Guest guest Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 The Risks of Overcooking Food JoAnn Guest Oct 13, 2005 17:16 PDT By Nancy Appleton, Ph.D. -- There is enough evidence to show that the more a food is cooked, the more difficult it is to digest and metabolize. This is true of any food. The higher the temperature at which a food is cooked, the longer it stays in the gut and the more difficult it becomes for our digestive mechanisms to digest it. This makes it more difficult for the food to absorb and work on a cellular level where it needs to work. When the food cannot work on the cellular level, the cells can become deficient and/or toxic, which leads to deficiency and toxicity of the whole body, making it less able to function optimally. Every food has a heat labile point. The heat labile point is the temperature at which food changes its " chemical configuration " . All foods are made up of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen in different chemical configurations with minerals added. We have descended from early man eating foods with certain chemical configurations. We have the " digestive enzymes " to digest foods with those chemical configurations. When food is heated past the heat labile point, its chemical configuration changes. Pasteurization, deep frying and barbecuing are all forms of cooking where food is heated past the heat labile point. The body does not understand these new chemical configurations and does not have the enzymes to digest the food easily. When the food does not digest properly, it can sit in the gut, unable to be assimilated completely, and it can start to become " toxic " . The carbohydrates start to ferment, the proteins begin to putrefy and the fats become rancid. These toxins irritate the lining of the gastrointestinal tract mucosa. This can poison the gut bacteria, causing the " ecology " of the gut to become upset. Three hundred to 400 of the bacteria species can become upset, causing overgrowth of candida and other pathogens. The irritation also makes the cells on the lining of the gastrointestinal tract " enlarge " . When the cells become larger, the putrefied, undigested food " slips' into the bloodstream, a condition sometimes called " leaky gut syndrome " . This also creates " free radicals " with such formidable names as cadaverines, endols, putricine and phenol. Since it is the liver's job to detoxify toxins, the liver becomes overloaded and unable to perform its task. In the bloodstream, the undigested or partially digested food (in the form of macromolecules) is in too large a " particle " to 'get into' the cell to " function " . This undigested or partially digested food moves through the bloodstream, causing havoc in the body. This is a form of food allergy. The " macromolecules " can go to the head and cause the classic symptoms of allergy, such as runny eyes, scratchy throat, itchy ears, sinusitis and sneezing. They can go to the brain and cause headaches, anger, fatigue, " schizophrenia " and perspiration. They can go to the joints or tissues and cause " arthritis " , or to the " nerves " and cause multiple sclerosis. The macromolecules can also go to the skin and cause acne, edema, psoriasis or rashes. They can lodge anywhere in the " soft tissues " in the body and cause problems, straining whatever a person's weak link may be. Finally, the " immune system " comes to the defense of the body and " converts " these undigested particles back into substances that the body can use or " escorts " them out of the body. The immune system is asked to do the job that our digestive system did not do. The immune system was not designed to do this on a daily basis, every time we overcook or overprocess foods. Over a period of time, the immune system becomes " exhausted " and the door is opened to infectious and degenerative diseases. Unfortunately, it is not only foods that have been heated past the heat " labile point " , such as potato chips, fried foods, barbecued foods, cake mixes and such, that cause this reaction. Consuming sugar, caffeine and alcohol, and taking corticosteroids, antibiotics, aspirin and many other prescription, over-the-counter and street drugs can also upset body chemistry, causing undigested food to get 'into' the bloodstream with all of the consequences. The University of California at Davis examined how volunteers digested bread that had been cooked to varying degrees: first, very mildly; second, normally; and third, overcooked. The slightly cooked bread went through the stomach quite rapidly and caused no problems in digestion. But the longer the bread was cooked, the longer it 'stayed' in the stomach. In fact, the dark, overcooked bread caused an " immune response " in the bloodstream. An immune response can be " triggered " by undigested food that gets into the bloodstream and must be treated as a foreign invader by the immune system. There is evidence that shows that if you cook food past 112º Fahrenheit, you will make the enzymes in the food unavailable; therefore, you will need to use your 'own' enzymes to digest the food. Our pancreas 'makes' enzymes that help digest food, but we do not want to overtax this system. There is also research that shows that the immune system can become " activated " when fried, pressure cooked or barbecued food is eaten. We want our immune system working on bacteria, viruses and other foreign material. We do not want our immune system working on food. We want it strong for foreign invaders. From this research and the principle of the heat labile point, it seems that the best way to cook food is the least way. The more food that you can eat raw, the better. If you do cook your food, the best way to cook is to lightly steam, bake, stew or stir fry, or use a slow crock cooker. Eat as few overprocessed and overcooked foods as possible. The body has a difficult time digesting fried, barbecued, pasteurized, dried and other overprocessed and overcooked foods, such as cake mixes, dried milk, dried eggs, pizza mixes and dairy products. Bon apetite au natural. http://www.wellbeingjournal.com/overcook.htm Nancy Appleton, Ph.D., is a nutritional consultant working