Nutrition: cooking allows you to eat better and eat less
According to a study published in the journal Public Health Nutrition , people who cook at home, benefit from a higher quality diet, thus promoting the maintenance of good health. The conclusions of this research also reveal that culinary education programs would be beneficial in the fight against obesity.
Homemade, a guarantee of a balanced diet
Indeed, researchers at Johns Hopkins University conducted a study on more than 9,000 people from the age of 20 who participated in a survey by the NHANES (National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey) aimed at studying eating behaviors for the past 30 days, as well as their detailed diet for the past 24 hours.
The findings show that cooking your meal or that of the family contributes to a more balanced diet , and also leads to an improvement in eating behaviors, by choosing healthier dishes in restaurants.
Learning to cook: a new tool against obesity
With this study, the researchers succeeded in demonstrating the usefulness of knowing how to cook at home. Julia A. Wolfson, a researcher at Johns Hopkins University and also lead author of this study, explains that a meal prepared at home is less carbohydrates (on average) but also less fat (compared to n any other way of eating).
Cooking classes are therefore very well placed to play a new role in the fight against obesity, and would therefore participate in its prevention.
“ Our results definitely prove that people who cook at home have a healthier diet. says Julia A. Wolfson.
The study indicates that over the 2007-2010 interval, for the 9,000 people concerned by the study:
- For the 8% of adults who cooked little at dinner (0 to 1 time per week), then on an average day 2301 kcal were ingested, 284 grams of carbohydrates, 84 grams of fat and 135 grams of sugar.
- In comparison, for a high frequency of cooking for dinner (6 to 7 times a week, i.e. almost every evening), then the average daily calorie consumption is lower (2164 kcal against 2301 kcal previously), 262 grams of carbohydrates ( compared to 284 grams previously), 81 grams of fat and 119 grams of sugar
Adults who often cook their dinners at home have a healthier diet , regardless of the intention (or not) to lose weight. This perspective is very interesting and would make it possible to link culinary pleasures and good health.
Stephen Paul is the lead author and founder of My Health Sponsor. Holder of a diploma in health and well-being coaching with more than 200 articles in the field of health, he makes it a point of honor to offer advice based on reliable information, based on scientific research, and verified by health professionals.