can one avoid the toxins by just eating the juicy inner flesh?

Because their skins are so thin and not very tough I want to say NO.

I've heard recently that many of the seeds that they use now somehow have the pesticide as part of the seed and therefore becomes part of the plant. I don't know if this is bunk or not though. Just something a friend (who is not prone to fits of fancy) told me. She had a hard time finding organic seeds for her vegetable garden because of this.

I used to think that eating melon that wasn't organic was OK since the skin is so thick. Unfortunately I learned that the moment you cut into the fruit you spread the toxins from the outside to the inside.

I hope this helps. Hopefully someone else has more accurate info.

*hugs and blessings*
jayelle

I am eating a lot of conventional local peaches these days. I soak them well in white vinegar and natural dish soap and water for fifteen minutes before eating, and rinse them well. I will peel some of them, but I figure they're grown in good soil and this orchard doesn't overspray, so a bit of toxins won't kill me. I am mostly organic and take a detoxifying supplement, so I assume this will offset any hazards from the peaches, which are ripe and sweet and have some nutrition, after all.

As for melons: Always wash a melon with hot soapy water before slicing it. It's not the pesticides--which are minimal for this crop--that will kill you, but the botulism toxin that is common to melon fields. When you slice through the contaminated peel with the knife, the blade of the knife conveys the bacteria into the edible part, where you will consume them before the effects of contamination are visible. Be diligent, and you'll be fine