We all know that we should eat vegetables, but do you know what exactly each of them gives you and which are the best for your body? Find out.
In 1991 the American Committee of Responsible Medicine proposed as optimal a concrete daily consumption of vegetables of three or more servings, one of which should be taken raw.
Currently the number of vegetables and fruits recommended by the WHO is to take 5 servings every day, divided between both food groups, half raw.
Why should we take vegetables? In recent years, the consumption of refined and processed products, as well as meat and animal foods, has multiplied. The diet has thus gained in calories, saturated fats, proteins, simple sugars and cholesterol and has lost fresh foods.
All these favors imbalances and various diseases: cardiovascular, obesity, cholesterolemia, hypertension, caries, osteoarthritis, constipation, cancer …
On the contrary, vegetables full of live enzymes, vitamins, minerals, trace elements… They can reverse the body’s degenerative process and prevent and even cure many health disorders.
- They provide essential vitamins and minerals, especially if consumed raw.
- They help keep the rate of sugar and cholesterol in the blood at bay.
- They strengthen the immune system and, therefore, prevent many ailments.
- They are rich in fiber, so they regulate intestinal transit and fight constipation.
- When digested easily, they are indicated in case of digestive problems.
- They are irreplaceable in slimming and purification diets.
- They are ideal for people suffering from hypertension and cardiovascular problems.
15 VEGETABLES WITH UNBEATABLE HEALTH PROPERTIES
In this article we present a selection of 15 very healthy vegetables, to choose according to tastes.
1. CHARD: HYPOCALORIC AND REMINERALIZING
This vegetable with large green leaves and fleshy white stems (penca) provides valuable nutrients with hardly any calories (28 per 100 g) and a good dose of fiber, abundant in its stems. That is why its consumption is basic, especially in slimming diets.
Among the main nutrients of chard include beta-carotene, which is concentrated mainly in very green leaves.
A serving of 200 g also provides 46% of the iron needed daily, 25% of calcium, 18% of potassium, 100% of vitamins A and C and 20% of vitamin B2. These figures confirm its remineralizing power.
The ideal is to take it raw, chopped into salad or blanched to take advantage of its laxative and diuretic properties.
Although it can be consumed by everyone, those who are prone to kidney stones should moderate the amounts, as chard is rich in oxalates.
2. GARLIC: A CIRCULATORY STIMULANT
This bulb with an unmistakable smell is one of the most healing foods in the plant world. Not surprisingly, more than 200 active substances have been found in it, one of which, allicin, is used to fight flu, colds or herpes due to its anti-infective effect.
Garlic helps regulate the balance of fats in the body and improve blood circulation. The reason is that its active components decrease the synthesis of dangerous cholesterol (LDL) and triglycerides.
It has a vasodilator and antiplatelet effect, thanks to its sulfur compounds, which reduces the risk of thrombosis or infarction, as well as a proven hypotensive, antioxidant and bactericidal capacity.
Taking one or two cloves of garlic every day, raw or cooked, is enough to notice its benefits.
3. ARTICHOKE: LIVER BALM
The fleshy artichoke was already consumed in the Middle Ages as a protector and liver regenerator.
Today it is known that its active ingredients also give it an enormous capacity to control cholesterol levels in the blood, because it is precisely in the liver where fats are metabolized, so its poor functioning favors the rise in LDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
For this same reason, regular consumption of artichokes improves the cardiovascular system and decreases the risk of heart attack, angina pectoris and arteriosclerosis.
It is also a vegetable with diuretic and purifying action, whose sugar, inulin, is well tolerated by diabetic patients.
The artichoke has a high content of fiber (5.5%), phosphorus, iron, potassium and B vitamins, in exchange for very few calories.
The best way to consume them is fresh, baked or steamed with a little olive oil.
Drinking the decoction of its bitter leaves allows to treat hepatobiliary problems, including convalescence of hepatitis, and facilitates diuresis.
