Did you know it’s not what you eat but the way you cook, that could knock years (and pounds too!) off your age or add more to your existing age? Yes, how your age depends on the way you cook your food. So, you could be eating so called ‘good food’ that are rich in nutrients and still be ageing at rocket speed.
The culprits that accelerate the aging process are things called “advanced glycation end products“(AGEs in short). These AGEs cause your bodies to age faster than the so called ‘normal aging’. AGEs may play an important adverse role in process of atherosclerosis, diabetes, aging and chronic renal failure.
How are AGEs formed?
In simple words, AGEs are formed when proteins or fats react with sugars in our bodies. So in case you are suffering from high blood sugar, then you are producing AGEs at a faster pace than others. AGEs may be formed external to the body (exogenously) by heating, or cooking, sugars with fats or proteins; or, inside the body (endogenously) through normal metabolism and aging. And when you eat foods that are high in AGEs, you are only increasing the aging process.
What’s that got to do with cooking?
The AGEs concentration in chicken is nine times high when you bake it in the oven rather than boiling it. It’s up 90 times in potatoes when you deep fry it instead of boiling it. Any food that involves high temperatures while you cook increases the concentration of AGEs. So, if you are roasting, baking, frying or grilling your favorite food, you are also adding AGEs to it when compared to water based cooking like boiling, steaming and poaching.
What this means is that, it’s okay to indulge in the so called ‘Age accelerating foods‘ once in a while but if you want to freeze your aging process and look young, stop adding AGEs to your daily menu by cooking the healthier way.
