Why should children eat steamed food rather than fried food?

STAVI school catering with a menu of steamed dishes, nutritious and good for children

According to studies, regularly consuming fried food brings many health risks, such as an increased likelihood of obesity and cardiovascular disease; in addition, experts stress that fried food also raises mortality rates and shortens life expectancy. Steaming is a quick and simple way of cooking that also preserves the nutritional value of food. Join STAVI School Catering to take a closer look at why children should eat steamed food rather than fried food!

Image: Steamed food at STAVI School Catering

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• Industrial catering for factories:https://stavi.com.vn/en/service/Provide-industrial-catering.html
• School catering:https://stavi.com.vn/en/news/STAVI-The-No-1-trusted-quality-school-catering-provider-in-Hanoi.html

So do you know the benefits of giving children steamed food in STAVI school catering?

Here are the reasons why using steamed food in school catering is healthier than preparing food in other ways.

Preserves the vitamins and minerals in food

Cooking methods such as frying or boiling often cause the loss of nutrients and reduce the vitamins in food. Cooking food by steaming retains the maximum amount of nutrients and vitamins. Steaming preserves the full nutritional value along with vitamins such as B vitamins, thiamine, niacin and vitamin C. In addition, in steamed food, minerals such as potassium, calcium, phosphorus and zinc also remain intact.

No oil or fat needed, and food becomes easier to digest

Steaming uses heat from water vapour to cook food without the need for cooking oil or submerging it in water. Food prepared by steaming has a lower fat and calorie content than food fried in oil, which is why it is often the favourite choice of people on a diet.

Cooking food by steaming helps us reduce the amount of cholesterol and harmful fats taken into the body, since we do not use oil to cook. Steaming cooks food with vapour, so the food is very light and easy to digest. In this way, your body can absorb all the nutrients.

What are the risks that fried food brings us?

Research by experts shows that people who eat French fries or fried dishes more than twice a week have a higher risk of death from chronic diseases. There are two common causes of this: first, consuming a lot of French fries raises cholesterol and harmful fats in the body, leading to cardiovascular disease. Second, frying potatoes at high temperatures causes certain substances to transform into potential carcinogens, and combined with the high salt content of the dish, this increases the risk of death.However, this research is still much debated and has not reached a final conclusion.

Fried food puts stress on the digestive system

When we take in too much fried food, it puts pressure on the body and the digestive system because of the huge amount of fat. Of fats, carbs and protein, fat is digested the slowest, and it requires enzymes and digestive juices, such as bile and stomach acid, to break it down. Extra fat makes your digestive system work overtime, often leading to bloating, nausea and discomfort.

Diarrhoea and stomach pain

The most common digestive symptom is discomfort. Expert Barmer says: "Fatty foods not only sit in the stomach, they also get into the intestines because they are not digested. Many people also experience diarrhoea and stomach pain after eating fatty foods."

Harms gut bacteria

There is growing evidence that what you eat affects the bacteria in your gut, also known as the microbiome. Reducing consumption of fatty foods will not be detrimental to these microorganisms.

Foods containing healthy fats such as avocado, fish and olive oil help balance the body's fatty acid levels, which in turn can support healthy hormones for immune health.

Causes acne

You may not see acne right after a big meal, but expert Barmer says fatty foods can play a role in acne. The effect is indirect, occurs over time and is the result of an overall diet.

Acne is largely caused by hormonal imbalance and bacterial imbalance, so greasy food causes acne through the way it harms gut health.

Increases the risk of heart disease, obesity and diabetes

The risk of chronic diseases, especially heart disease, increases if you do not have a healthy diet.

A 2014 study by researchers at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health found that people who ate fried food 4 to 6 times a week had a 39% higher risk of type 2 diabetes and a 23% higher risk of coronary heart disease. For those who ate it daily, the rates were even higher.

Oily food is high in calories and fat

Consuming food fried in unstable or unhealthy oil can have several negative effects on health. In fact, eating it regularly can put you at higher risk of diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and obesity. Therefore, it is best to avoid or strictly limit eating food fried in reused oil, fast food and the like.

Fried food may contain harmful acrylamide

In addition to being high in fat and calories, conventionally fried food can produce potentially dangerous compounds such as acrylamide. Acrylamide is a compound formed in carbohydrate-rich foods during high-temperature cooking methods such as frying.

According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer, acrylamide is classified as a probable carcinogen. It also increases the risk of kidney, endometrial and ovarian cancers, among others.