Should you wash raisins before eating them? If you eat them right, they are very sweet, but if you eat them wrong, you will become very fat.

Key Points

★ Bulk raisins can be washed, but raisins in sealed packages usually do not need to be washed.

★ Although raisins are rich in nutrients, they are also high in calories and should not be eaten too much.

Recently, an incident about raisins has become a hot topic. A woman in Dongguan, Guangdong, washed raisins many times, but the water was still turbid and there was a lot of sand. The topic #Do you need to wash raisins with water# has sparked heated discussions among netizens, and some even said: I have eaten raisins for many years, but I have never washed them, woo woo...

▲Photo: Sina Weibo

So, should we wash raisins before eating them? What are the benefits of eating raisins regularly? I heard that raisins are high in calories, so how can we eat them without gaining weight? In this article, let's talk about raisins.

01 Do raisins need to be washed?

The hot topic did not mention whether the raisins the woman bought were in bulk or sealed packages. Since they were still so dirty after being washed many times, they were most likely in bulk. Why?

Because most of the bulk raisins are made by traditional methods of drying, they will be covered with a lot of sand during the drying process, and they have to go through many manual selections, so they will be relatively dirty. If you buy this kind of raisins, you still need to wash them several times before eating.

But if you buy raisins in sealed bags from regular supermarkets, they generally do not need to be washed, and most of them can be eaten right after opening the bag.

Because raisins produced by regular manufacturers generally have strict processes of cleaning, sterilization, pest control, and impurity removal, and use modern production equipment, the process of drying raisins must be carried out in a drying room and must be strictly operated in accordance with the relevant standards for raisin production.

According to the requirements of GB16325-2005 "Dried Fruit Food Hygiene Standard", no pathogenic bacteria shall be detected in raisins.

According to the standards in GB/T19586-2008 "Geographical Indication Product Turpan Raisins", clear regulations are also made on the impurity content of raisins of different grades. The special grade requires the impurity content to be ≤0.1%, which is really low.

In other words, raisins produced by regular companies are almost free of sand, insects and ants, and are relatively clean and hygienic. If you buy this kind of raisins, you basically don't need to wash them and can eat them directly.

Therefore, whether raisins need to be washed before eating depends on the situation, but some friends are just worried. In that case, no matter which one you buy, wash it carefully before eating.

02 How nutritious are raisins?

Raisins are dehydrated grapes, a process that results in a large loss of vitamins but increases the mineral content.

A study analyzed the nutritional components of five types of Turkish raisins and found that the contents of potassium, calcium, and magnesium were 628 mg/100 g DW to 854 mg/100 g DW, 49.6 mg/100 g DW to 95.2 mg/100 g DW, and 28.67 mg/100 g DW to 41.79 mg/100 g DW, respectively. [1] From the data, it can be seen that the most nutritionally advantageous mineral in raisins is potassium, which is quite friendly for those who need to control blood pressure.

However, after grapes become raisins, the sugar and calories also increase. The calories increase by about 7.6 times, and the carbohydrate content is about 8 times that of fresh grapes. It can be said that it is a concentrated "grape essence".

Eating too many sweet and sour raisins can really make you gain weight. A small handful of raisins for a girl weighs about 30 grams (about 32 normal-sized raisins) and has a calorie content of 103 kcal, which is about 1/3 of the calorie content of a staple food for an average girl's meal.

So, if you also like to eat raisins, you really have to be careful!

03 Can raisins prevent heart disease?

There is a saying among the people: "Eating a handful of raisins every day can prevent heart disease." Is this true?

The reason for this is that raisins contain resveratrol, which is a type of polyphenol compound. At present, in some animal experiments, we have indeed proved that resveratrol is beneficial to cardiovascular health, but there is no conclusive research evidence for its benefits to humans.

On the other hand, the amount of resveratrol in raisins is also very limited. Researchers have tested the resveratrol content of 53 varieties of raisins in Xinjiang, and the content of resveratrol in each variety of raisins ranged from 1.594 μg/g to 6.295 μg/g, with an average of 3.569 μg/g. [1]

Therefore, eating raisins to supplement resveratrol is actually very inefficient. Instead, it will cause people to consume more sugar and calories, increasing the risk of weight gain.

Therefore, if you want to prevent heart disease, you still need to eat a healthy diet and exercise more to strengthen your physical fitness.

04 How to eat raisins healthily?

For those who like to eat raisins but don't want to gain weight, you can eat raisins as a healthy snack. You can refer to the following two points when eating:

① As a snack, eat a little bit occasionally, it is recommended to eat 10-15 grams, which is about 12 or 13 grains. In addition, you can add some as a side dish when cooking porridge or stewing rice, which can add a sweetness to the porridge and rice.

② Check the label before buying. When purchasing raisins, choose those with only raisins in the ingredient list. Some packages will also say "ready to eat after opening the bag", which makes it more convenient to eat and you can eat it without washing.

▲Picture: E-commerce platform

Be careful not to buy candied raisins, such as the one in the picture below. The ingredients include not only raisins, but also edible glucose and salt, which increases the calories, sugar and sodium content of raisins. If you buy this kind of raisins and eat them often, you will really become fat!

▲Picture: E-commerce platform

▲Picture: E-commerce platform

Summary: If you are worried that the raisins you bought are too dirty and difficult to clean, it is recommended that you directly purchase raisins in sealed packages produced by regular manufacturers.

Raisins taste sweet and sour. Even if you like eating them, you have to control the amount. Eat one or two handfuls a day, or even more, or you will gain weight!

Author | Xue Qingxin, member of Chinese Nutrition Society, registered nutrition technician, health manager, public nutritionist

Reviewer | Song Shuang, Associate Researcher, Institute of Nutrition and Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention

Editor | Jiang Fan

Editor | Ding Zong

References:

[1] Zhou Xiaoming, Guo Chunmiao, Fan Dingyu, et al. Research progress on nutrition and efficacy of raisins[J]. Food Research and Development, 2015, (19): 179-183. DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1005-6521.2015.19.047.

This article was first published on Science Refutes Rumors