4. CELERY: DIURETIC AND DETOXIFIER
Abundant source of cellulose and fiber, celery is a vegetable rich in potassium, calcium, iron, manganese, vitamins C, E and B6 and especially folic acid.
Its leaves are usually used fresh or dried as a condiment for soups and creams; while the stems are taken raw as an appetizer or in salads.
For the most delicate stomachs it is preferable to cook the stalks: fried or baked their fiber softens and is well tolerated.
Effective depurative, its regular consumption can contribute to reduce blood pressure by more than 10% and cholesterol by 7%, which benefits cardiovascular health.
It is also indicated in case of hyperuricemia, gout, fluid retention, kidney problems and arthritis as it is an effective diuretic.
Benefit from its properties is simple: just incorporate it into salads or take a glass of the juice of its leaves and stems before the main meal. If preferred, the decoction of the chopped plant can also be taken.
5. PUMPKIN: NUTRITIOUS AND DIGESTIVE
The meat and seeds of the pumpkin complement each other perfectly, providing an optimal food to strengthen health in the cold months. The pulp is an excellent base for creams and purees, which it enriches with its antioxidant vitamins with hardly any calories.
A serving of 150 g satisfies 25% of the daily needs of vitamin C and 15% of vitamin A (the intense orange color betrays this richness in beta-carotene), in addition to providing iron and potassium.
Its seeds are also very valuable because a dose of 30 g covers almost 50% of the magnesium needs and 40% of those of phosphorus and iron, in addition to 15% of the zinc needed by an adult per day.
A daily handful of raw pumpkin seeds are enough to take care of prostate health and eliminate intestinal parasites, very common in children and travelers.
6. ONION: ALLY OF THE LUNGS
The popular onion, used in many cuisines around the world, not only provides a pleasant aroma and flavor to dishes but also makes them healthier preparations.
The reason is not so much its vitamins and minerals, which proportionally are not very abundant, as its active ingredients.
Its sulfur compounds give it remarkable anti-infective virtues, while quercetin, a flavonoid, exerts an antiallergic action.
The onion, especially if consumed raw, has a bactericidal power, capable of fighting respiratory infections, such as colds, flu and bronchitis.
It is able to raise HDL cholesterol (the “good”) and reduce LDL (“bad”), which has a positive impact on blood circulation.
According to recent studies in Switzerland, daily consumption of 100 g of onion can prevent osteoporosis by reducing bone loss by up to 20%.
7. CRUCIFEROUS: PROTECTION OF CELLS
Cabbage in all its varieties (curly, smooth, red cabbage, China, purple, Romanesco …), broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower … They have very similar nutritional and therapeutic properties: all these vegetables are usually very rich in fiber, vitamin C, folic acid, vitamin A, calcium, iron, selenium and B vitamins, providing very few calories.
Broccoli is the most studied of the group, but its properties seem extensive to the rest of the family.
It is known that, like cabbage, it contains compounds such as indoles, glucosinolates and monoterpenes that can help ward off the risk of developing tumors, especially those of the stomach, colon, lung and skin.
In the same way, cabbage is the great vegetable for cancer prevention, as it has been proven that women with breast cancer who ingested fresh cabbage juice transformed the indole-3-carbinol of this vegetable with anticancer properties.
Raw cabbage juice, on the other hand, is a first-rate remedy for healing peptic ulcers.
And fermented cabbage (choucroute), benefits the intestinal flora in a similar way to yogurt.
It is not necessary to take large amounts of crucifers, but it is necessary to include them frequently in the menus of winter, its natural time.
Raw or lightly steamed are much tastier and less flatulent than cooked. In that sense, a coleslaw, seasoned with a soft vinaigrette and freshly ground cumin, pleases even those who most reject this vegetable.
8. ENDIVE: SOURCE OF FOLIC ACID
This vegetable, whose natural season is winter, has folic acid, vitamin C and iron in remarkable quantities: a serving of 200 g comfortably provides the folic acid needed per day and almost half of the vitamin C and iron, although this is not assimilated so well as being a vegetable.
