The four allied duplas to promote healthy eating

We all have an idea of ​​what foods we like to eat. Bread with butter, salami and cheese, Milanese with french fries, strawberries with cream or fresh and sweet potato. But sometimes, the food combination is not only more palatable, but it is better for our body. By putting two foods in the same dish we can improve the way our body absorbs nutrients and even prevent disease. According to the Argentine Council on Food Safety and Nutrition, these are some of the food pairs that are good for health:

1. Cereals and legumes. Consuming cereals with legumes at the same or different meals increases protein quality, an allied combination of healthy eating.
2. Steaming and food sources of carotenes. Steaming (until the pigment separates from the structure and appears in the water) increases the absorption of carotenes found in foods such as spinach, chard, carrots, squash and corn, among others. others.
3. Biotechnology and food. Healthier foods can be achieved. For example, the golden rice produces and stores beta carotene (a precursor of vitamin A) in its grains and aims to provide this vitamin to populations that do not consume enough daily.
4. Foods are sources of vitamin C and foods of plant origin. For example, accompanying spinach with a food source of vitamin C, such as bell pepper, increases the absorption of iron from spinach.

What our grandmothers said about the iron that lentils had is true, but with some footnotes. Legumes have much less iron than, for example, meat. In addition, the type of iron in vegetables is absorbed only between 5% and 20%. To make matters worse, legumes contain a so-called antinutrient phytic acid, which combines with iron and other minerals and prevents their absorption. For this reason, vegetarians and vegans need to pay more attention to their iron levels.

You should always soak and cook legumes well because it reduces the phytate content and can increase iron absorption while eating foods rich in vitamin C, such as fresh spinach, peppers, tomatoes or broccoli. This prevents phytic acid from stealing iron and makes it easier for cells to absorb.

About dairy

Milk is a wise food that combines 03:00 substances most important for bone formation and maintenance. We are mammals and take breast milk as our first food to grow and develop quickly. A cup of milk contains the 30% of daily calcium needs, 25% of vitamin D and 20% of phosphorus.

If you do not want to drink milk or dairy, you should choose to combine foods rich in calcium such as soy, seaweed, sesame, with foods rich in vitamin D such as cod or fish liver oil, salmon, sardines, eggs and foods rich in phosphorus like egg and seafood. A plus: taking 5-10 minutes of sun each day also helps in the absorption of calcium because UV rays stimulate the production of natural vitamin D in the skin.