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Conventional belief is that raw vegetables are always healthier than cooked, but this is not true depending on the plant foods eaten according to lab testing and anthropological evidence by experts in the field.
I stopped by one of my favorite healthfood stores today to pick up a large glass of fresh juice made from organic raw vegetables for an early lunch on the go. As usual, I asked for the a carrot, celery, beet, spinach and cucumber blend. But, hold the spinach. I definitely skipped the green smoothie too!
While this request is usually met with a simple nod by the juice bar attendant, this time the guy looks up and says, “Why no spinach? We have a lot of people that come in here and love the spinach in their juice.”
Ah! Great question!
The truth is that not everything should be eaten raw, especially vegetables!
Some raw vegetables must be cooked else you are actually harming yourself. Below is a rundown of what veggies should not be eaten raw either in whole or juiced form.
Cruciferous Raw Vegetables
Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but cruciferous vegetables should be cooked before eating as they contain chemicals that BLOCK the production of thyroid hormone in your body! Considering that 2 out of every 3 Westerners are either overweight or obese and this is projected to jump to 75% by 2020, this is of particular importance as folks struggling with weight usually suffer from borderline to full-blown hypothyroidism.
Hypothyroidism is a condition where the thyroid gland does not make enough thyroid hormone, so someone suffering from this condition surely does not want to be eating foods that will block what little thyroid hormone is being produced in the first place!
Symptoms of hypothyroidism include cold hands and feet, thinning hair, fatigue, reduced or nonexistent libido, coarse dry hair, constipation, difficulty losing weight, and depression among many others.
Cooking crucifers reduces the goitrogenic substances by about 2/3. Fermentation does not reduce goitrogens in these veggies, but since fermented crucifers such as sauerkraut are typically eaten as a condiment and, hence, in small amounts, consumption is fine if the diet is rich in iodine.
Here is the list of common cruciferous vegetables that you do not want to be eating raw if you want to protect your thyroid gland!
Arugula, broccoli, kale, maca root, cauliflower, cabbage, turnip, collard greens, bok choy, brussels sprouts, radish, rutabaga, and watercress.
Notice that many of these vegetables are commonly included in fresh veggie juice blends or in salads. While an occasional arugula salad or cup of coleslaw is not going to do harm to most folks, it would be wise not to make a habit of eating/drinking any of these vegetables in raw form. Kale chips are a safe choice too.
Raw Vegetable Greens
Some veggie greens contain a chemical called oxalic acid. This substance is a very irritating to the mouth and intestinal tract. It also blocks iron and calcium absorption and may contribute to the formation of kidney stones.
The good news is that oxalic acid is reduced by a light steaming or cooking. Just be sure to discard the vegetable cooking water.
Veggies containing oxalic acid include spinach, chard, parsley, chives, purslane and beet greens.
Hmmmm. Spinach is known for being high in iron, yet eating it raw will not necessarily give you the iron you want because of the oxalic acid?
Yep, that’s right. Cook that spinach first if you are seeking an iron boost without the indigestion and don’t get hooked on the raw spinach salads!
Don’t stress about munching the parsley garnish on your next gourmet dinner, though. A little bit here and there is not going to cause a problem. Eat a big spinach salad everyday and it is virtually certain you will eventually succumb to kidney stones, according to Dr. William Shaw, Director of The Great Plains Laboratory for Health, Nutrition and Metabolism.
Other Raw Vegetable Cautions
Other vegetables that are best to avoid eating raw include:
- Raw potatoes contain hemagglutinins that disrupt red blood cell function.
- Raw sweet potatoes will give you gas.
- Raw, edible mushrooms such as the common white mushroom contain toxic substances such as agaritine, a suspected carcinogen. These substances are heat sensitive and are neutralized by cooking.
- Raw alfalfa sprouts are mildly toxic and inhibit the immune system. Eating large quantities regularly can make the skin overly sensitive to the sun or trigger autoimmune symptoms that mimic lupus.
Dr. Weston A. Price on Raw Vegetables
A good rule of thumb when considering the best way to consume your veggies is to remember the letter that Dr. Weston A. Price wrote to his nieces and nephews in 1934. In this letter, he strongly urged them to eat their vegetables cooked in butter. His research found that the bulkiness (fiber) of raw vegetables interfered with the human body’s ability to extract minerals from them via the digestive process.
So, should you drink your veggies raw? Of course. Raw vegetable juice made from veggies that are safe to consume uncooked is a wonderful way to get a fast infusion of easy to digest, colloidal minerals. It is also highly alkalizing to the body and a proven way to gently detox the gut.
The great thing about veggie juice is that the fiber is removed, which is the “bulkiness” that Dr. Price found interfered with the mineral absorption.
However, if you are going to eat the fibrous portion of the vegetable, it is best to cook them in butter as advised by Dr. Price to enhance the availability of the minerals. The fat in the butter permits greater absorption of the minerals, and besides, buttered veggies taste fantastic!
References
Nourishing Traditions
The Role of Oxalates in Chronic Disease, William Shaw PhD (Director of The Great Plains Laboratory for Health, Nutrition and Metabolism)
More Information
Best Green Juice for Congestion
Nightshade Vegetable Contraindications
Cleansing Myths
I really hope some one has a chance to see my comment….
First and foremost, spinach is not a part of the crucifer family. So your argument that spinach could be goitrogenic (inducing goiter formation) is simply not valid. Furthermore, you should not discard the water you boil your vegetables in, it contains lots of nutrients that are leeched out in the cooking process. This can be corroborated by a Harvard Medical Journal, that you can find here….http://www.health.harvard.edu/fhg/updates/Microwave-cooking-and-nutrition.shtml
I didn’t say spinach was a crucifer. Spinach has a different problem .. the problem of oxalic acid. Please read the article more closely.
