Everyone knows that we should eat more vegetables, but how can we get more nutrients from them? An increasing number of studies show that when it comes to eating vegetables, the key is not how much you eat, but how you eat them and how to ensure their nutrients can be absorbed by our bodies. Surprisingly, the British Journal of Nutrition is set to publish a research report: vegetables are not necessarily best eaten raw. Researchers followed 198 Germans who strictly adhered to a raw vegetable diet and found that their vitamin A levels were the same as the average person, their carotene levels were relatively high, but they were relatively deficient in lycopene.
Steven Clinton, a professor of internal medicine and a nutrition researcher at the Department of Medical Oncology at Ohio State University, said: "It's a misconception that all foods are best eaten raw. For vegetables and fruits, in many cases, light cooking or processing may be more beneficial to the human body." Before vegetables become dishes, the types and amounts of nutrients they contain are affected by many factors, including where and how they are grown, processed, and stored. Water-soluble nutrients such as vitamins C and B, and polyphenolic compounds, are often lost during processing. For example, cherries can lose up to 50% of their anthocyanins after being frozen for 6 months; fresh spinach loses 64% of its vitamin C after being cooked; and canned peas and carrots lose 95% of their vitamin C.
In addition, fat-soluble nutrients such as vitamins A, D, E, K, and antioxidant compounds like carotene are not lost in water. The thick cell walls of plants break down during cooking, releasing components that the human body can absorb. Therefore, the lycopene content in processed tomato products is higher than in fresh tomatoes.
Therefore, a recent research report published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry pointed out that for carrots, zucchini, and broccoli, boiling them is more nutritious than steaming, frying, or eating them raw, with frying being the least desirable method. The report states that different cooking and preparation methods result in vastly different nutritional value and taste for vegetables. Therefore, the most important thing is to use different methods to eat different vegetables. Reminder:
Do not grill vegetables.
Grilling is popular among young people, and street-side kebabs and Korean-style barbecue are all the rage. British nutritionists have recently discovered that grilled vegetables, including onions, bell peppers, and cucumbers, are more likely to release corrosive acidic substances compared to traditional boiling and stewing methods, which is not good for dental health.
If you cannot resist the temptation of grilled food, you can also improve your methods of eating it. For example, you can first use a microwave to partially cook the food to shorten the grilling time. You can also wrap the food in aluminum foil before placing it on the charcoal fire to avoid direct contact with the charcoal and reduce the formation of harmful substances.