Should You Avoid Buying Canned Vegetables?

Eating more vegetables is one of the best ways you can get all of the vitamins, minerals, and nutrients you need. However, many people choose canned vegetables rather than fresh, and while this may be kinder on your wallet, this is a poor health decision. 

Canned vegetables, while they may be cheaper than fresh and they may last longer when you leave them unopened, have many drawbacks. Most of the canned vegetables found in grocery stores have high amounts of sodium in them. Salt is added to the water the veggies are stored in as a preservative, and of course the vegetables absorb a great deal of that water and salt. This can add too much salt to your diet if you eat a lot of canned vegetables. Doctors agree that those who are on low salt diets need to avoid canned vegetables entirely.

People who have high blood pressure or who suffer from diabetes need to stay away from canned vegetables, as well. Canned vegetables also have a number of preservatives added to stop them from going bad in the can, and preservatives have been linked to a number of disorders such as hyperactivity in children, memory issues and trouble concentrating, and even cancer.

Canned vegetables do not have as many nutrients as fresh vegetables do. Even frozen vegetables are going to have more nutrients than canned vegetables. Why is this? Many of the canned veggies have been processed and cooked before going into the cans. This can leech the nutrients from them. In addition, soaking them in water for weeks or even months before they are consumed literally dissolves all the nutrients right out of them.

When you are cooking and preparing your meals, always choose to use fresh vegetables rather than canned from the supermarket. They are healthier and they taste much better!