Are raw foods better for you? Despite recent interest in raw-food diets, combining cooked and raw foods is a smarter approach. Proper cooking retains most nutrient levels, and the heating process makes some phytonutrients more available for digestion and absorption. For example:
- Cancer-fighting carotenoids in cooked or canned carrots
- Lycopene, a phytonutrient that may protect against prostate cancer, from cooked or canned tomatoes
- Phenolics, also antioxidants, in cooked or canned sweet corn
For those who claim that cooking destroys important enzymes in raw food, note: Enzymes in raw foods may be essential to a vegetable or a fruit, but not to humans. Your body makes its own.
Another benefit of cooking: heat destroys harmful bacteria in raw foods that may cause food-borne illness. When you do eat raw fruits and vegetables, always clean them well.
Enjoy a combination of cooked and raw foods today.
- Crisp garden-fresh greens, tossed with roasted bell pepper
- Tropical fruit compote, topped with toasted hazelnuts
- Oven-baked sweet potato, topped with fresh mango-mint salsa
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