Dr. Schwartz: It looks like cooked veggies
have gotten a raw deal. We've heard for years that raw veggies have it
over the cooked kind for health benefits, but new research suggests that the
opposite may be true.
A study done at the University of California, San
Diego, showed that we absorb as much as five times the amount of
disease-fighting antioxidants when we eat cooked, mashed vegetables as opposed
to raw.
Apparently, cooking vegetables, such as carrots
and spinach, breaks down the plant cell walls that contain the antioxidants,
making them easier to absorb.
If you really want to knock the nutrient level up
a notch, puree the veggies after cooking.
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