Why Cooked Tomatoes Are Better Than Raw Ones

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It's rare I suggest a cooked food is more beneficial for you than consuming it raw. That said, there are a few exceptions to the "raw rule." For example, it is well-known that lightly cooking vegetables such as asparagus, carrots and spinach increases the bioavailability of certain nutrients. Dr. Rui Hai Liu, a professor in the department of food science at Cornell University, who has researched how heat affects food, suggests the cooking of certain vegetables can free up nutrients for easier absorption.

States Liu, "Common wisdom says cooked food has a lower nutritional value compared to fresh produce, but that's not always true. Many nutrients in fruits and vegetables are bound in the cell walls. Cooking helps release them so they're more bioavailable and absorbed by the body."

A study by Liu, published in 2002 in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, indicated heating tomatoes for 30 minutes at 190.4 degrees F (88 degrees C) — roughly the temperature at which you'd simmer soup on the stove — boosted absorbable lycopene levels by 35 percent.

Despite the fact cooking reduced the vitamin C content of tomatoes, Liu and his team noted a 62 percent increase in the antioxidant levels of cooked tomatoes. As you may know, antioxidants protect your body from cell and tissue damage that results when harmful free radicals are metabolized. About the outcomes, Liu said:

"This research demonstrates heat processing actually enhanced the nutritional value of tomatoes by increasing the lycopene content … that can be absorbed by the body, as well as the total antioxidant activity. The research dispels the popular notion processed fruits and vegetables have lower nutritional value than fresh produce."

 

Article Source: Dr Mercola at Mercola.com  


 

Why Tomatoes Are Such a Beneficial Food

It's gardening season in the U.S. and therefore no surprise tomatoes are beginning to appear in gardens across the land. Given the right conditions, they are easy to grow and highly productive plants. There is nothing quite like eating a ripe, garden-grown tomato right off the vine, and tomatoes are great additions to salads and sandwiches. The health benefits of cooked tomatoes, which are amplified when combined with a healthy fat like olive oil, continue to make news.

This gives me the opportunity to underscore the value of lycopene to your diet. You may already know the lycopene content of tomatoes is increased when you cook them. Now, new research out of Spain indicates cooking tomatoes not only enhances the positive effects lycopene has on your beneficial gut bacteria, but also promotes increased lycopene absorption in your gut. These are just two more reasons to include tomatoes in your diet.

When you reach for a tomato you may be interested to know organic ones are thought to be more nutritious than their conventional counterparts. One study found growing tomatoes according to organic standards produced tomatoes containing 55 percent more vitamin C and 139 percent more total phenolic content than their conventionally grown peers.

According to The World's Healthiest Foods, tomatoes are an excellent source of lutein, zeaxanthin and vitamin C, which is most concentrated in the jelly-like substance surrounding the seeds. They also contain good amounts of vitamins K and B, as well as copper, manganese and potassium. In addition, tomatoes possess anticancer properties and phytonutrients such as the flavonols kaempferol, quercetin and rutin, in addition to caffeic acid, coumaric acid and ferulic acid.

The benefits of lycopene, the carotenoid antioxidant responsible for the red color of tomatoes and other fruits like watermelon, gets top billing as one of the most important nutrients in tomatoes. Lycopene is well-known as a powerful antioxidant that decreases your risk of cancer and heart disease. Lycopene is also notable because:

Its antioxidant activity has long been suggested to be more powerful than hundreds of other carotenoids, including beta-carotene

A meta-analysis pooling results from more than 116,000 subjects revealed lycopene intake may reduce your stroke risk by nearly 20 percent.

Lycopene plays an important role in your bone health.

Its also been shown to be helpful in treating lung cancer and prostate cancer (more on that below)

When consumed daily with olive oil for 10 weeks in the form of tomato paste, it was shown to reduce ultraviolet-induced sunburn by about 40 percent.

Article Source: Dr Mercola at Mercola.com  

Why Eggs Are Not Just for Breakfast

Perhaps just as important as what eggs do for your health may be what eggs do for your food. Not just for breakfast, eggs are used to make everything from healthy pancakes to egg salad. Incredible Egg notes five of the egg's top cooking functions; eggs:

Bind ingredients in prepared foods like meatloaf and salmon patties

Leaven baked "high-rises" such as soufflés and sponge cakes

Emulsify mayonnaise, salad dressings and hollandaise sauce

Clarify soups and thicken custards

Add color, flavor, moisture and nutrients to baked goods

The good news is, some of the egg dishes you may have been avoiding, not to mention eggs by themselves, yolk and all, are back on the table. That said, it's important to understand that not any old egg is "good" for eating. Organic, pastured eggs are the best by far, as they're not produced in a CAFO, or concentrated animal feeding operation, which yields eggs far more likely to be contaminated with disease-causing bacteria such as Salmonella.

Everything you need to know about every aspect of egg production and what constitutes farm-fresh eggs can be found right here. You'll note that the best way to eat your organic, pastured eggs is raw or very lightly cooked, such as poached, soft-boiled or overeasy with very runny yolks. However, if you're looking for something a little different, here's a healthy, delicious recipe, inspired by the National Heart Foundation of Australia

Article Source: Dr Mercola at Mercola.com