In smaller percentages it also provides vitamin A, potassium, magnesium and calcium.
The greatest virtue of endive is its ability to stimulate appetite and digestion thanks to the bitter substances it contains, and its consumption is very valuable for patients of the hepatobiliary system, since it favors the formation of bile.
Starting a meal with a salad dish that contains a good proportion of endive is the best way to enjoy those virtues.
9. ASPARAGUS: TASTY DEPURATIVE
Asparagus is rich in folic acid, vitamins C, E and group B, as well as iron and dietary fiber.
This, together with their powerful diuretic action, make them a good resource for a cleansing and detoxification monodies, which can be done over a weekend.
For this, you need about six bunches of fresh asparagus that are steamed and taken spread over the weekend.
10. SPINACH: NUTRIENT CHAMPIONS
The most notable virtue of spinach is its nutritional richness, superior to that of other cultivated vegetables.
They are also one of the most potent natural anti-carcinogens in the plant kingdom. It has been shown that regular consumption of its leaves inhibits the growth of cancerous tumors, mainly those of the stomach, skin, prostate and bladder.
Some scientists have linked this fact to its abundance in beta-carotene and chlorophyll, although the exact reason is not known.
A serving of 150 g of spinach has only 27 calories, but in return it provides 125% of the vitamin A needed per day, all folic acid, half of iron, a third of magnesium, a quarter of calcium, potassium and vitamin C, a fifth of vitamin E, one-sixth of vitamin B6… and the list goes on.
It is also true that the richness in oxalates hinders the absorption of iron and calcium, but that is only partially. However, this richness in oxalates makes them inadvisable for people prone to kidney stones, gout, arthritis and rheumatism.
Winter, just when vegetables are most often scarce, is the natural time for spinach.
They can be taken in multiple ways, although one of the most unusual and tasty is semi-raw: they are lightly blanched with boiling water, then cooled in cold water and added to salads. Due to their ability to absorb nitrates, organically grown ones are preferable.
11. LETTUCE: THE SEDATIVE VEGETABLE
Queen of salads, lettuce is not eaten only by routine: there are powerful reasons to do so, as science proves.
Lettuce, in addition to facilitating digestion, is rich in folic acid, vitamin C, vitamin A, iron and manganese, potassium and calcium. In return, it only provides 20 calories per 100 grams.
In addition to remineralizing, its most notorious property is that it is a natural relaxant that helps sleep due to its lactuca content. Therefore, dining on a hearty salad of the juiciest leaves will facilitate a restful sleep.
Lettuce is also a very alkaline vegetable, which makes it perfect for neutralizing the acidity of the body, a state that promotes ailments such as gout, metabolic acidosis, arthritis and various types of skin conditions.
Although it is usually consumed raw, it can also be cooked, which reinforces its expectorant, bronchitis and antitussive properties. To take advantage of these qualities you can take a hot lettuce cream.
12. PEPPER: A STIMULATING VEGETABLE
Albert Sent Giorgi received the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1937 for discovering vitamin C. This Hungarian biochemist made his discovery by analyzing the pepper, probably the most popular vegetable in his country today.
It was also in Hungary that the first varieties of non-spicy peppers were created, as well as paprika or paprika.
Red pepper is truly a champion of vitamin C, tripling that of oranges and doubling that of green pepper. It is more than remarkable its richness in beta-carotene (provitamin A), also providing vitamin B6, folic acid and iron.
Peppers are good appetite stimulants, especially if eaten raw, despite their widespread reputation as indigestible when taken that way.
On the contrary, a small glass of pepper juice ten minutes before the main meal stimulates gastric juices and creates the feeling of hunger without damaging the stomach.
Hot pepper is especially indicated in slimming diets, since the capsaicin it contains increases metabolism and helps eliminate fats. But will be careful with this variety people delicate stomach by excess acids.
