SOME vegetables are best for
your health when eaten cooked rather than raw. Cooking vegetables can
neutralize enzymes that would cause digestive problems and remove
anti-nutrients, which can interfere with the assimilation of vitamins and
minerals.
Cooking also kills potentially harmful bacteria. Try poaching,
steaming, stir-frying, grilling or roasting your vegetables — according to the
American Heart Association, these are some of the healthiest cooking methods.
Cook your cruciferous
vegetables
Some folks, however,
experience gas and bloating from difficult-to-digest sugars found in raw
cruciferous vegetables. These sugars become easier to digest once cooked. Those
with thyroid conditions should avoid raw cruciferous vegetables as well. Until
cooked, cruciferous vegetables contain thyroid inhibitors that can worsen
thyroid conditions.
Boil your beans
Uncooked or undercooked
beans contain high amounts of glycoprotein lectin, a toxin that can cause
nausea, vomiting and diarrhea within three hours of consumption. The severity
of the symptoms is directly related to the amount of the toxin ingested. According
to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, as few as five raw kidney beans can
result in illness. A serving of uncooked kidney beans can have up to 70,000
units of the toxin, but fully cooked they have less than 400 units. Fully
cooking beans is a simple process: Soak them in water for at least five hours,
change the water and then boil the beans until they are soft.
Avoid raw potatoes
You can get away with
munching on raw potatoes, but it isn’t great for your health. According to Utah
State University, raw potatoes — particularly green ones — can have a high
concentration of a dangerous toxin known as solanine. Raw potatoes also contain
anti-nutrients. Though you can remove most of the anti-nutrients by peeling the
potatoes, some still remain in the flesh. In addition, the uncooked starch in
potatoes can result in digestive problems, gas and bloating. For the most
benefit and the least risk from your potatoes, bake, steam, saute or otherwise
cook them.
Cooking other
vegetables
Some vegetables are more
beneficial for your health when eaten cooked, despite being perfectly safe to
eat raw. For example, asparagus has more cancer-fighting antioxidants once cooked,
cooking tomatoes allows you to absorb more lycopene and cooked mushrooms have
more bioavailable potassium. The beta-carotene in cooked carrots is easier to
absorb, and your body derives more iron, calcium and magnesium from cooked
spinach. Unless you have a specific reason to avoid the raw form of a
vegetable, include both raw and cooked varieties in your diet.
–healthyeating.sfgate.com
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