Foods vary from vegetables to herbs, and meat to fish. The golden rule is to go for healthy ones, whether they are pure green salad or dish with some meat added. We will concentrate on the differences between raw and cooked foods. It lets you see which ones are much healthier to consume and follow as your daily diet.
Nutritional Value
Raw foods usually refer to organic ingredients that are edible and safe enough to eat without heating, sautéing or steaming them. These include green leafy vegetables, like spinach, kale, cabbage, and lettuce, as well as common vegetables, such as carrots and broccoli. However, not all vegetables are recommended to be eaten raw. For instance, eggplants are not just prepared, served and eaten without cooking them. You have to make sure each and every inch of an eggplant is cooked before you take a bite.
When compared to meat and fish, vegetables usually are more nutritious. They contain a high amount of different vitamins and minerals. But what fish and meat feature that provide health advantages is the protein in them. Not all vegetables, herbs and fruits have protein. So, to ensure you get enough protein in your body, do not totally eliminate some lean meat and fish on your diet.
Cooked Vegetables
There is a standard parameter of cooking vegetables, including those ones mentioned that can be eaten raw. Once the cooking temperature is beyond 90 to 118 degrees, the nutrients found in vegetables are gradually reduced, or worse, removed. This makes your food becomes unhealthier.
There are also vegetables that do otherwise when they are cooked. A good example is the tomato. If you cook tomatoes with water, the process develops a colored hue, which increases the nutrient content. Actually, the lycopene found in tomatoes becomes three times more. This is much better if you cook it with olive oil.
Enzymes Elimination
Foods contain enzymes, but the properties change when they are cooked. If you cook certain foods, the important enzymes are reduced as well. Yet, it does not really matter because the acid in the stomach can able to eliminate it during digestion. Whether you eat food raw or cooked, make sure to have some fruits on the side, just to ensure you still get all vital enzymes.
Prevention of Illnesses and Diseases
There is also a big difference when it comes to raw and cooked foods. Usually, the raw the food is, the better chance of getting certain diseases. This is especially true to meat and fish. They are the kinds of foods that you need to cook in order to maintain good health from food consumption. If you do not perfectly cook meat, let’s say supposedly grilled pork, germs and bacteria that are currently in it can be a big factor of disease, including diarrhea.
Remember that the only kind of food groups that you have to thoroughly and finely cooked are meat, fish, eggs, grains and other dairy products. Other food groups, like fruits and vegetables, are completely safe to serve and eat raw. What this suggests is that you create a diet that is not only healthy but also well balanced.
There is a need to balance different foods according to their groups and nutritional value. That’s why it is a must to be also familiar with the nutrients of certain foods, especially the ones you like to eat or frequently cook. Besides, each and every food has its own nutrients that are not found in other ingredients. This is the reason why you have to vary your choice of food when eating, but ensure you have a complete list of all necessary vitamins and minerals.
