Tips for Choosing and Washing Fruits and Vegetables

Have you ever wondered how should we choose vegetables when buying? Or how about washing them properly? Let's listen to the advice from the professor of the Faculty of Public Health, Mahidol University together.

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What precautions should be taken when eating fresh vegetables?

(Translated from Thai transcript) “Since there has been some controversy concerning parasites, we definitely need to consider what should we be doing in order to take care of this issue if we still want to consume fresh vegetables. One way that I can think of is to wash them.”

ชามสลัดสีขาวที่มีผักสลัดอยู่เต็มชาม มีผักใบเขียวและหอมแดงที่ยังไม่ได้หั่น พริกหยวกสีเหลืองสีแดงและมะเขือเทศกับหอมใหญ่ที่หั่นแล้ว

What should we do if we want to consume fresh vegetables?

“If asked whether washing them is good or not, the answer is probably yes, it is good. However, if you look at the research that has been done on washing veggies using water, salt or vinegar, though some contaminants came off, if asked whether all of them came off or not, the answer is no, not all of them.”

How to choose vegetables?

“If you still want to consume fresh vegetables, you may need to select the source of fresh vegetables that are cultivated with little or no chance of parasites contamination, like hydroponic vegetables for example.”

Would washing solutions help?

“I'm now interested in the surfactants which could be added to the soaking water to help reduce contamination. If ask what group of substances they are, the answer is alkaline substances that have a slippery appearance such as sodium bicarbonate or even activated carbon. This new substance of activated carbon should be able to help as well.”

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Apart from the methods of washing, what should we be concerning?

“Besides the washing method that we pay attention to, whether washing with water or mixed with some substances such as salt or vinegar, the efficacy of washing also depends on the appearance of vegetables. For example, a plant that has broad leaves, narrow leaves, or a silky appearance. Whether they are smooth or rough, with pores or without pores on the skin as well as the nooks and crannies of those vegetables also affect efficacy in washing them.”

Will it be able to remove all the contaminants?

“It's not only about the contaminants in those vegetables, but also what form it is in. Is it lying only on the surface or being absorbed into those vegetables? If it's just on the skin surface, chances of washing them out would be much higher.”

Activated Carbon Benefits

From what I understood from the talk, there are A LOT of contaminants in our veggies… to the point that it made me scared! So how can activated carbon be useful? Would it make me less scared to consume vegetables? Let us continue to listen to the next episode from Mahidol University professor together!

Activated Carbon Benefit