Health Benefits of Eating and Drinking from Stainless Steel

You may have noticed from the pictures on this blog that we use mainly stainless steel to eat and drink from. (I sometimes photograph food on ceramic / marble to avoid the glare from the metal in certain lighting conditions but then I will transfer it to stainless steel for eating.) Personally I like the look of  it a lot, and the fact that it doesn't break if you drop it, but there are other reasons why it is a good choice for tableware as well as cookware.

My husband remarked the other day that if you eat from stainless steel plates you get iron from them, so I decided to do some research. Here's a brief resume of what I found:

• Stainless steel was invented to be durable and rustproof- the surface even renews itself.
• Stainless steel contains iron, chromium and nickel. Small amounts of these metals may find their way into your food. (I didn't in my brief search, however, find the results of any scientific research to  prove how much gets into food.)  Iron is an essential nutrient, a little chromium is also needed (50-200 micrograms is the acceptable range; you get at most 45 micrograms in one meal cooked in stainless steel and way less than that from a plate), and the amount of nickel in stainless steel is not enough to make you ill. BUT if you have a nickel allergy do not cook, eat or drink from stainless steel.
• There are different grades of stainless steel, and the harder and higher the quality it is, the less likely it is to give off off metals into your food.
• Don't store acidic or very salty foods in stainless steel containers for too long or they may cause pitting of the surface.
• Stainless steel is a safe choice if you have young children (or teens who help with washing dishes!) as it does not break. This also makes it ideal for travel; camping or taking a steel lunchbox (tiffin) somewhere.
• Unlike plastic, which is not a green choice because of its lack of biodegradeability and the energy-wasteful way it is produced, stainless steel is recyclable, longlasting and greener to make.
• Stainless steel has a hard, smooth surface which does not readily harbour germs, unlike wood or plastic. You can easily see if it has not been properly cleaned, therefore it is more hygienic to use.
• Although stainless steel was not around when the Ayurveda was written, Ayurveda recommends the use of metal plates and cups (silver, gold or copper). Banana or banyan-leaf plates are also said to be preferable to pottery.