13. BEETROOT: BENEFACTOR OF DIGESTION
Red beets for human consumption are particularly rich in folic acid (150 g cover half of the daily needs) and vitamin C, in addition to providing potassium and iron.
It has a high content of soluble and non-soluble fibers: the insoluble ones collaborate in the proper functioning of the intestine, while the soluble ones lower the levels of LDL cholesterol and blood sugar.
It also contains bioflavonoids, mainly the so-called betaine red, of recognized anticancer power. Don’t be alarmed if that pigment, which is a powerful antioxidant, stains your stool red.
Due to its richness in folic acid, it contributes to the formation of new cells, its influence on the production of dopamine has a positive impact on good mood, and because of its amino acid methionine it preserves skin, hair and nails in good condition.
It is advisable to consume the small beets raw as part of the salads.
As a digestive ally it is cooked for 10 minutes divided into slices and then crushed well and take the pasta at the end of meals.
14. TOMATO: JUICY ANTI-CANCER
The tasty tomato contains in its pulp a healthy cocktail of vitamins and minerals.
A serving of 250 g provides all the vitamin C needed per day, and a third of vitamin A, mainly linked to its red pigment, lycopene. In decreasing proportion, it is also rich in potassium, folic acid, magnesium, iron and phosphorus.
It has been shown that lycopene protects against certain types of cancer, such as stomach, prostate, colon, esophagus, breast, lung, pancreas, being also a purifying food.
Lycopene is well absorbed when the tomato is cooked, so although cooking partly spoils its abundant vitamin C, this pigment is still available to the body.
To take advantage of its benefits, it is advisable to eat it in abundance, both raw and cooked.
15. CARROT: DIGESTIVE AND ANTIOXIDANT
Along with sweet potato, the carrot is the plant food richest in provitamin A, which it has in the form of beta-carotene, a famous antioxidant.
Taking 100 g a day of carrots (raw or cooked) provides on average 165% of the needs of this vitamin, in addition to 25% of the necessary iron, 20% of vitamin C, 14% of folic acid and 11% of potassium.
The carrot, in addition to being easy to eat and presenting an attractive shape for children, has many other qualities: it calms the gastric mucosa and fights intestinal gas, is detoxifying, solves part of the skin problems, stimulates hepatobiliary function, alkalizes the blood, strengthens the immune system, acts as an antioxidant and improves vision.
In juice it is also very appetizing.
THE BEST SOURCES OF EVERY MINERAL AND VITAMIN
Some vegetables are very rich in certain vitamins and minerals. We present them ordered from highest to lowest nutritional richness.
- Vitamin A: Carrot, sweet potato, cabbage, spinach, fennel, lettuce, chard, watercress, endive, leek, broccoli, chicory, lettuce, pumpkin, pepper.
- Vitamin B6: Brussels sprouts, sweet potato, pepper, red cabbage, peas, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, leek, celery, green cabbage.
- Folic acid: Spinach, endive, broccoli, beets, Brussels sprouts, asparagus, sweet potato, cauliflower, lettuce, green beans, pepper, leek, tomato.
- Vitamin C: Pepper, broccoli, green cabbage, Brussels sprouts, fennel, cauliflower, spinach, watercress, red cabbage, cauliflower, chard, green beans, peas, asparagus.
- Vitamin K: Spinach, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cabbage.
- Iron: Spinach, sweet potato, fennel, chard, peas, Brussels sprouts, zucchini, artichoke, watercress.
- Magnesium: Spinach, parsnip, Brussels sprouts, peas, green cabbage, potato, artichoke, green bean, beets, sweet potato, broccoli, tomato.
- Potassium: Spinach, potato, green cabbage, broccoli, sweet potato, Brussels sprouts, artichoke, peas, beets, radish, cauliflower, tomato, celery, carrot.
- Calcium: Green cabbage, spinach, broccoli, leeks, celery.
- Manganese: Spinach, potato, green cabbage, peas, artichoke, green bean, beets, sweet potato, broccoli, cabbage, tomato, asparagus.
