The Effects of Cooking on Nutrients

Some foods are best eaten when freshly harvested, without further preparation or cooking. Fruit such bananas, and vegetables such as tomatoes and lettuce fall into this category. Cooking and storage over prolonged periods reduces the nutritional value of these foods.

Cooked vs. Raw Foods

Why it is that live food gives us the best effect in terms of cutting down our caloric intake and maximizing the quality of our food intake? One of the keys to this is pointed out by Viktoras Kulvinskas in his book, Survival into the 21st Century. Viktoras, who is considered one of the founders of the modern live hood movement, estimates that the overall nutrient destruction when you cook food is 80%. Although there is some variation in the research findings, most agree that at least 50% of the B vitamins are destroyed by cooking. B1 and B12 losses have been recorded up to 96%, folic acid losses up to 97%, and biotin losses up to 72%. Vitamin C losses are approximately 70-80%. The well-known Max Planck Institute for Nutritional Research in Germany found only 50% bioavailability in proteins that have been overcooked. This study found that cooking alters proteins into substances that disrupt cellular function and speed up the aging and disease process.

With the above exceptions, the digestibility of most foods is enhanced through cooking.