Which vegetables and fruits are healthier: fresh or frozen

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

We usually prefer fresh vegetables, fruits and berries. These same frozen foods seem to contain fewer micronutrients. The life hacker understands whether this is really so.

Many have tried to freeze food to preserve its flavor and freshness, but inventor Clarence Birdseye was the first to do it. At the beginning of the 20th century, he watched the Eskimo fishermen, who laid out the caught fish on the ice. At a temperature of –40 ° C, the catch instantly froze. During dinner, Birdseye noticed that such fish tasted as good as fresh, and took the idea into service.

Other freezing methods are used today. For example, vegetables are poured with boiling water before cold processing. Food at such temperature drops loses some useful elements. But remember:

Fresh foods are deprived of some of the nutrients, even if nothing is done with them.

For example, green peas lose about half of their vitamin C within 24 to 48 hours after being harvested.

Ali Bouzari and colleagues at the University of California compared the nutrient content of frozen and fresh vegetables, but found no significant differences. … For example, frozen corn, blueberries and green beans contain more vitamin C than fresh ones. Frozen broccoli also contains more vitamin B2.

In another study, researchers compared the fiber, magnesium, zinc, iron, and calcium content of fresh and frozen foods, but found no significant difference. …

Frozen vegetables and fruits stored in the freezer retain all vitamins and minerals.

There is no need to worry about the amount of nutrients. The main difference between frozen and fresh foods is their taste.