A COSTLY COOKING MISTAKE

      Boiling vegetables drains them of nutrients, states a new British study.  Scientists cooked broccoli and cauliflower using a variety of methods and then tested each for glucosinolates-plant compounds that may help prevent cancer.  While steaming, stir-frying, and microwaving had no impact on these chemicals, boiling reduced glucosinolate content by 90 percent.  Hot water damages cells in vegetables, allowing the nutrients to leech out.

5 OUNCES OF PREVENTION

          Fortify your immune system with fungi: Mushrooms may help stave off sickness and disease, reports a new Tufts University study.  When the researchers supplemented the diets of mice with white button mushrooms, they found the rodents had enhanced activity of “natural killer cells,” compounds that fight viruses and cancer.  Five ounces of the ‘shrooms daily may provide you with a similar effect, say the study may provide you with a similar affect, say the study authors, although more studies are need to confirm.

A REASON TO DRINK

      White wine goes great with carbohydrates.  When Australian scientists served adults an alcoholic drink with a high-carbohydrate dinner, they observe that the drink significantly reduced the glycemic index of the meal.  As a result, the study participants’ blood-sugar levels didn’t rise as much after the meal as when they downed water instead.  The benefit?  “Keeping your blood sugar in check can help prevent chronic diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease,” says study author Jennie Brand-Miller, Ph.D.  Compared with beer and gin, white wine has the greatest effect, lowering the meal’s glycemic index by 37 percent.  “The high acidity of white wine may help slow digestion, keeping sugar from entering your bloodstream as quickly.”  Brand-Miller says.