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that these fruits and vegetables are 90 percent pesticide-free. Other clean foods include pineapple, mango, asparagus, sweet peas, kiwi, bananas, cabbage, broccoli and papaya.

"The results from our tests are based on produce that has already been washed," said Wiles. "It shows that washing produce may reduce the level of pesticides, but it can't remove them completely."

Bonny Burns-Whitmore, MPH, DrPH, RD, a lecturer in the department of human nutrition and food science at Cal Poly Pomona in Pomona, CA, said there are two main reasons why some fruits and vegetables contain higher levels of pesticides than others.

"The more nutritious a food is, the more it attracts bugs and animals," said Burns-Whitmore. "That means, it has to be sprayed a lot more and will have a bigger build up of pesticide residue.

"Another factor in pesticide residue has to do with the thickness of the skins. For instance, fruits and vegetables with thick skins like avocados and pineapples are a lot less likely to absorb pesticides than produce with thin skins like apples and potatoes."

Although the EWG says pesticides are harmful, studies by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) show otherwise.

In 2006, the EPA released a study which concluded that pesticides used in the United States meet the highest health and safety standards in the world. On August 3, the EPA completed a 10-year review of 231 pesticides used on foods that resulted in changes to how the chemicals are regulated. According to the agency's Web site, most of the foods we eat are grown with pesticides.

"EPA's groundbreaking effort is being welcomed at dinner tables across the nation," said EPA administrator Stephen L. Johnson in a recent press release. "The Bush Administration is ensuring pesticides used to grow the fruits, vegetables and other food families are serving meet the highest standards in the world.

"This 10-year review enables farmers to grow a bountiful, healthy food supply for generations of American families."

The EPA's primary goal is to evaluate pesticides to make certain they will not harm a person's health or the environment. Pesticides that pass this evaluation are granted a license or "registration" that permits their sale and use according to requirements set by EPA.

The EPA sets a tolerance, or maximum residue limit, which is the amount of pesticide residue allowed to remain in or on each treated food commodity. Any pesticide which does not meet the EPA's tolerance level will not be approved for use.

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