Foods you should eat raw rather than cooked

Research suggests that you eat these foods uncooked to avail the intended benefits.

Food processing, such as cooking, blending, and mashing, affects calorie content and toxicity of food. Pakistanis usually overcook food, which, although beneficial in many cases, kills the nutritional value of a host of food items. As compiled from livingfoods.com, Men’s Fitness and Good Housekeeping magazine, here are seven foods that are best eaten raw.

Nuts



Raw nuts can reduce your risk of blood clots and improve the healthy lining of arteries, but when nuts are roasted or cooked at a temperature higher than 170 degrees, those disease-fighting fats get broken down and do just the opposite: contribute to plaque and cardiovascular disease. You may love the taste of the peanuts in your Kung Pao chicken or the roasted pistachio on your kheer but the cooking process takes away the food’s nutritional value. Comparing roasted and raw cashews, for instance, using the USDA’s National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, shows that roasting ups calories and fat, while lowering magnesium and iron.

Onions



Onions make you cry for a reason. According to a Cornell University study, there are sulphur compounds and cancer-fighting antioxidants in onion juice. But as we know, Pakistanis are fans of fried onions in their food. Be it haleem or tarka for daal, fried onions are a must. Since many of the nutrients in onions are unstable and react fast to heat, high temperatures during frying destroy fat-soluble vitamins, such as Vitamin A and Vitamin E. What’s worse is that when onions cook in oils, they produce carcinogens. Eating onions raw can help protect against lung and prostate cancer.

Bell peppers



One medium bell pepper or capsicum is about 32 calories and packs a stack of vitamin C, about 150 per cent of your recommended daily value, which breaks down if cooked at high temperatures, according to research from the National Institute of Health. In a recent study from Turkey, the effects of grilling on sweet green bell peppers were studied with respect to one particular flavonoid called luteolin. Luteolin is an antioxidant that helps fight age-related illnesses. Prior to grilling, the bell peppers were found to contain about 46mg of this important antioxidant and anti-inflammatory flavonoid. After grilling for seven to eight minutes, about 40 per cent of the luteolin was found to be destroyed. Eating bell peppers raw also helps ward off atherosclerosis, which can lead to heart disease.

Garlic



Chewing raw garlic produces a DNA-protecting compound called allicin. But heating the Pakistani curry staple has been shown to diminish its anticancer properties. One minute of cooking can completely inactivate this enzyme, and when you eat it cooked, you absorb little or none of the protective allicin compound. Sixty seconds of microwave heating and 45 minutes of oven heating both blocked the anti-carcinogenic activity of garlic, and heating for six minutes also suppressed all anti-clotting activity in whole garlic, according to a study published in The Journal of Nutrition.

Coconut



According to research from the Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Medicine and Public Health, coconuts are one of the most naturally-hydrating foods and have high levels of electrolytes. But you don’t get these hydrating benefits when consuming dried coconut or boxed coconut milk since they are cooked and processed before being packaged — leaving it t be just a high-cholesterol fat source. Also, the American Institute for Cancer Research says that cooking coconut kills its beneficial sodium, potassium, and magnesium. You may want to rethink ordering Thai coconut-based curries and devouring khausuey.

Olive oil



If you’re cooking over high heat, don’t choose olive oil. Olive oil has a lower smoke point, which is the point at which oil literally begins to smoke. When you heat olive oil to its smoke point, the beneficial compounds in oil start to degrade, potentially forming health-harming compounds. The process of heating the oil can cause the fats to become carcinogenic, which means they can cause cancer. Heating causes enzymes to be destroyed, proteins to get denatured, fats to turn toxic, carbohydrates to become caramelised, vitamins, and minerals become less available. Its better we keep the Mediterranean staple to dress salads or for gentle sautéing.

Cooking chocolate



Raw cacao or chocolate is loaded with nutrients that include essential vitamins and minerals, which boost the body’s neurotransmitters and phyto-chemicals that activate the mood-lifting emotion and increase overall well-being. On the other hand, cooked cacao, which is what you’ll find in most chocolate-baked goods, loses its nutritional value. When the oils and fats within the cacao bean are heated, they become toxic. When cooked and consumed in large quantities, cacao acts as a stimulant and agitates the kidneys and adrenal glands. This can cause insomnia, nightmares, waking up in the middle of the night, jitters, and extreme energy shifts. Sorry, brownie enthusiasts.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 26^th,  2015.

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