What is amazing is nature and culture put together.
Scientists are just beginning to realize that traditional ways of preparing vegetables actually maximize the body's absorption of the nutrients in those vegetables.
For instance, the amount of lycopene, an important antioxidant found in tomatoes, that people absorb from tomatoes cooked in olive oil to make sauce is much higher than the amount people absorb from raw tomatoes, because lycopene is fat-soluble and found within the individual cells of the tomato fruit. Cooking helps to break down the cell walls and the oil helps us to absorb the nutrient.
Pickling is a great way to get the most from raw vegetables, because it helps to break down cell walls without heat, so no enzymes are denatured.
For another example, Nina Planck has written about how each ingredient in whole milk “plays its part” -- the fat helps you digest the protein and absorb the calcium and vitamins A and D. So, drinking even fortified low-fat or skim milk (which, you'll notice, no one in Europe does, and they're much slimmer than Americans) is counterproductive, because then all your body is really absorbing from the skim milk is the sugars that make up lactose -- and not even that, if you're lactose intolerant like me -- although, I prefer to say "lactose malabsorbent," because I'm not an intolerant person ; ).
I truly believe that stripping whole foods apart is why Americans, for instance, can eat a whole box of Triscuits and still not feel satisfied – that’s eating calories without nutrition, and so the body gains weight but isn't actually well-nourished and never feels satisfied.
One more example: in many cultures, a whole grain is eaten together with lentils, like dal and rice in India or tortilla and beans in Mexico, which creates a meal that provides all of the essential amino acids.
Eating whole foods is win-win, because in fewer calories, you get more of the nutrients your body needs, and you get the fiber your colon and vascular system need. I truly believe this is why the smallest bite of something sourced with organically grown, whole ingredients, preferably locally, prepared according to a more-or-less traditional recipe, is infinitely tastier and more satisfying than any huge portion from any fast food chain.
Your body can taste what's good for it -- especially after the palate has been retrained away from excess salt and sugar, etc.
When I’m in India, where most produce is still bought from local people farming small plots or fishermen with small boats, I am struck by how simple and how delicious everything is -- the nimbus are delicious, the carrots are delicious, the fish is delicious, even the ONIONS are delicious. Without the technology to keep things refrigerated being widely used by consumers, people have to buy fresh every day from local sources, and you can taste the difference in the food, and yet you don't feel like eating huge amounts.
Also: besides the many reasons to eat organic (it’s better for the environment, and pesticides are toxic to us, other animals and to the immigrant laborers who pick our produce), nutrition is another -- organically grown veggies and fruits have been shown to have higher levels of phytonutrients.
Scientists are just beginning to realize that traditional ways of preparing vegetables actually maximize the body's absorption of the nutrients in those vegetables.
For instance, the amount of lycopene, an important antioxidant found in tomatoes, that people absorb from tomatoes cooked in olive oil to make sauce is much higher than the amount people absorb from raw tomatoes, because lycopene is fat-soluble and found within the individual cells of the tomato fruit. Cooking helps to break down the cell walls and the oil helps us to absorb the nutrient.
Pickling is a great way to get the most from raw vegetables, because it helps to break down cell walls without heat, so no enzymes are denatured.
For another example, Nina Planck has written about how each ingredient in whole milk “plays its part” -- the fat helps you digest the protein and absorb the calcium and vitamins A and D. So, drinking even fortified low-fat or skim milk (which, you'll notice, no one in Europe does, and they're much slimmer than Americans) is counterproductive, because then all your body is really absorbing from the skim milk is the sugars that make up lactose -- and not even that, if you're lactose intolerant like me -- although, I prefer to say "lactose malabsorbent," because I'm not an intolerant person ; ).
I truly believe that stripping whole foods apart is why Americans, for instance, can eat a whole box of Triscuits and still not feel satisfied – that’s eating calories without nutrition, and so the body gains weight but isn't actually well-nourished and never feels satisfied.
One more example: in many cultures, a whole grain is eaten together with lentils, like dal and rice in India or tortilla and beans in Mexico, which creates a meal that provides all of the essential amino acids.
Eating whole foods is win-win, because in fewer calories, you get more of the nutrients your body needs, and you get the fiber your colon and vascular system need. I truly believe this is why the smallest bite of something sourced with organically grown, whole ingredients, preferably locally, prepared according to a more-or-less traditional recipe, is infinitely tastier and more satisfying than any huge portion from any fast food chain.
Your body can taste what's good for it -- especially after the palate has been retrained away from excess salt and sugar, etc.
When I’m in India, where most produce is still bought from local people farming small plots or fishermen with small boats, I am struck by how simple and how delicious everything is -- the nimbus are delicious, the carrots are delicious, the fish is delicious, even the ONIONS are delicious. Without the technology to keep things refrigerated being widely used by consumers, people have to buy fresh every day from local sources, and you can taste the difference in the food, and yet you don't feel like eating huge amounts.
Also: besides the many reasons to eat organic (it’s better for the environment, and pesticides are toxic to us, other animals and to the immigrant laborers who pick our produce), nutrition is another -- organically grown veggies and fruits have been shown to have higher levels of phytonutrients.
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