Posted on February 18, 2014 by Jenny Cromack
In order to get the best results for our bodies it is important to eat the appropriate nutrients but when it comes to eating fruit and vegetables is it fresh, canned or frozen better for you?
There are a number of factors that can come into making a decision about this – cost, convenience , taste and nutritional value are all important but for maximal body composition ensuring what we eat is as nutritious as possible is the main priority.
The main question that needs to be asked is by eating canned and frozen are we sacrificing nutrition for convenience?
Alarmingly over a third of the British population consumes just over a third of their recommended daily nutrients from their fruit and vegetables.
So let’s take a look at the arguments to help us answer the question’ Is fresh, canned or frozen vegetables better for you?’
Fresh Fruit and Vegetables
For me there is nothing better than having fresh fruit and vegetables, they excel in taste, texture and nutritional value. However fruits and vegetables destined to be shipped to the fresh-produce supermarket aisles around the country typically are picked before they are ripe, which gives them less time to develop a full spectrum of vitamins and minerals. Although signs of ripening may still occur, these vegetables will never have the same nutritive value as if they had been allowed to fully ripen on the vine. In addition, during the long haul from farm to fork, fresh fruits and vegetables are exposed to lots of heat and light, which degrade some nutrients, especially delicate vitamins like C and the B vitamin Thiamin. I, therefore, ensure that the fruit and vegetables I eat are grown nearby to ensure that they get from the field to my fork in a quick time to minimize loss of nutrients.
Canned Fruit and Vegetables
Contrary to popular belief, fruit and vegetables when canned do not lose a high quantity of its nutritional value. The benefits of canned fruit and vegetable is that they are available all year round and last considerable longer.
However, canned foods can have significantly high levels of sodium. You can buy low –sodium or sodium- free can so it is important if you buy canned fruit and veg that you check to ensure that there is not high levels of sodium. Just as equally important many canned fruits are preserved in syrup and sugars therefore these should also be avoided.
It is important to highlight that the nutrients lost in canned fruit and vegetables is dependent on the time period between the harvesting and the canning process. If the fruit is harvested then canned quickly the nutritional quantity will be high, however the longer the time period the more nutrients are lost. On some cans you can gain an understanding of this time frame.
Frozen Fruit and Vegetables
Just the same as canned vegetables the nutritional value is only high in the fruit and vegetables if it frozen quickly after being harvested.
During the first steps of freezing fruit and vegetables they are blanched in hot water or steamed to kill bacteria, this causes some water soluble nutrients such as vitamin C and B to break down, the subsequent flash–freeze locks the vegetables in a relatively nutrient state.
So what is fresh, canned or frozen vegetables better for you to consume?
The answer is Fresh fruit and vegetables should always be the first choice if they are sourced locally and consumed fairly quickly. If fresh isn’t available you should opt for frozen over canned however it is always a good idea to have a can of low sodium vegetables on the shelf in case you run out of fresh or the freezer breaks.
The main thing is make sure you consume enough fruit and vegetables to give your body the best nutrients available.
LH