is Santa Monica, California. She is author of Lick The Sugar Habit, Healthy Bones, and The Curse Of Louis Pasteur. For more information, see www.nancyappleton.com. ========================================================High-Temperature Cooking --- (Note: All temperatures below are reported in Fahrenheit measurements). One of the greatest insults to nourishment in our modern, fast-paced, and processed food " culture " is the high heat at which so much of our food is cooked. We deep fat fry at 350-450 degrees; we fry on the stovetop in shortening and vegetable oils right up until their smoke points of 375-450 degrees; and we barbecue with gas grills that can reach temperatures of over 1000 degrees! This exposure of food to high heat may be convenient and quick, and it may fill the air with aromas that we savor, but it comes at a definite nutritional cost. Our food just wasn’t designed to withstand extremely high temperatures. Neither was the nutrients contained within our food. -- Unwanted consequences of high-heat cooking --- How you prepare the foods you eat can be just as important to your health as what you eat Nutritional research is just starting to catch up with the consequences of our high-heat approach. We’ve learned, for example, that some of the most " mutagenic agents " formed in cooking are called " heterocyclic amines " , and they are commonly found in barbecued beef, chicken, and pork cooked at 392 degrees or above. We even know what the basic ingredients are required for these mutagenic agents to be 'produced': high temperature for more than a few minutes duration, free amino acids (from protein), creatine (or creatinine) and sugar. Without the high temperature component, the formation of heterocyclic amines does not occur. Direct flame grilling produces another of type of carcinogen called " polyocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons " , which might be just as bad as the heterocyclic amines. Researchers at Mt Sinai Medical found that foods cooked at high temperature contain greater levels of compounds called " advanced glycation end products " (AGEs) that cause more " tissue damage " and " inflammation " than foods cooked at lower temperatures. AGEs irritate cells in the body, damaging tissues and increasing your risk of complications from diseases like diabetes and heart disease. Those chemicals can be avoided by cooking meals at lower temperatures through stir-frying, baking or poaching, and also by cooking meats 'with' foods containing " antioxidant bioflavonoids " , such as garlic, onion and peppers. Unfortunately, we’re not off the hook if we are vegetarian and don’t eat beef, chicken, or pork. Very recent research has discovered that a potentially toxic substance called " acrylamide " that is a carcinogenic nerve damaging compound is also formed when certain foods are cooked at high temperature. Potato chips are a key target of research interest here, as are some other foods, including flaked breakfast cereals, and roasted nuts. As is the case with heterocyclic amines, acrylamide does not appear to form when high cooking temperatures are absent. The problems with high-heat cooking are not restricted to creation of toxic substances, however. High-heat cooking is also problematic when it comes to " loss of nutrients " . Virtually all nutrients in food are susceptible to damage from heat. Of course, whether a particular nutrient gets damaged depends on the exact nutrient in question, the degree of heat, and the amount of cooking time. But in general, most of the temperatures we cook at in the oven (250-450 degrees) are temperatures at which substantial nutrient loss occurs. And although very short cooking at 212 degrees in boiling water produces relatively little nutrient loss, once boiling goes on for anything more than a very short period of time (a couple of minutes) the nutrient loss becomes significant. Up to 80% of the folic acid in carrots, for example, can be lost from boiling. Ditto for the amount of vitamin B1 in boiled soybeans. Even the high heats involved with commercial food canning rob foods of vast amounts of nutrients. In canned mixed vegetables, the vitamin C loss can be as high as 67%. In canned tomato juice, up to 70% of the original folic acid can be lost. We’ve searched and searched through the nutrition research, and all of the evidence points to the same conclusion: prolonged, high-heat cooking is just not the way to go. Sometimes heating of food is essential While we cannot find any evidence in favor of high-heat cooking for extended time periods, we’ve found plenty of evidence in favor of high-heat cooking for very short time periods, or for cooking at various temperatures for relatively short periods of time. For some foods, especially animal foods, cooking temperature and duration are associated with food safety and elimination of potentially disease-causing bacteria. Exposure to heat can actually increase the variety of nutrients found in some foods. For example, heat increases the variety of sulfur-containing compounds found in onions and garlic since it triggers certain chemical reactions that create variations in those sulfur compounds. Flavor, color, and aroma can also be enhanced through cooking. We don’t know of any traditional cuisines anywhere in the world that rely exclusively on raw foods. Every healthy food tradition incorporates some aspects of cooking. Our senses can tell us a lot Sometimes scientific research just reminds us that we can trust our five senses and our own good judgment. This conclusion seems to apply to high-heat cooking. Almost always, there is some magical point at which our senses begin to dislike the result of the high-heat. It may be a color change in the kale or collards, where the green ceases to become more and more vibrant and begins to take on a duller, grayer shade. It may be a change in air and aroma, as occurs when a vegetable oil starts to smoke. Vegetables oils have unique smoke points that can be more than 200 degrees apart. Although we don’t like heating oils much at all, the fact that they smoke is still a nice common-sense warning that high-heat is doing some damage. If