Should you eat vegetables raw or cooked? (2024)

Raw dishes, especially vegetables, without heat treatment will always retain the best nutrients. So should we eat raw vegetables or cooked vegetables?

1. Benefits of food - fresh vegetables

When the fresh food craze was born in the 1800s, the first supporter of this movement was a doctor of Swiss origin who suggested that eating fresh apples could help cure mild jaundice . He experimented with raw foods and opened a nutrition clinic to spread these messages.
To explain why fresh foods, especially vegetables, are chosen for the daily diet. Because, these foods contain natural enzymes that are often destroyed when processed at temperatures above 50 degrees Celsius. Furthermore, the vitamins and minerals, and other nutrients of plant-based foods. have the ability to help prevent diseases and are easily destroyed when processed with heat. So, in some cases, eating raw vegetables can provide more nutrients.
We can look at the example of vitamin C. Vitamin C is a vitamin that is very easily destroyed by heat. Therefore, these nutrient-rich vegetables include: peppers, dark green leafy vegetables (broccoli, salad vegetables...), broccoli, ... are all vegetables that can lose quite a lot of nutrients. nutrition when processing used by heat. Or B vitamins such as biotin, thiamin, niacin, firboflavin are all nutrients that are easily destroyed when exposed to heat. However, these vitamins are not found in many vegetables.
Or pickles such as cabbage, kimchi, ... These are fermented foods containing many beneficial bacteria for the body, and act as probiotics. But when using heat for the processing of these foods, it kills a lot of beneficial bacteria. As for garlic, this is a food rich in selenium, and an antioxidant that helps the body control high blood pressure and may reduce the risk of some cancers. Minced garlic can be used to cook with hot dishes, but using raw garlic or adding raw garlic when the dish is cooked will get more nutrients from the garlic.

2. The benefits of food - cooked vegetables

Some researchers suggest that cooking green vegetables will provide more nutrients than eating them raw. Research with sour fruits shows that when cooked, this fruit will cause them to release more lycopene: tomatoes cooked at 88 degrees Celsius for a period of 30 minutes will increase the lycopene content by 25%. This is considered a significant benefit, because lycopene works to help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, macular degeneration, especially in people with diabetes and cancer.
Carrots are also foods that provide a lot of nutrients when exposed to heat. Several studies have shown that cooked carrots have higher levels of carotenoids and vitamin C than raw carrots. Furthermore, when carrots were cooked, the antioxidant content in carrots increased by 34.3%.
As for asparagus, studies have determined that cooking asparagus increases the content of several plant-based nutrients such as: quercetin, lutein, zeaxanthin... are all antioxidants oxidizing. The oxidizing compound quercetin has anti-inflammatory effects, prevents certain types of cancer, and protects the heart. Or some other antioxidants such as lutein work to keep the heart, eyes, skin healthy and work to prevent breast cancer. And zeaxanthin is believed to be an antioxidant that protects the eyes from diseases related to macular degeneration.

Should you eat vegetables raw or cooked? (2)

Mushrooms are also foods with a high nutritional content when cooked. Studies have shown that, when mushrooms are cooked, the content of nutrients such as potassium, zinc, and niacin increases significantly compared to raw mushrooms. In addition, you can apply the quick cooking method of mushrooms to increase the amount of antioxidants of mushrooms.
Dark leafy greens like kale, spinach, and broccoli contain high levels of nutrients like calcium and iron. When eating raw vegetables, certain natural substances in vegetables such as oxalic acid will prevent the body from absorbing these important nutrients. However, when cooked with high heat, it will destroy this acid and help the body absorb these minerals more efficiently.
Thus, based on the above analysis, eating raw or cooked vegetables has many health benefits. However, with each specific vegetable, there will be different processing methods to preserve the most nutrients.

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Chủ đề:LycopenRau nấu chínChất chống oxy hóaVitamin CRau sốngDinh dưỡng