Recent scientific studies show various food items have unique nutritional benefits that many of us are not aware of. There are some essential food items and cooking techniques we all should be wary of. Let us now look at these aspects in detail in the following sections and practically use them in our daily lives.
Food Items with Resistant Starch
Whole grains, green bananas and vegetables have resistant starch which is also called soluble dietary fiber. This type of fiber does not digest in our small intestine but further down in the colon and releases long-term energy. The good thing about resistant starch is that despite being one form of carbohydrate, it does not result in raising blood sugar due to chemical makeup it has and is not cause of concern for diabetic people.
It also stimulates glucagon release, which is a hormone that increases the rate at which our bodies burn fat. The main source for this type of starch is green bananas and percentage of resistant starch is higher in bananas, which are not ripe. Additionally, our daily intake of resistant starch should ideally be about 20g.
Mashing Potatoes
Most of us want to keep the sugar intake to minimum to stay fit as well as reduce fat. Apart from reducing intake of processed foods or soft drinks, we also have to look at how food is prepared in the kitchen. Our method of cooking the food can change the release of sugar in blood stream. As for example, if potato is boiled as well as mashed, then it releases twenty-five percent more sugar, as compared to when it is cut into chips.
Potatoes have starch granules and when heated or mashed, these granules release starch, which becomes sugar. Thus, it is far better to fry or bake potatoes as compared to mashing them.
Frying Food
If you are cooking with oil, overheating may result cooking oils to break down thereby generating toxic chemicals known as lipid peroxides, when we eat food cooked in such oil this chemical has reaction with DNA and leads to increased risk of heart diseases as well as cancer.
It is more so when olive oil is used for cooking since it burns at lower temperature and easily breaks down. One solution is to utilize the Chinese method and add small amount of water in the frying pan along with oil to bring down oil’s temperature.
Reducing back Pain
According to studies, almost 75% of all people in US are dehydrated. If you can drink around 8 -10 glasses of water on daily basis then it will mean significant reduction in joint as well as back pain in as many as 80% of all sufferers. The main reason behind this is that if we are dehydrate then joint fluids and blood becomes thick plus uric acid crystals form in joints causing pain.
In addition to it, drinking water also aide’s weight loss as dehydration can reduce body’s metabolism by about 3% resulting in weight gain. If you drink water before going to bed at night then it also helps to reduce midnight hunger pangs. You can also reduce risks of colon cancer by drinking 5-6 glasses of water, as when hydrated; bowel movements are better, lowering chances of colon cancer.
Caution about Tofu
Products like bean curd and tofu have phytic acid, which blocks mineral absorption by the body. Some of these minerals include copper, zinc, calcium, iron and magnesium.
The solution is to eat tofu with soybean products, which are fermented with bacteria that lowers phytic acid in these food products.
Summary
There are various methods and processes to eat healthy and nutritious diet and stay healthy, if we have the proper knowledge.