we expose foods to high heat for too long, our taste buds will also let us know. Vegetables and high-heat cooking Throughout this article we’ve tried to emphasize the wonderful diversity and uniqueness of food. We’ve tried to pay attention to all of the little details that make each fruit or vegetable or legume nutritionally special. It should not be surprising that specific foods within any food family must be treated just as uniquely when it comes to cooking. Nevertheless, we still find it amazing just how sensitive some foods are when it comes to high-heat - especially vegetables! When it comes to vegetables, sensitivity to high heat has to be measured in matter of minutes! In some foods, like Swiss chard, loss of vitamin C can increase by 15% in a matter of just 4-5 minutes. Swiss chard can’t be cooked as an afterthought, while we are talking on the phone, or setting the table, or feeding the cat. Just a few minutes can change the outcome completely! Green beans will steam in 3-7 minutes. During this time, their color will take on a more vibrant green hue. But toward the end of this 7-minute period, a drop in color intensity will begin to occur. By 9 or 10 minutes, the color intensity will have dropped noticeably. Just 2-3 minutes of steaming can make this notable difference. The optimal timetable for high-heat cooking will vary with a number of factors in addition to the type of vegetable. How the vegetable is sliced, for example, will change the amount of steaming it needs. Finely shredded cabbage requires less steaming than coarsely shredded cabbage. Because more surface of the finely shredded cabbage gets directly exposed to the steam, it takes less time for the cabbage to become tender. If you mix vegetables in the steamer basket, the top-most layers that are more directly exposed to the steam should be the vegetables needing the least steaming. The vegetables requiring longer steaming should be placed on the bottom-most layer. Alternatively, vegetables that need less steaming can be added to the steamer basket later on, after the vegetables that are more coarse and dense have been added. You may think of steam as a high-heat way of cooking, but in comparison to most other ways, it isn’t. Since water boils at 212 degrees and transforms into steam, steam is actually a lower-heat way of cooking than most oven-based approaches and most stove-top ones as well. When compared with boiling, steaming is a better way of avoiding nutrient loss, since the food is surrounded by water 'dispersed' in air, rather than being completely submerged in water alone. The decreased contact of water with the surface of the food results in decreased nutrient loss. If a food is sliced or chopped into sufficiently small sections, steaming can get it into a tender and tasty form long before most other heating methods. Even butternut squash can be perfectly steamed in under 20 minutes. Cover the pot It may sound silly, but covering the pot while steaming can help preserve the nutritional quality of our food. When a pot is covered, steam contact with the food is more consistent, allowing the steaming process to be completed in the least amount of time. In addition, light-sensitive nutrients - like vitamin B2 - will not be leeched out of the food so easily. As an added benefit, many water-soluble nutrients will pass out into the steam, and then drop back down into the water below the steamer basket. Save this water! It can be used as a base for soups and sauces, or at the very minimum, allowed to cool and used to water plants in the garden. We believe it is not only possible, but relatively easy, to live in our fast-paced culture and avoid insulting the beauty of food with unnecessary high heat. References Becalski A, Lau BP, Lewis D, Seaman SW. Acrylamide in foods: occurrence, sources, and modeling. J Agric Food Chem 2003;51:802-8. Kaack, K. Blanching of green bean (Phaseolus vulgaris). Plant Foods Hum Nutr. 1994 Dec; 46(4):353-60. Kimura, M. and Itokawa, Y. Cooking losses of minerals in foods and its nutritional significance. J Nutr Sci Vitaminol (Tokyo). 1990; 36 Suppl 1:S25-32; discussion S33. Larsson BK. Formation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons during the smoking and grilling of food. Prog Clin Biol Res 1986;206:169-80. Mangels, A. R.; Block, G.; Frey, C. M.; Patterson, B. H.; Taylor, P. R.; Norkus, E. P., and Levander, O. A. The bioavailability to humans of ascorbic acid from oranges, orange juice and cooked broccoli is similar to that of synthetic ascorbic acid. J Nutr. 1993 Jun; 123(6):1054-61 Moret S, Conte LS. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in edible fats and oils: occurrence and analytical methods. J Chromatogr A 2000;882:245-53. Nursal, B. and Yucecan, S. Vitamin C losses in some frozen vegetables due to various cooking methods. Nahrung. 2000 Dec; 44(6):451-3. Reiter, L. A. and Driskell, J. A. VitaminB-6 content of selected foods served in dining halls. J Am Diet Assoc. 1985 Dec; 85(12):1625-7. Shaw I, Thomson B. Acrylamide food risk. Lancet 2003;361:434. Simko P. Determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in smoked meat products and smoke flavouring food additives. J Chromatogr B Analyt Technol Biomed Life Sci 2002;770:3-18. Stadler RH, Blank I, Varga N et al. Acrylamide from Maillard reaction products. Nature 2002;419:449-50. Thorkelsson G. The effect of processing on the content of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and volatile N-nitrosamines in cured and smoked lamb meat. Bibl Nutr Dieta 1989;188-98. Tilgner DJ, Daun H. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (polynuclears) in smoked foods. Residue Rev 1969;27:19-41. Weiss G. Cancer risks. Acrylamide in food: uncharted territory. Science 2002;297:27. _________________ JoAnn Guest mrsjo- www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest/Diets AIM Barleygreen " Wisdom of the Past, Food of the Future " http://www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest/Diets.html Music Unlimited - Access over 1 million songs. Try it free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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