I do remember as a child the phrase ‘eat your greens’ at almost every meal. It’s something that’s stayed with me and apart from the sprouts, mushy peas and lettuce I am a happy greens eater. Probably not knowing all the health benefits of the great greens my wonderful grandmother had me eat, she still instilled that, so this week I’m having a look at what greens are best and why.
KALE
I am a lover of this curly stuff and will happily eat it raw or cooked, it’s full of fiber, antioxidants, calcium, and vitamin K, among other good stuff. It’s a good source of vitamin C and iron. Even the chlorophyll in kale may have health benefits. It may also decrease peripheral neuropathy and autonomic neuropathy in patients thanks to it containing an the antioxidant alpha-lipoic acid. So far so good, kale seems to be a good brain food with it’s vitamins and iron alone.
SPINACH
Probably my favourite green is spinach and that’s nothing to do with popeye, but that certainly does make we wonder why popeye got so much strength after emptying a tin of it into his mouth. The dark green colour of spinach leaves is an indicator that it contains high levels of chlorophyll and other health promoting carotenoids (beta carotene, lutein and zeaxanthin). These phyto chemicals have anti-inflammatory and anti-cancerous properties and are especially important for healthy eye-sight, helping to prevent macular degeneration and cataracts. Which is of course brilliant new for our eye health. Not quite as high in levels of iron as kale but still definitely worth adding into your diet if it isn’t already there.
COLLARD GREENS
Again full of vitamin K, I haven’t yet mentioned why vitamin K is important but it’s for our bone health and strength, remember seeing old people shrinking? Maybe they didn’t have enough vitamin K in their diets, who knows. Sports people though, particularly rugby players need to eat plenty of greens containing high levels of vitamin K. Ooohhhhh gotto love a rugby player.
BEET GREENS
They say you learn something new everyday and here I have, I love beetroot but only the bulb, that bright red, stains the whole kitchen stuff but I’ve never thought to eat the leaves, they are rich in potassium, calcium, riboflavin, fiber and vitamins A and K. Impressive and can be eaten raw or cooked.
WATERCRESS
Also known as mustard cress and most of us will remember growing it as children because it’s so fast growing. For many many years it’s had the tales to have healing properties and it’s been used in herbal medicine for hundreds of years. Sadly no studies have confirmed these benefits so far.
Test-tube studies have discovered that watercress extract to be beneficial in targeting some cancer stem cells.
Thanks to its bitter and slightly spicy flavor, watercress is a great addition to any meal.
That’s my top 5 greens to be added into my diet if it’s not already there. I love the thought of natural healing with foods and diet and I always have done. This has to be a family thing because I have memories of things my grandparents said, then my father and now my brother. Our diet is more important than most of us realise. That’s not to say that we should cut out all the lovely stuff, I mean really look at Nigella Lawson, she looks incredible and definitely has a good chunk of the chocolate cake.
Have a great week everyone and as always thankyou for reading.
I’ve put a couple of links below for those who might be interested in reading a blog post that was written about me and another link for anyone wanting to donate to Brain Tumour Research in the UK
https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/victoria-bradley5
https://auntymbraintumours.co.uk/victoria-and-her-meningioma/
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