Some of you may have seen the recent TV advert by the so-called "health and fitness celebrity personal trainer" Michelle Bridges lately? You know the one when she calls people "freaks" if they grow their own healthy fruit and vegetables?! And then she pops a Woolworths brand frozen meal into the microwave oven... And they call themselves the "fresh food people"!
Not surprisingly, Woolworths received a huge backlash from the public and pulled the advert from their online media.
For me, as a Nutritionist, my issue is not so much about what she said in the advert (as I freely admit I am a freak!) , or that she sold out to a promote a product or brand for a fee. My big concern is the type of products that she is promoting (and other so-called health gurus too) are actually making your health WORSE!
I have already written about the health dangers of cooking foods in the microwave oven - see in my FB posts below or in my blog on my website. In summary, microwaving foods destroys much of the nutrition in the food, particularly vitamin C, vitamin B12, enzymes and most proteins, all become destroyed or greatly reduced due to microwaves or the extreme heat they cause. Then there's the huge and serious health effects of cooking in plastic containers - with hormone-disrupting or cancer-causing chemicals such as BPA and pthalates leaching from the plastic into your food which you then eat... If that's not enough, the changes to the chemical structure of the foods due to microwaves or excessive heat can cause cancer-causing compounds.
Some simple little things can make all the difference. How you cook foods plays a large part in your health or whether you are causing damage to your health, which Michelle (and others) forget about. You can start with the best foods, then completely destroy any nutrition it has by cooking in the microwave oven, and suffer the health consequences from it. This is why I do not recommend any microwave meals for anyone.
I know we have busy lives, but there are many other healthy, quick and easy meal options that will provide much better nutrition and health outcomes than from microwave meals. For the sake of your health and that of your family, avoid microwaving meals! Stick to reheating meals on the stove, or steaming, baking or grilling instead, and it doesn't take that much longer!
Not surprisingly, Woolworths received a huge backlash from the public and pulled the advert from their online media.
For me, as a Nutritionist, my issue is not so much about what she said in the advert (as I freely admit I am a freak!) , or that she sold out to a promote a product or brand for a fee. My big concern is the type of products that she is promoting (and other so-called health gurus too) are actually making your health WORSE!
I have already written about the health dangers of cooking foods in the microwave oven - see in my FB posts below or in my blog on my website. In summary, microwaving foods destroys much of the nutrition in the food, particularly vitamin C, vitamin B12, enzymes and most proteins, all become destroyed or greatly reduced due to microwaves or the extreme heat they cause. Then there's the huge and serious health effects of cooking in plastic containers - with hormone-disrupting or cancer-causing chemicals such as BPA and pthalates leaching from the plastic into your food which you then eat... If that's not enough, the changes to the chemical structure of the foods due to microwaves or excessive heat can cause cancer-causing compounds.
Some simple little things can make all the difference. How you cook foods plays a large part in your health or whether you are causing damage to your health, which Michelle (and others) forget about. You can start with the best foods, then completely destroy any nutrition it has by cooking in the microwave oven, and suffer the health consequences from it. This is why I do not recommend any microwave meals for anyone.
I know we have busy lives, but there are many other healthy, quick and easy meal options that will provide much better nutrition and health outcomes than from microwave meals. For the sake of your health and that of your family, avoid microwaving meals! Stick to reheating meals on the stove, or steaming, baking or grilling instead, and it doesn't take that much longer!
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