Methods of Food Combining, Sourcing, & Prep for Better Health

Some people say you are what you eat. You could say that you are what you eat, but it would be more accurate to say that you are what you digest. This means that just because a food may be rich in certain nutrients, your body may not absorb them. If nutrients don’t stay in your body, they don’t provide you with many benefits.

There are some specific ways to prepare and combine food to make sure you are getting the most nutrients. The amount of time it takes for food to get from the moment it is grown to the time it reaches your kitchen counter also has a significant impact on its nutritional value.

This article looks at how different methods of food sourcing, preparation, and combining can affect nutrition.

Food Sourcing & Storage

The sun, soil, and atmosphere provide food with its nutrients. It has been shown through many studies that the same type of produce can have very different nutritional values depending on where it comes from. This is due to the complete natural environment in which the food was grown, also known as its “terroir.” If two peaches come from the same tree, they can still have different levels of beta-carotene depending on which branch they grew on.

The farming methods used to cultivate the plant, including the use of chemicals to fertilize and protect it from pests and competition, are also part of the plant’s natural environment. Pesticides used on crops can make the food grown less nutritious. If any of the cleaning chemicals are ingested, it can lead to health problems.

Organic Produce

Whenever possible, look for organically grown and local produce to maximize the benefit of the plant foods you eat. Organic foods are said to have higher concentrations of nutrients, including antioxidants. Organically grown foods are less likely to contain pesticides and pesticide residues.

Local Produce

Although it may not be organic, local produce still has a lot of benefits. The nutrient composition of fruits and veggies degrades after picking, so local produce can be much fresher than the stuff that travels around the world in refrigerated ships, planes, and trucks. Additionally, Since shelf life isn’t the primary consideration, local growers can provide more unusual varieties of fruits and vegetables that ripen quicker or bruise more easily than iceberg lettuce and tasteless tomatoes. These varieties are often more nutritious and delicious. While some small farmers use season extension techniques, most of the produce you’ll get from a local grower will be in season. This is a way to ensure maximal nutritional value.

Home-Grown Produce

produce that is grown by oneself or gotten from a neighbor who is good at gardening is the best kind One possible good thing to come out of the pandemic is that more people are gardening in their backyards. To read our article on how to start a food garden and take control of your food, click on the link provided.

Frozen Produce

Frozen fruits and vegetables are another great option for getting nutritionally dense foods. Frozen fruits and vegetables are picked at peak ripeness and then are flash-frozen, which captures their nutrients and allows them to be maintained for a longer period of time. After studying the nutritional content of various frozen and refrigerated foods, researchers published their findings in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry in 2015. For many vitamins, there was no difference. The nutrient levels in frozen foods were generally the same as or higher than the fresh refrigerated ones, except for beta-carotene levels, which were lower in the frozen foods. Type your response here. You can always grow your own produce, or buy it fresh and freeze it yourself. This is a helpful article on how to store and preserve food.

Food Preparation

The way you prepare your fruits and vegetables can also impact the amount of nutrients you receive from them. If you’re a little rough on your produce, it’s not a bad thing. Wounding the flesh of vegetables triggers a defensive reaction. The veggie releases polyphenols to prevent further damage.

This works because it is helpful to think like a head of lettuce. Lettuce has a head, so it must think, right? A bunny rabbit is chewing on you while you lay on the ground. What are you going to do?

You can’t run away (darn roots!). You can’t hide, and you can’t fight back. Although it is possible to make yourself taste bitter, Flopsy opts for a more pleasant meal of leafy greens. Polyphenols found in plants can help protect humans from heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and some cancers.

If you want to make sure that your body gets the most vitamin C possible from the food you’re eating, you should eat it right after cutting it up, since the polyphenols in the food can interact with the vitamin C and use it up before it has a chance to be absorbed by your body.

The Benefit of Preparing Alliums

Another category of food that benefits us when we eat it are the alliums, which contain strong-smelling sulfur compounds. It is better to chop or crush garlic than to eat it whole because the damage to the bulb releases an enzyme called allicin, which can give you a headache. This enzyme found in garlic causes it to produce a large amount of nutrients that have many benefits for our health. The release of organosulfur compounds from onions occurs when their cell walls are broken, which is why people cry while chopping them.

Once you cut or crush garlic or onions, their nutritional value increases for the next 10 minutes or so. After chopping or crushing garlic, wait at least a few minutes before cooking or eating it for the best results.

Fermented Foods

Fermenting food increases the good nutrients and reduces phytates. This is good news for those who want to get the most out of their food in terms of nutrition, as phytates can prevent the body from absorbing some minerals. In 2018, researchers discovered that fermentation increased enzyme activity in cereal grains and legumes, which could improve nutritional outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa. That made nutrients more available for human uptake.

The antioxidant properties of fermented foods are also increased due to the increased activity of vitamin C. This is an article discussing the advantages of fermentation, as well as how to make sauerkraut and plant-based yogurt.

Soaking Grains and Legumes

The study found that soaking grains and legumes in water starts the germination process and reduces their phytate content. This makes their nutrients more available to the body. Beans seem to be incredibly good for you, and are linked with living a long life. When you soak nuts and seeds, it makes them more potent in terms of nutrients.

What counts as a daily food serve?

Serve sizes for different foods and food groups vary.

