CLEVELAND -- Everyone from moms to the federal government tells us to eat our fruits and veggies, but what you're doing to them could be robbing you of the nutrients you're paying for.

Five On Your Side Health Team anchor Lee Jordan revealed five of the most common kitchen mistakes even savvy chefs make.

Kitchen Mistake No. 1: Loading up on produce. The longer fruits and vegetables sit in your fridge, the more they lose vital nutrients.

For example, broccoli loses about 62 percent of its powerful antioxidant compounds within 10 days. Spinach loses up to half its folate after a week in the cooler.

Add to that the travel time between the farm and your dinner table. Registered Dietitian Amy Jamieson-Petonic with the Cleveland Clinic tells consumers to buy in smaller batches to eat within a couple of days.

"I would always ask people to buy in season, because always get the highest vitamin and mineral content, and also get at more economical standpoint," said Jamieson-Petonic.

Kitchen mistake No. 2: Being an overzealous peeler. When you take the skin off your veggies, you're throwing away some potent cancer fighters. Protective chemicals called antioxidants help protect against cancer and they're found in the skin of fruits and veggies.

Kitchen mistake No. 3: Failing to give your garlic a time out. After mincing, chopping or crushing garlic, let it sit for 10 minutes before tossing into pan. When you break up garlic, a cancer-fighting compound called allyl sulfur begins to form, but it takes a little time for this enzyme reaction to be completed. So a few minute's wait is worth it.

Kitchen mistake No. 4: Forgetting to wash before you peel. Before you eat a banana -- do you wash it? You should! Peel and eat fruit like bananas, cantaloupe and oranges can carry bacteria and chemical residues. Give them all a bath before peeling or cutting into them.

Kitchen mistake No. 5: Boiling vegetables. If you're still boiling your veggies -- you're boiling away a lot of their nutritional value.

According to Jamieson-Petonic, "It's what we call leaching out vitamins. And vitamin C is one of the nutrients we lose by boiling veggies. What I would encourage is steaming, microwaving or stirfrying as a great way to add a lot of vitamin to healthy meals."

It's much better to steam, microwave or, best of all, stir fry your veggies for maximum benefit. And, by the way, don't shun frozen produce. It's flash-frozen right after harvest, retaining a full measure of nutritional value.