Some people have the habit of discarding the outer skins of vegetables like cabbage, eggplants, and tomatoes when cooking, which is truly a waste. This is because the skins of many foods contain more nutrients and dietary fiber than the flesh, such as in vegetables like eggplant, tomato, cucumber, and radish, and fruits like apple and pear.
The skins of vegetables and fruits such as eggplant, radish, tomato, blueberries, and grapes contain large amounts of polyphenols. Polyphenols are strong antioxidants that can enhance the body's resistance and immunity and help protect against cancer.
Cucumber peel contains three times the vitamin A of its flesh, while potato peels are rich in dietary fiber and potassium. Additionally, the outer leaves of vegetables contain significantly higher levels of calcium and vitamin C than the inner core, which is very effective for nourishing the eyes, protecting vision, preventing constipation, reducing the risk of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, and lowering high blood pressure.
Furthermore, removing the tomato skin can cause the important antioxidant lycopene and vitamin P in the tomato to easily leach out with the juice, which is not conducive to maintaining health. Therefore, just as the saying goes, "Eat grapes, don't spit out the grape skins," when it comes to both gourmet food and nutrition and health, the skins of some foods should not be discarded carelessly.