{"id":497,"date":"2014-05-01T23:59:27","date_gmt":"2014-05-01T23:59:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/livewelldfw.com\/?p=497"},"modified":"2014-05-01T23:59:27","modified_gmt":"2014-05-01T23:59:27","slug":"healthy-food-should-you-use-a-microwave","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/livewelldfw.com\/blog\/healthy-food-should-you-use-a-microwave\/","title":{"rendered":"Healthy food. Should you use a Microwave?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"broccoli<\/a>I am often asked if it is okay to use a microwave for cooking or reheating food. No matter how it\u2019s done, cooking often destroys vital nutrients. The type of cooking preparation you choose determines how much is destroyed. For most nutrients, the less heat, the better. So while microwaving may destroy the most nutrients, boiling or cooking anything to excess will tend to decrease its nutritional value. You always want to use the least amount of heat, the least amount of water and the least amount of time possible to cook your food.<\/span><\/p>\n

A study published in the November 2003 issue of The Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture found that broccoli “zapped” in the microwave with a little water lost up to 97% of its beneficial antioxidants. By comparison, steamed broccoli lost 11% or fewer of its antioxidants.<\/span>
\n
\nMicrowaves have also been shown to change the structure of proteins,<\/span>1 <\/span><\/sup>including the natural antibodies in breast milk (since antibodies are proteins).<\/span>2<\/span><\/sup> So I definitely don\u2019t recommend heating baby bottles in microwaves \u2013 just heat them up on the stove! <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

There are many people who disagree and say that microwave cooking does not decrease the nutrition in food, but I have not been able to find any studies to support that side of the argument. Bottom line, more studies are needed. But in the meantime, I will avoid putting food in my microwave.\u00a0 As a matter of personal preference, I have also found that my food doesn\u2019t taste as good after heating in a microwave, and often the texture changes to become rubbery and dry. What a waste to spend money on beautiful healthy organic food, and then lose so much of the goodness through microwave cooking or reheating! <\/span><\/p>\n

You really CAN survive without a microwave.\u00a0 Here are a few tips:<\/span><\/p>\n