Fresh, Frozen, Canned, Dried, Juiced

You can buy your fruits and vegetables fresh, frozen, canned or dried.  A lot of factors can contribute to which we buy.  Which one is cheapest?  The most convenient?  Will stay good the longest?  The healthiest?

Does nutritional value differ among them?

Many say fresh fruits and vegetables are packed with the most vitamins and minerals.  While it is true they are great sources of the vitamins A and C, potassium, and fiber, that is not to say the other forms of produce have no health benefits.  They also contain these important nutrients to keep our bodies functioning well.

Fresh produce loses nutrients the minute they are picked (the time between picking in the field to buying at the market is unknown), and the nutritional value depends on its ripeness.  Light and heat affect the amount of nutrients in a food.  Fresh fruits and vegetables also "go bad" faster than those which have been processed (frozen, canned, dried), and they are expensive.  Fresh produce is preferred because it is "whole" and left unchanged from its natural state.  However, there is a case for frozen, canned, or dried produce.

Frozen and canned fruits and vegetables are processed immediately after picking to preserve nutrients and prevent loss of nutritional value.  Frozen produce keep the most of their original nutrients.  It is the cooking method where vitamins and minerals begin to get lost.  Steaming and stir-frying are preferred cooking methods over boiling or stewing, because they preserve the vitamins and minerals of the food and result in brightly-colored vegetables.  Canned food is heated to high temperatures for preservation, leading to loss of some vitamins and minerals.

One ingredient to monitor in frozen and canned vegetables is the sodium content.  The amount of sodium in these foods can greatly contribute to your daily intake of salt, which can lead to high blood pressure, a risk for many health conditions.  Buy sodium free or reduced sodium frozen and canned vegetables or drain and rinse produce with water to reduce the amount of sodium.

Whole fruits, whether fresh, frozen, canned or dried, are preferred to juiced versions.  Juices often have added sugars and lack the fiber of the other forms.

MyPlate recommends you make half your plate fruits and vegetables, and any form of them will help you achieve this.  Fruits and vegetables have health benefits any way you look at them.