Advocates of raw foodism (which include celebrities Carol Alt, Uma Thurman, Alicia Silverstone, Donna Karan, and Lisa Bonet) believe that cooking and processing fruits and vegetables drastically reduce or destroy the nutrients and helpful enzymes found naturally in them. Aside from helping lose weight, raw foodists also claim that raw foods are easier to digest, and harbor (harmless) microorganisms that could stabilize the gut flora. There was even a study that suggests that raw food consumption may reduce risks of certain cancers, and the authors believe it is due to the higher concentration of heat-labile anti-cancer compounds in uncooked foods.
Without …read more

Raw or cooked– which is more nutritious? Raw foodists believe that cooking and processing fruits and vegetables drastically reduce or destroy the nutrients and helpful enzymes found naturally in them. It does make sense, considering how destructive heat can be. However, data from a new study indicates that cooking is not all that bad, and depending on the method used, cooking may even boost some veggies’ nutritional content.
In the new study, the researchers evaluated the effects of three commonly-used Italian cooking practices — boiling, steaming, and frying — on the nutritional content of carrots, zucchini and broccoli. Boiling and steaming …read more

In a previous entry, I have already pointed out the anti-cancer properties of cruciferous vegetables — cabbage, kale, broccoli, cauliflower, and many others.
However, it seems that while these veggies are rich in anti-cancer compounds called isothiocyanates, it is best to eat them raw.
“Cooking can reduce 60 to 90 percent of ITCs,” says Li Tang, M.D., Ph.D. of Roswell Park Cancer Institute and lead researcher on this study. “Heating destroys the enzyme that converts the precursor glucosinolates into ITCs, and also destroys ITCs already formed, which is why you need to eat raw cruciferous vegetables to receive the food’s …read more