Three ways home cooking improves your health

Cooking your own meals has many health benefits. It does take a little more time and planning, but the personal benefits are numerous. Here are three benefits of cooking from scratch.

Eat less plastic

Pre-packaged and takeaway meal containers increase the amount of plastic we ingest. New research has found that microplastics in food containers have been found to cross the blood-brain barrier, where they can stay and trigger Alzheimer like conditions. Rhode Island University’s assistant professor of pharmacy, Jaimie Ross, studied the brain health impact of plastics and found that nanoplastics in the brain can lead to cognitive decline, especially in those with a genetic risk.

Reduce the risk of chronic conditions

A 15-year study from the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden proves that eating a healthy diet results in a slower progression of diseases like heart disease and cancer.

Adrián Carballo-Casla, postdoctoral researcher at the Aging Research Centre, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet says,

Our results show how important diet is in influencing the development of multimorbidity in aging populations.

The study followed 2400 adults who were divided into four groups depending on their diet. Three of the diets included the MIND diet, the Alternative Mediterranean Diet and the Alternative Healthy Eating Index Diet. All of these diets consist primarily of vegetables, fruit, whole grains, nuts, legumes, unsaturated fats and with a limited intake of sweets, red meat, processed meat and butter/margarine. The fourth dietary group included pro-inflammatory foods, with a focus on red and processed meat, refined grains and sweetened beverages, with lower intake of vegetables, tea and coffee.

The group following the pro-inflammatory diet had an increased risk of chronic diseases, while the three healthy diet groups reduced their risk of heart disease and dementia, and had a slower progression of chronic conditions.

Eat less processed foods

Eating ultra-processed foods is increasing the rates of heart disease and obesity. A new Science Advisory from the American Heart Association, “Ultraprocessed Foods and Their Association with Cardiometabolic Health: Evidence, Gaps and Opportunities,” summarizes the effects on health with the increased intake of ultra-processed foods.

Maya K. Vadiveloo, Ph.D., R.D., FAHA, volunteer chair of the writing group for this Science Advisory, says

We know that eating foods with too much saturated fat, added sugars and salt is unhealthy. What we don’t know is if certain ingredients or processing techniques make a food unhealthy above and beyond their poor nutritional composition.

Ultra-processed foods were introduced in the 1990s and now account for 70% of products in U.S. grocery stores. It is estimated that 50% of the Standard American Diet consists of ultra-processed foods. One of the important findings from the advisory is:

Most ultraprocessed foods (UPFs) are characterized by poor nutritional quality, contributing to excessive calories, and are typically high in saturated fats, added sugars and sodium (salt), the combination of which is often abbreviated as HFSS, which contribute to adverse cardiometabolic health outcomes, including heart attack, stroke, obesity, inflammation, Type 2 diabetes and vascular complications.

Science Advisory from the American Heart Association

There are many great reasons to prepare your own meals. You can choose the ingredients, it is good for your health, and it is an easier way to maintain your weight. While it may take a little more time, meal prepping and batch cooking can make it easier to have meals ready in minutes.

Let me know, do you make your own meals?

Change your mind, change your health,

Shayla