Home cooking would ultimately not be so good for your health. An American scientific study from Rush University in Chicago found that cooking at home led to eating too large individual portions and unhealthy ingredients, such as salt and butter.
In the end, the more time you spend in your kitchen, the more you increase your risk of cardiovascular problems and stroke, by increasing your cholesterol level and your arterial pressure.
To reach this conclusion, the researchers analyzed 14 years of dietary data provided by 2,755 women, aged 42 to 52.
The data included information on meal preparation time as well as results of health checks measuring their blood fat level, their rate of cholesterol, blood pressure and blood glucose (sugar) levels. All of these biological factors are linked to cardiovascular risk and stroke risk.
Cook less and better to live more?
At the end of the study, the research team found that women who spent the most time cooking had a higher risk of developing metabolic syndrome, linked to a higher risk of stroke and heart attacks than others. Conversely, women who reduced their cooking time reduced their risk of heart problems andstroke.
For Dr. Brad Appelhans, these results call for a rethinking of public health policies, which present home cooking as the “cornerstone” of a healthy diet.
“Over the past four decades, the proportion of food we prepare at home has decreased, while the prevalence of obesity has increased. Seeing this, public health experts have seen fit to promote home cooking as a way to reduce the epidemic ofobesity, and risk factors for heart disease and diabetes, explains the Doctor. However, our research with over 2,700 women shows that the more time you spend cooking, the more risk factors for heart and metabolic disease increase over time. »
Doctor Appelhans thus recalled that it was important to cook healthily, and not only frequently. Because if prepared meals are often presented in individual portions, this is not the case with homemade dishes, which encourage you to eat more than you really need.
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Cooking: a well-presented dish becomes better
Cook to eat better, but also eat less
Slimming: 7 good reasons to cook at home
