Why Warm Cooked Foods?

According to Traditional Chinese medicine theory, eating warm cooked foods is often encouraged.  But why?  Simply put, it’s easier on digestion.  

Does this mean saying farewell to intricate cobb salads and tasty caesar salads forever?  Not necessarily.

Humans differ from animals when it comes to eating raw foods.  We have the ability to use fire to cook our foods first before ingestion.  This helps with the initial breakdown of foods making it easier for us to digest and absorb the nutrients.  So instead of having our stomachs work so hard to break it down and warm it up, the all mighty fire does the grunt of the work. 

This isn’t to say we cannot digest a piece of romaine lettuce or a crunchy carrot, but when given the option of having the hardest part done for you, the real question now becomes, why not?  

When we get sick with a cold or a flu, what foods come to mind when it comes time to eat?  Maybe chicken noodle soup?  When we are sick, we are not our best selves.  We feel weaker, we are more tired.  We are trying to rest as much as possible to allow our bodies to fight off the cold.   When we have a bowl of chicken noodle soup, the carrots, celery, bite-sized chicken pieces and noodles are all soft and easy to digest.  In other words, its nutrients are readily absorbable to maximize nourishment during this time of recovery.  

Now imagine when we are not sick.  We are living our day to day lives commuting to work or school, taking care of family members, working all day and handling other life issues as they arise.  Our bodies are often under a lot of stress from work and personal relations that need our attention as soon as possible and all the time.  Why give it more work to do by making it “cook” our foods for us?  That is why Traditional Chinese medicine, or TCM, encourages eating warm cooked foods as often as possible as it’s a way to give your body a helping hand, even when you are not sick.  

But why not a green smooth?  Some may argue that eating raw foods allows you to absorb the maximum amount of nutrients from said piece of kale or spinach.  While the bulk of that last statement seems obvious, it’s not necessarily true for everyone.  Some people do find eating raw foods will upset their stomachs or they notice it’s a bit more difficult to digest overall.  If you find this is the case for yourself, think of warm cooked foods as often as possible.  

Now if you’re a person that doesn’t have any issues eating raw foods, congratulations, you probably have a stronger digestive system.  However, the next time you’re fighting off a virus, think of warm cooked foods anyway.  It will aid in your overall recovery.