With the warm weather returning, mixed salads are also making a comeback. Unfortunately, for many, eating raw vegetables comes with stomach aches. So how do you properly digest raw vegetables?
It’s no secret that raw vegetables are an excellent source of vitamins and minerals. Which have not been altered by a cooking process. However, consuming raw vegetables often goes hand in hand with a feeling of irritation during digestion. This is very easily explained. In fact, some vegetables contain insoluble fiber. If they have real benefits for our health (for example, they increase the volume and frequency of stools), these fibers are hard and our body does not have enzymes to digest them. This is why some are victims of bloating after consuming them.
But then how not to deprive yourself of it?
The solution, you have understood, would be to soften the fibers by cooking the vegetables which would thus become more digestible. To best preserve the nutritional qualities, think of “short-term cooking”, in a pressure cooker or in a wok. But that doesn’t solve the problem if you want to eat them raw.
First tip therefore, chop, cut, grate… This will have the effect of coming to “break” the fibers to make them more assimilable. Another solution, take the time to chew. The digestion process begins in our mouths. Chewing slowly will help your digestive system fight bloating.
Certain foods with seeds or a thick skin (such as tomatoes) can irritate the intestine. It may therefore be useful to prune and peel them. Finally, always with the aim of breaking down insoluble fibre, the “vegetable juice” option can give your digestive system some respite.