Dark Leafy Greens: What You Should Know

The three words “dark leafy greens” are used so frequently in the health and wellness world that they roll off the tongue for most people. But what counts as a dark leafy green? What’s a health conscious person to do if they don’t like kale? Are the other leafy greens just as good? Here are some useful facts about this powerful category of foods.

Benefits of Dark Leafy Greens

For those who aren’t exactly sure why dark leafy greens are so commonly recommended, let’s break down their importance. These vegetables are high in fibre and rich in vitamins (like A and C) and minerals (like magnesium and iron), antioxidants and other plant chemicals. This makes them great for regulating bowels, reducing the risk of cancer, preventing nutritional deficiencies, reducing inflammation, improving mental health and improving overall health. Ideally, they should be eaten on a daily basis.

Examples of Dark Leafy Greens

In general, one dark leafy green isn’t necessarily superior to the rest. You can get benefits from all of them because many share similar nutritional properties. Consuming a variety of them can help ensure you maximize your benefits. Let’s explore some easy-to-use options.

Bok Choy: This is a cruciferous vegetable and a type of cabbage. It’s a great option to add to stir fries. 

Spinach: Both regular spinach and the immature form (baby spinach) can be used in salads and stir fries. You can replace iceberg lettuce in sandwiches with spinach to get more of a nutritional boost.     

Romaine Lettuce: This is another more nutrient-dense alternative to iceberg lettuce. It works great in salads and sandwiches. 

Swiss Chard: The leaves of Swiss chard and the colourful stalks can all be eaten. They are great cooked into stews, soups and stir fries. The leaves work well in salads too.

Kale: Kale is also a cruciferous vegetable. Its rise in popularity is a bit of a mystery and may be related to clever marketing and the power of food trends. That being said, it has the hallmark nutritional benefits of dark leafy greens (iron, vitamin A, vitamin C, other antioxidants, magnesium, fibre etc.). 

Disadvantages of Dark Leafy Greens

Dark leafy greens can be hard to digest for some people. Those with irritable bowels and bloating may struggle with these vegetables. Cooking them by steaming or stir frying or adding them to stews and soups can make them easier to digest. The question of whether vegetables are better raw or cooked is a complicated one that depends on the nutrient we’re considering and the cooking method. Many nutrients are actually better absorbed when cooked. Cooking with a minimum amount of water (like steaming) helps to prevent nutrients from leaching out into the water. Consuming the liquid that vegetables are cooked in (like in the case of stews) helps you to get back some leached out nutrients.

Dark leafy greens like spinach are often on the “dirty dozen” list meaning that they are high in pesticides. Getting these in organic form whenever it is financially realistic can be a way to reduce pesticide load.

Do you have any nutrition questions? Don’t hesitate to reach out! I love chatting with readers. 

Anti-Aging Foods for Your Skin

I’m going to take a detour from my usual posts about mental health and focus on another area that I work with: skin health. Since I do facial acupuncture regularly, I often get asked what foods can promote anti-aging. More and more people want to work on skin anti-aging from the inside in addition to working on it from the outside. Research in this area is still growing but the good news is that most of the dietary recommendations that reduce aging in the skin are also good for your overall health.

One study done in 2007 on 4000 American women in their 40s-70s found that women who had a higher dietary intake of vitamin C had fewer wrinkles. Some good sources of vitamin C in the diet are citrus fruits (obviously), bell peppers (any colour), guava (a very rich source), rosehips and blackcurrants but vitamin C is found in many other fruits and vegetables.

This same study also found that women who ate more linoleic acid in their diet were less likely to experience the drying out and thinning of the skin that often happens with age. Linoleic acid can be found in things like vegetables oil, nuts (like walnuts), seeds and soybeans.

A more recent study done on about 3000 Caucasian women ages 45-60 found that higher dietary intake of alpha linolenic acid (ALA) and EPA was associated with fewer signs of aging in the skin. These are both omega-3 fatty acids. Flax is a great source of ALA but this fatty acid is also in walnuts and soy as well as some other foods. EPA is mainly found in fish – especially anchovies, mackerel, oysters, salmon and whitefish.

High fruit and vegetable consumption in general helps slow aging of the skin. It’s hard to find studies on what fruits and vegetables have been shown to be useful. Some sources recommend things like avocados, dark leafy greens, berries, orange vegetables like sweet potatoes and carrots and pineapples.

Things you should consider limiting in your life to keep your skin youthful are sugar, alcohol and excessive caloric intake. These things are popular in the anti-aging research right now.

If you would like to learn more about how naturopathic medicine can help you age well book a free 15-minute consultation today.