Fact or Fiction: Raw or Cooked.

Durgan · April 2, 2013

http://www.scientificamerican.com/ar...-are-healthier

Comparing the healthfulness of raw and cooked food is complicated, and there are still many mysteries surrounding how the different molecules in plants interact with the human body. The bottom line is to eat your veggies and fruits no matter how they're prepared.

Fact or Fiction: Raw veggies are healthier than cooked ones
Do vegetables lose their nutritional value when heated?

Obviously many food cannot be eaten raw. IMO cooked in general is beneficial.

Redbaron · April 2, 2013

The issues happen when you eat 100% raw or 100% cooked. Actually cooking frees up many nutrients and destroys some. So what you need is balance. If you go 100% raw you need to eat far more food. It can be done, but that is a HUGE amount of food to be eating. So I would recommend lots of raw fruits and veggies, but unless you want to be eating all day every day 4-5000 calories a day in fruit, then you'll have to eat some cooked too.

Cole_Robbie · April 2, 2013

Yeah, obviously there are benefits to both and it depends on the food.

lakelady · April 3, 2013

Interesting topic. I have been juicing Kale for the past year thinking it was better raw, but recently read that cooked it can provide more nutrients. I just try to have a decent balance of it all with raw sprouts and veggies when I can.

Mom always said everything was good in moderation.....tell that to teenagers!

Stvrob · April 4, 2013

I think some things are just to hard to digest raw. Sweet potatos squash beans and collards.

April 2, 2013	#1
Durgan Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Brantford, ON, Canada Posts: 1,341	Fact or Fiction: Raw or Cooked. http://www.scientificamerican.com/ar...-are-healthier Comparing the healthfulness of raw and cooked food is complicated, and there are still many mysteries surrounding how the different molecules in plants interact with the human body. The bottom line is to eat your veggies and fruits no matter how they're prepared. Fact or Fiction: Raw veggies are healthier than cooked ones Do vegetables lose their nutritional value when heated? Obviously many food cannot be eaten raw. IMO cooked in general is beneficial.

April 2, 2013	#2
Redbaron Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 4,488	The issues happen when you eat 100% raw or 100% cooked. Actually cooking frees up many nutrients and destroys some. So what you need is balance. If you go 100% raw you need to eat far more food. It can be done, but that is a HUGE amount of food to be eating. So I would recommend lots of raw fruits and veggies, but unless you want to be eating all day every day 4-5000 calories a day in fruit, then you'll have to eat some cooked too. __________________ Scott AKA The Redbaron "Permaculture is a philosophy of working with, rather than against nature; of protracted & thoughtful observation rather than protracted & thoughtless labour; & of looking at plants & animals in all their functions, rather than treating any area as a single-product system." Bill Mollison co-founder of permaculture

April 3, 2013	#4
lakelady Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: northern NJ zone 6b Posts: 1,862	Interesting topic. I have been juicing Kale for the past year thinking it was better raw, but recently read that cooked it can provide more nutrients. I just try to have a decent balance of it all with raw sprouts and veggies when I can. Mom always said everything was good in moderation.....tell that to teenagers! __________________ Antoniette

April 2, 2013	#3
Cole_Robbie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Illinois, zone 6 Posts: 8,407	Yeah, obviously there are benefits to both and it depends on the food.

April 4, 2013	#5
Stvrob Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Jacksonville, FL Posts: 1,413	I think some things are just to hard to digest raw. Sweet potatos squash beans and collards.