When snacking throughout the day, it's important to choose the right snacks. I like to keep my snacks interesting and colorful, as well as healthy of course.
It's no secret that vegetables are good for you as they provide our bodies with vitamins, minerals, fiber, essential oils and phytonutrients (chemicals that help protect plants from germs, fungi, bugs etc). They are also very low in fat, calories and nasty additives. But did you know that cooking vegetables can destroy the essential nutrients and also kill vital enzymes in some vegetables?
For example, cooking broccoli deactivates an enzyme that helps cleanse the liver of carcinogens, a substance that may cause cancer or promote cancer in living tissues. If you cook certain vegetables in water, you may also lose water-soluble vitamins such as vitamins B & C and folate. In saying this, some vegetables are more nutritionally beneficial when cooked, such as tomatoes and spinach. So it's worth doing your research on what vegetables are best eaten raw.
By eating raw vegetables, you not only gain more nutritional benefits, but it also helps with weight loss, hydration, energy levels as well as preventing cancer and heart disease.
Today I have a mixed bag of raw vegetables - carrots, beans and red capsicum. I am a visual person, so if something looks bright and colourful I will be more drawn to it. If you want to mix it up a little and add some flavour and protein, trying having your raw vegetables with cottage cheese or a hummus dip.
Happy snacking everyone!
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