It often happens that we prepare a bit too much food for lunch and we store it properly and eat the leftovers the next day. It’s not as good as the day before but we don’t want to waste food so we reheat it and feast on them. Sometimes there’s nothing wrong with this habit, but sometimes reheating the food from yesterday can be dangerous and the meal that was perfectly fine freshly prepared can turn into a toxic one. That’s why it’s good to know which foods should never be reheated and this article will teach you exactly that.
The following foods should be consumed only fresh, never reheated:
- Rice – the main issue about eating leftovers is that we need to store them right. If rice isn’t kept at the right temperature, eating the leftovers can lead to vomiting and diarrhea. This happens because often there are some bacteria that survive the cooking process and when we don’t eat it at once the spores multiply and spread, causing digestive problems. You may think that reheating the rice will eliminate the harmful bacteria but in reality some can even survive boiling temperature. That’s why it’s best to eat it within an hour of preparation, not allowing the spores to multiply and cause problems.
- Vegetable oil – reheating meals with vegetable oil can increase the risk of a stroke and even cancer. Latest research has shown that repeatedly heating up polyunsaturated oils which have linoleic acid like canola, corn, sunflower, and soybean can release toxic compounds which cause many different health disorders. The main culprit for this is the fatty acid called 4-hydroxy-trans-2-nonrnal (HNE) which has been linked on numerous occasions to cancer, liver disorders, Huntington’s disease, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, stroke, and cardiovascular diseases. The American Dietetic Association revealed that reheating vegetable oil over and over again releases this toxic acid and can lead to a number of ailments. Jeannie Moloo a spokeswoman for the Association said that everyone should be concerned with this issue and be careful when preparing their meals. Never heat an oil to the point of smoking it could be fatal.
- Vegetables – a lot of people are aware that leafy green veggies shouldn’t be reheated because they release toxic compounds but this is not entirely true. Just like rice, veggies should be properly stored in order to be safe for reheating. You should store them in the fridge on a temperature below 4 degrees Celsius, or if you keep them for longer than 12 hours then put them in the freezer. Many vegetables like lettuce, spinach, beets, and celery contain great amounts of nitrate which itself is not harmful, but when the vegetables are left at room temperature the nitrates can turn into nitrites. Nitrites are dangerous, especially for little children because they can cause a rare blood disorder methaemoglobinaemia which manifests through seizures, headaches, shortness of breath and fatigue.
Source:
http://www.healthytipsworld.net
