Keeping A Healthy Check
(health@magtheweekly.com )
Dried Fruits
Q: I wanted to know whether fresh fruits contain more nutritional value than dried ones? Anum
A: When fruit is dried it loses more than just water, for instance in berries much of their uniqueness is derived from their phytonutrients which are susceptible to damage from heat, light, oxygen and time since harvest. Some drying processes are harsher than others and no drying process can leave the phytonutrients unchanged. Since fruits lose water and therefore volume during drying process, their sugar becomes concentrated giving more calories in same quantity as that of fresh fruit. For example one quarter cup of dried apricots contains about 75 kilo calories whereas a whole cup of apricot would give around the same amount of kilo calories. For this reason fresh fruits are placed in the moderate sugar category whilst dried fruits in high sugar food category. In addition to this, fresh fruits are more concentrated in several vitamins and minerals. Some other ingredients like sweeteners are added commercially in dried fruits. Its good to look for dried fruit sweetened with a natural sweetener such as apple juice concentrate rather than refined sugar or corn concentrate.
Canned Beans
Q: Can you please tell me whether I can eat canned beans directly from the can or do I have to cook them first? Maryam
A: Canned beans can be eaten directly from the can without additional cooking since they are precooked. However before eating them directly or cooking them, it is good to rinse them with cold water; this will make them taste better. Apart from that some of the oligosaccharides that are present in can-water will be eliminated. Presence of oligosaccharides may affect the digestibility of beans whilst their loss means less gas formation in the gut; because bacteria in the large intestine can break these oligosaccharides into carbon dioxide and water.
Saturated Oils
Q: I want to know the difference between saturated and unsaturated oils? Amir Amin
A: In a chemical sense, all fatty acids found in cooking oils are hydrocarbon molecules comprising hydrogen and carbon. Fatty acids that contain hydrogen atoms in as many places as possible are fully saturated and simply called saturated fats. These saturated fats play a predictable role in the cooking properties of oil. The more saturated the oil is, the closer it gets to becoming a solid instead of a liquid at room temperature. Highly saturated oils tend to be at least semi-solid at room temperature. Only few vegetable oils are highly saturated; this short list primarily includes coconut oil, palm oil, and palm kernel oil. Highly unsaturated oils will keep its liquid form even under low temperatures. Most of the cooking oils are chosen for their properties of being highly unsaturated.
Histaminic Food
Q: What is the relationship between overproduction of histamines and foods? Does it have something to do with allergies? Minahil Dosslani
A: Histamine is a substance that can produce allergic symptoms in the body. Histidine, the amino acid from which histamine forms, is found in many protein-containing foods, especially those that are stored for a long time. When a food is high in this amino acid, certain types of bacteria are given enough time to start metabolising parts of the food, converting histidine into histamine. These foods can include fermented soybean products, soy sauce, cheese and other fermented foods like sauerkraut. Aged meats can also contain higher amounts of preformed histamine. Basically if a person does not have a healthy digestive tract, there is a chance that his or her body will end up with too much histamine. Research shows that cinnamon is effective in preventing it’s excessive formation. Intake of ample amounts of vitamin B6 may also help to lower the risks of generating any allergic symptoms that can occur.
Tea Types
Q: Please tell me about green tea and Kashmiri chai. What are their benefits to human health? How much should be the recommended daily intake? Sayyed Musharraf Hussain
A: Green tea contains health-promoting flavonoids, including catechins and their derivatives. These play a pivotal role in the green tea's antioxidant effects. Research shows that health benefits of green tea is based on the amount of green tea consumed. In Asian countries, people consume around 3 cups per day (which would provide 240-320mg of polyphenols). Green tea lowers the risks for a wide range of diseases, from simple bacterial or viral infections to chronic degenerative conditions including cardiovascular diseases, cancer, stroke, periodontal disease, and osteoporosis. Research findings shows that daily intake of green tea efficiently protects the brain from irreversible damage due to cerebral ischemia, and consequent neurological deficits. In addition to this, green tea protects against Cognitive Decline, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. Drinking too much green tea can cause insomnia because of its caffeine content. Kashmiri chai is made by heating green tea leaves with some other ingredients for quite longer time at boiling temperatures that may lead to extraction of some other health benefiting compounds as well. However prolonged boiling increases the tannin concentration in the tea that causes astringency; their presence may interfere with the absorption of certain nutrients.
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