Reheating food with microwave ovens is so convenient and easy! We like to do the same as well. If you like meal prep, you know how handy it is to use a microwave oven. But maybe you've heard people saying that microwaved foods have lost their nutrition, therefore it's pointless even if you've prepared a healthy meal.
Truth is... any form of cooking can cause nutrient loss in food! In a study comparing the loss of nutrients through microwave cooking versus conventional oven cooking, key nutrients like potassium, total fat, total carbs, protein, vitamin Bs, vitamin A, C, E showed no difference in their losses.
This means nutritional value of food loss in microwave cooking is not more than that of conventional cooking. Since microwave ovens can cook food in a shorter time, it may even keep more vitamins and minerals of the food!
用微波爐重新加熱食物是不是又容易又方便？我們也喜歡這樣做！如果你喜歡提前備餐，那麼你就會知道使用微波爐有多麼方便。 不過，也許你聽過有人說微波食物的營養會流失，因此即使準備了健康的一餐也沒有意義。
事實是……任何煮食方式都可能導致食物中的營養流失！ 在一項比較微波煮食與傳統焗爐煮食營養流失分量的研究中，鉀、總脂肪、總碳水化合物、蛋白質、維生素B、維生素A、C、E等關鍵營養物質的流失分量並沒有出現差異。
這意味著微波煮食中食物流失的營養分量不超過傳統煮食。由於微波爐可以在較短的時間內煮熟食物，因此它甚至可以保留食物中更多維生素和礦物質！
References:
Brown, E.F., Gonzalez, R.R., Burkman,T., Perez, T., Singh, I., Reimers, K.J., & Birla, S.L. (2020). Comparing nutritional levels in a commercially-available single-serve meal using microwave versus conventional oven heating. Journal of Microwave Power and Electromagnetic Energy, 54(2), 99-109, DOI: 10.1080/08327823.2020.1755483
Buratti, S., Cappa, C., Benedetti, S., & Giovanelli, G. (2020). Influence of Cooking Conditions on Nutritional Properties and Sensory Characteristics Interpreted by E-Senses: Case-Study on Selected Vegetables. Foods (Basel, Switzerland), 9(5), 607. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods9050607
Cross, G. A., & Fung, D. Y. (1982). The effect of microwaves on nutrient value of foods. Critical reviews in food science and nutrition, 16(4), 355–381. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398209527340
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