its pH, depending on the type of crop. As for the fruits, to consume them, it is better to remove the leaves, peel them and wash them before eating them to avoid these risks of surface contamination.