Vegetables – daily serve

One standard serve of vegetables is about 75 g (100 to 350 kJ) or:

½ cup cooked vegetables (for example, broccoli, carrots, spinach or pumpkin)
½ cup cooked dried or canned beans, peas or lentils (preferably with no added salt)
1 cup of green leafy or raw salad vegetables
½ cup sweet corn
½ medium potato or other starchy vegetables (such as sweet potato)
1 medium tomato.

Fruit – daily serve

One standard serve of fruit is about 150 g (350 kJ) or:

1 medium piece (for example, apple, banana, orange, pear)
2 small pieces (for example, apricots, plums, kiwi fruit)
1 cup diced or canned fruit (no added sugar).

Only occasionally, one standard serve of fruit can be:

125 ml (½ cup) fruit juice (no added sugar)
30 g dried fruit (for example, 4 dried apricot halves, 1½ tablespoons of sultanas).

Grain (cereal) foods – daily serve

Choose mostly wholegrain or high cereal fibre varieties of grain foods. Grains are a good source of fibre and choosing wholegrain or high cereal fibre varieties can help you towards meeting your daily fibre needs.

One standard serve is (500 kJ) or:

1 slice (40 g) of bread
½ medium roll (40 g) or flatbread
½ cup (75-120 g) cooked rice, pasta, noodles, barley, buckwheat, semolina, polenta, bulgur or quinoa
½ cup (120 g) cooked porridge
¼ cup (30 g) muesli
2/3 cup (30 g) breakfast cereal flakes
3 (35g) crispbreads
1 crumpet (60 g)
1 small (35 g) English muffin or scone.

Lean meats and poultry, fish, eggs, tofu, nuts and seeds and legumes/beans – daily serve

One standard serve is (500 to 600 kJ):

65 g cooked lean red meat such as beef, lamb, veal, pork, goat or kangaroo (about 90 to 100 g raw)
80 g cooked poultry such as chicken or turkey (100 g raw)
100 g cooked fish fillet (about 115 g raw weight) or 1 small can of fish
2 large (120 g) eggs
1 cup (150 g) cooked dried or canned legumes/beans such as lentils, chick peas or split peas (preferably with no added salt)
170 g tofu
30 g nuts, seeds, peanut or almond butter or tahini or other nut or seed paste (no added salt)*.

Use this food only occasionally as a replacement for others in the same category.

Milk, yoghurt, cheese and/or alternatives – daily serve

Milk, yoghurt and cheese should mostly be reduced fat.

One standard serve (500-600 kJ) is:

1 cup (250 ml) fresh, UHT long-life, reconstituted powdered milk or buttermilk
½ cup (120 ml) evaporated milk
2 slices (40 g) or one 4 x 3 x 2 cm cube (40 g) of hard cheese, such as cheddar
½ cup (120 g) ricotta cheese
¾ cup (200 g) yoghurt
1 cup (250 ml) soy, rice or other cereal drink with at least 100 mg of added calcium per 100 ml.

If you do not eat any foods from this group, the following foods contain about the same amount of calcium as a serve of milk, yoghurt, cheese or alternatives:

100 g almonds with skin
60 g sardines, canned, in water
½ cup (100 g) canned pink salmon with bones
100 g firm tofu (check the label – calcium levels vary).

Choose snacks that are lower in kilojoules if you are trying to lose weight. Some of these snacks contain more kilojoules, especially the nuts.

Change the way you think about food

There are lots of myths about healthy food. Don’t make food choices based on false beliefs. Some things to try include:

Don’t think that your diet must be ‘all or nothing’. Eating well doesn’t mean you must worry about eating healthily all the time. A good diet allows for treats occasionally.
Compare the prices of junk foods against the price of healthier food options to see that ‘healthy’ doesn’t have to mean ‘expensive’.
Experiment with different foods and recipes. A meal cooked with fresh ingredients is better than a limp burger or soggy chips.
Try different ‘fast’ options like whole-wheat breakfast cereal, muesli, wholemeal bread, wholegrain muffins, fruit, yoghurt or pasta.
When eating out, look for kilojoule labelling on menus and check before you choose. A single energy-dense meal may contain most of an adult’s daily kilojoule intake, and drinks can be high in kilojoules too.
Don’t give up your favourite meals entirely. Try thinking of new ways to create healthy meals – for example, you could make recipes lower in fat by changing the cooking method – grill, stir-fry, bake, boil or microwave, instead of deep frying.
Reduce the size of your meal or food instead of giving it up entirely. More doesn’t always mean better.
If you’re worried about missing out on socialising, instead of meeting friends for food, perhaps go for a walk instead. Or you could suggest a food outlet that serves healthier foods, such as wholemeal rolls with vegetable fillings, or sushi.

Get organised with food planning

Planning ahead can make changing your dietary habits a whole lot easier:

Make a shopping list before you shop and plan what meals you’re going to eat and when.
Keep a filled fruit bowl at home for fast, low-kilojoule snacks.
Vary your meals. You may get bored and lose motivation if you don’t try different ingredients and recipes.
Search the internet to find interesting and easy recipes and cooking tips – have a read of these tasty recipes.
Cook in bulk to save time – for example, soups, stews, casseroles and bolognese sauce are all easy to cook a lot of, and then freeze in portions for later use.
Eat breakfast every day so you’re less likely to snack on occasional foods at morning tea. A wholemeal or wholegrain breakfast cereal that is low in sugar, served with low-fat milk, can provide plenty of vitamins, minerals and fibre. Other fast and healthy options include yoghurt or wholemeal toast.