Some people have been skeptical when Raymond Francis has said that supplements are essential today because our diets supply substantially fewer nutrients than the diets of our hunter-gatherer ancestors. However a new book, Eating on the Wild Side: 

A health writer, food activist and investigative journalist, Robinson combed through more than 6,000 scientific studies to document food’s decline in nutrient value since the human race switched from hunting and gathering to farming about 10,000 years ago. Driven by market considerations to produce better-tasting, easier-to-harvest and transport, and cheaper to grow produce, farmers have sacrificed vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients while increasing starch and sugar content.

Case in point: Modern corn’s ancient relative teosinte was 30% protein and 2% sugar. Sweet corn, on the other hand, is 4% protein and 10% sugar. However the newest corn varieties are 40% sugar, making it the equivalent of junk food! (And we thought the main reason for avoiding corn was that almost all of it, including organically grown, has been contaminated with GMOs!)

Wild apples have up to 475 times more phytonutrients than cultivated apples—the least nutritious, according to Robinson, being the Empire, Ginger Gold, Golden Delicious and Pink Lady varieties. However there has been an effort to revive wild or heirloom species. Mark Christensen in New Zealand has cultivated a nutrient-dense variety called Monty’s Surprise (popularly known in New Zealand as “the full Monty”).

An heirloom species of potato, the Purple Peruvian, has 28 times more bionutrients than the popular Russet, and 166 times more than the Kennebec white. The modern potato is also much higher in sugar and in rapidly digested starch, making it a high-glycemic food.

But here we get in to some helpful tips. Robinson says that cooking high-glycemic potatoes and chilling them for 24 hours converts rapidly digested starch into resistant starch, significantly lowering their glycemic index so they become a low to moderate glycemic food. Even when reheated they retain their low glycemic value.

Garlic has changed little over the years, however its most healthful property, allicin, is formed after the bulbs have been cut or smashed. It takes about 10 minutes for this process to complete, and if you throw sliced garlic directly into the heated pot or pan, the allicin will be lost. However if you cut or smash it in advance and wait ten minutes before cooking, the allicin will be preserved.

Counter intuitively, berries and tomatoes are more nutritious after they’ve been cooked.