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Raw vs Cooked Vegetables.
April 27, 2020 admin 0
For many years a debate has developed concerning raw vs cooked vegetables. Most vegetables can be consumed raw as well as cooked, apart from a few that certainly will require some form of cooking procedure before consumption. Some vegetables like potatoes will definitely require cooking if you want to avoid intestinal discomfort ! There have been advocates of consuming vegetables in raw form to ensure the nutrients are not damaged or broken down during the cooking (or heating) process. Although this is a good strategy, certain vegetables contain phytonutrients that only become available when they are cooked.
In this article, we examine what can occur when cruciferous vegetables like broccoli are cooked.Indole-3-Carbinol is a pale coloured solid derived from the breakdown (mostly during cooking and general processing) of Glucobrassicin in cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage, cauliflower and brocolli. Glucobrassicin can be viewed as the precursor of Indole-3-Carbinol. Indole-3-carbinol contains a primary metabolite known as diindoylmethane which is known to augment Oestrogen metabolism and favour greater 2-hydroxy oestrogen production.Scientific studies have indicated Indole-3-Carbinol obtained from a diet rich in cruciferous vegetables protects against the risk of oestrogen enhanced cancers such as breast and cervical cancers. Whereas oestrogen can expedite and aid in the proliferation of certain tumours,
Indole-3-Carbinol conversely causes an tumour growth to cease and induces death of cancer cells.One such study conducted in Scandanavia amongst postmenopausal women showed that the consumption of cruciferous vegetables was associated with a reduced risk of developing breast cancer. Other studies have also demonstrated that Indole-3-Carbinol decreased the development of MDA-MB-231 (a type of aggressive breast cancer cell).In a more specific chemo-preventive role, Indole-3-Carbinol can stimulate the production of certain detoxifying enzymes and protect against the potential carcinogenic effects of pesticides, environmental contaminants and certain food toxins. There is also a marked synergistic upregulation of Phase II detoxification enzymes by consumption of processed cruciferous vegetables rich in Indole-3-Carbinol and another phytochemical, Crambene. Crambene, also found in cruciferous vegetables is a nitrile proven for its ability to activate specific detoxification enzymes.
Although not so important, as cruciferous vegetables contain both Indole-3-Carbinol and Crambene, when consumed in combination they offer an induction of Glutathione-S-Transferase and Quinone Oxidoreductase which is observed to be greater than if each compound is eaten by itself.Although Indole-3-Carbinol and other phytonutrients become available by cooking certain vegetables it is not a win-win situation as far as other nutrients are concerned.
The cooking of Broccoli can reduce the amount of the antioxidant sulforaphane by as much as 95% according to a study conducted in the Netherlands. They discovered that : “Consumption of raw broccoli resulted in faster absorption, higher bio-availability, and higher peak plasma amounts of sulforaphane, compared to cooked broccoli.”A workaround for those concerned in maximising the nutrients available in both raw and cooked cruciferous vegetables is to consume generous portions of both.
These don’t have to be at the same sitting and can be split throughout your meal plan in any given week. This we feel will give the best of ‘both worlds’ and enable you to take advantage of what the vegetables offer, nutrient wise. A further recommendation is to buy organic vegetables whenever possible.
References :
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Processed Meats and Sodium Nitrite.