Ask Marilyn – Are raw foods better for you?
Q: Are raw foods better for you?
A: There are advantages to eating raw food – fresh fruits and vegetables and seeds and nuts are full of nutrients undamaged by heating and processing. Many people say they have more energy when they eat some raw food regularly claiming that raw foods are rich in energy enzymes and still laden with natural energy from the earth and sun.
There are, however, drawbacks from eating nothing but raw foods or foods that are uncooked. Some people find them difficult to digest because the fibres have not been softened enough by heating; cooking can also make some of the nutrients e.g. antioxidants more available and easily absorbed by the body. And as for the seasons it is certainly good for the body to stay well warmed in the winter with cooked foods.
Steaming is a great way to cook that leaves the nutrients intact; rather than methods using high temperatures or long periods of time which do the opposite. My advice therefore is to change the balance of raw to cooked food depending on the season. Go for more cooked food in the winter and more raw in the summer but both cooked and raw are valuable.