The fact that this article sources another article that also happens to source this article. Oh and, the article that this one sources is from the future. This one was written in 2010 whereas the source is in 2012. Starting to question the validity of this..
so far most medical journals online say that eating raw spinach is good for you.I don’t know who to believe now
Hi Jacquii,
Sorry, I forgot to mention… regarding your thyroid.
Perhaps you had a high consumption of soy (contains goitrogens) before when you where consuming processed foods and your elimination of them helped your thyroid condition.
Also, as Mr. Paleo posted, be aware of the vegetables you are juicing and watch out for the goitrogens! 🙂
Hi Jacquii,
Being a conventional meat eater does not mean consuming loads of processed foods and sugar!
Bad dietary habits span all food restriction fads.
Actually, sugar is the killer of modern man, not saturated fats and salt.
There is a high amount of sugar in fruits, fructose, which should really only consumed in large quantities, seasonally, as in the warmer months (summer).
Meat contains LOADS of minerals, all in very digestible form. Meat (and bone) is a much better source of minerals for human consumption than vegetables – see why, my previous post.
Saturated fat, as from animal source, butter, lard, help the human body absorb minerals.
Meat naturally contains saturated fat, vegetables do not.
Therefore, saturated fat is beneficial to add to vegetables to increase the absorption of their minerals.
Do the research.
Talk to your grandmother.
Jacquii,
What one eats, DOES matter… we are designed a certain way, and our bodies function according to the same basic rules. Most people (like Joe Cross) often regain their “health”, not because of what they eat, but because of what they STOPPED eating… that does not infer that it is applicable to the “long-term”. PLEASE, if you really want to know, do your homework, learn the science….
p.s., don’t mix fruit and vegetables in your “smoothie”, and avoid consuming goitrogenic vegetables on a daily basis… but then, what do I know… I only spend every day of my life doing this…
p.p.s., juicing is an integral part of my “recovery” program, but CERTAIN items for specific reasons…
Oh dear… what the hell does it matter if you are vegan vegetarian a meat eater etc… the point is… eating healthy and enjoying what you put in your mouth can only be a good thing. I feel the reason for so many people with cancer now and obesity is down to processed food. I am a meat eater… I was once also 26 and a half stone and on a lot of medication for this and that INCLUDING under active thyroid… until I changed my life around and started eating healthy by juicing. The first 4 days were like coming of some sort of drug….. that was the effect of coming off sugar and salt..I was obviously addicted to them.
Not only have I lost 8 stone and still losing… I am off ALL my medications, my skin is amazing and has gone back as I have lost and NOT saggy like those on ridiculous diets!. I now sleep incredibly well. I had a blood test a year ago and they ALL came back healthy…INCLUDING my thyroid. That is back to NORMAL. In my juices I have an array of fruit and veg… mostly spinach or Kale I limit my intake of meat as since I have introduced fruit and veg smoothies and juices I now longer feel I need a lot of meat. I now longer crave for food. So this lady who wrote the article should be better informed. Maybe she should watch Fat Sick and Nearly Dead and get in touch with Joe Cross… he would teach you and other idiots who THINK they know what they are talking about a thing or two.
This thread on the original article has degenerated into a war.
If anyone cares to look at common sense, and not the latest food craze, they would plainly see what foods were used to guarantee the survival of the human species. Think of your ancestors and what they ate, because it is what they ate that has enabled you to post on this thread today.
Your ancestors lived in harsh and good times and had to adjust their food choices according to climate, famine (weather), war times, strife and abundance.
In all cultures, across the globe, their was NEVER a society that survived on pure plant foods as sole sustenance. The poor of societies had to rely on less or no meat because of the status quo in that era, and they suffered for it with an early, and forgotten, death.
Vegetables are best digested by herbivores. Mankind are not herbivores. Crude fiber is very hard to digest. Cooking (steaming preferred) some vegetables makes good common sense if you look toward nature and how carnivores utilized this, which is, carnivores eat the stomach contents of their kill, pre-digested plant materials, cooked veggies! Mankind are Omnivores, some meat and some pre-digested, or cooked, vegetables!
Sure, nibble on some fresh non-fiberous tender greens and some juicy apples and berries, onion, garlic, and all the accessible veggies that would appeal to the tastebuds of your ancestral history! Yet, still, most root and fibrous vegetables are much easier to digest (and vitamins and minerals are more accessible) if gently steamed or cooked in a broth alongside meat and fat. Sorry. That’s how your ancestors did it and they survived. That is the PROOF. That is the STUDY.
This new experiment in food science, call it paleo, call it vegetarian, call it whatever, is just new stuff, it’s just STUFF, which is not proven, it has no substance, no history.
A war about new STUFF!
Talk to your grandmother, or her mother, and ask her what she cooked for your family. Eat that.
This isn’t the first comment with similar advice, “Talk to your grandmother, or her mother, and ask her what she cooked for your family. Eat that.”
That’s only good advice if you want to go down the same path as them. I certainly don’t!
I can’t ask any of my family ancestors, like my grandmothers because they are all dead. My parents too. They didn’t live long lives, they were overweight, had multiple health issues, senility… no thanks! I will do things very differently. I may or may not live a longer and healthier life, but you do the same old thing you get the same old result. I’m willing to take a chance, listen to my body and do things differently than my grandparents.