Optimizing Nutrition from Fruits & Vegetables

By:
Beth Gold

It has been established that eating more fruits and vegetables can help reduce the risk of certain types of cancer. And we all know that striving to get at least five servings of vegetables and four servings of fruit a day is one way to take charge of your health. But what we sometimes don't know is how to get the most nutritional value out of our fruits and vegetables.

To do that, keep these two important things in mind:

1. Whenever possible, try to buy locally grown fruits and vegetables.
   Spring and summer are a great time to seek out farmer's markets in your area. Much of the produce in the supermarket has traveled many miles to its destination, and the nutrients can break down during transit. The moment produce is picked, its nutritional composition begins to change through exposure to air and light. Fall and winter are trickier, but, even then, try to choose apples, oranges, root vegetables and other things you know are grown near you during those seasons.

2. The most important thing to do to retain nutrients in the fruits and vegetables you buy is to prepare them properly at home.
   Many people with great intentions make mistakes in this area because of their cooking methods. Any time you can decrease the cooking time, temperature, and amount of water used, you are on your way to getting the most nutrition out of your produce.
   
   

Cooking vegetables in water by boiling them significantly decreases their nutritional value because vitamins and minerals leach out into the water.

Straining the vegetables allows the nutrients to go down the drain with the water. If you do cook vegetables in water, even if you steam them, keep the water to use in soup stock.

Here are some positive steps you can take to make sure you get all the nutrients you can out of your fruits and veggies.

• Steam or stir-fry vegetables when possible.
• Do most of your vegetable chopping after cooking, so the area exposed to cooking is minimized.
• Cook in covered pans to shorten cooking time.
• Cook with a minimum amount of water -- just enough to prevent scorching.
• Cook vegetables only until tender and crisp.
• Refrain from overcooking.
• When you can, use leftover cooking water for soups and sauces.

Don't let your good efforts to get enough vegetables for you and your family go down the drain. They even taste better if you don't.