Why you shouldn’t peel your vegetables
<p>For many, cooking is a way to experiment, be creative, and learn new skills. No matter how much you love being in the kitchen, however, there’s one thing we can all agree on – peeling vegetables has to be one of the worst parts. If you find it as tedious as we do, you’re in luck.</p>
<p>According to health experts, we’re actually better off leaving the skin on. In fact, when we peel vegetables, we’re discarding the healthiest part. “The skin has a lot of fibre and it’s insoluble fibre, especially when the skin is colourful,” nutritionist and dietician Mary Jane Destroyer told the <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-4290580/Why-stop-peeling-vegetables.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Daily Mail</span></strong></a>. “Most of the time, the majority of the vegetable's nutrients are in the skin.”</p>
<p>Take cucumbers, for example. The dark green skin holds most of the vegetable’s antioxidants (which protect the body against damaging free radicals) and vitamin K. Potato skins, too, contain more iron, calcium, potassium, magnesium and vitamins B6 and C gram-for-gram than the rest of the potato.</p>
<p>“People, when they make mashed potatoes, often feel they have to peel the skin off,” Destroyer said. “But they can just boil the skin and mix it right into the rest of the mashed potatoes.”</p>
<p>What about herbicides and pesticides, you may ask? According to Destroyer, all it takes is a good wash. “Many people think they have to scrub their vegetables with soap and water to remove any of the chemicals, but if you just run them over with water, you'll get rid of the dirt.”</p>
<p>In the end, vegetables are beneficial to health no matter whether you peel them or not, but try keeping the skin on the next time you make a veggie-packed meal – you won’t notice the taste, but you’re likely to notice the benefits in the long run.</p>
<p>Do you remove vegetable skins when cooking? Will you try to avoid doing so in the future? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.</p>
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