If you are looking for a few more ways to squeeze a bit more H2O in, here are 10 simple tips on how to incorporate more water drinking into your daily routine. Our health and wellness as we get older are influenced by our diet, our physical and mental activity, and our approach to managing stress.

The benefits of eating green vegetables everyday. Email Facebook Twitter Linkedin. December Why smoothies? What are the health benefits? What exactly is fiber? Should all sources of fiber do this for us? Will my smoothie add good fiber into my system? Does blending destroy any of the goodness?

What are the top 3 green vegetables? Kale is a good source of vitamin K, too, which helps prevent bone fractures. Like the others, this often-overlooked vegetable is high in antioxidants and beta-carotene, calcium and vitamin K, and it has anti-inflammatory properties, which is great news for people suffering from arthritis.

What part of the plant is best in a smoothie? Sign up to receive Baptist Health emails to learn more about your health from our blog, e-newsletter, and Flourish.

Or follow one of our social media accounts. December 20, Health Benefits of Leafy Greens. Check out these health benefits of leafy greens: Rich in vitamins and minerals such as Vitamin A, Vitamin C, iron, magnesium, potassium and calcium Support vision and skin health Bolster immune system Help maintain a healthy weight High antioxidant content linked to reducing risk of cancer and heart disease Provide essential fiber to your diet Low calorie but still packed with nutritional value Improve digestion Reduce inflammation in the body Contain chlorophyll which can help purify the blood and keep you energized!

How to Add Leafy Greens to Your Diet Greens provide a variety of flavors to add to any meal! Here are a few easy ways to add leafy greens to your diet: Easy sautéed greens. Kale, Swiss chard, and spinach are all delicious sautéed in olive oil with some grated or sliced garlic and a dash of red pepper flakes, with an addition of a toss of grated Parmesan to finish it off as a special treat.

This side dish can be cooked in a jiffy and can become a tasty addition to your regular menu. Substitute greens in your regular dishes.

Bagged shredded cabbage is an easy fix to add greens to your weekly means. Instead of using lettuce in your tacos, substitute shredded cabbage. It will give your tacos a crunch factor and add nutrition to your meal. Use finely shredded cabbage or baby spinach when making salads instead of lettuce.

Jackie Sobon. Lasagne is the ultimate mid-week meal. While there are many ways you can fill the layers without turning to beef mince, the combination of parmesan, ricotta, mozzarella, and leafy green spinach is arguably one of the best.

Alexandra Shytsman. Roasted bok choy, covered in zesty lemon juice, is the perfect accompaniment. JUMP TO Latest News Recipes Guides Health Shop. What are the benefits of eating dark leafy greens?

Types of dark leafy greens When it comes to getting enough dark leafy greens in your diet, you are spoilt for choice when it comes to options. Unsplash 1 Kale Kale, which has soared in popularity in recent years, is a curly, leafy member of the cabbage family.

Unsplash 2 Spinach A favorite of Popeye, spinach is a green flowering plant. Pixabay 3 Collard Greens Collard greens are the large, flat green leaves of the collard vegetable, which is closely related to cabbage and broccoli.

Unsplash 5 Swiss Chard Closely related to beetroot, Swiss Chard is a large vegetable with big green leaves and a thick stalk. Unsplash 6 Bok Choy Bok choy, which can also be referred to as pak choi, is a type of Chinese cabbage.

Vegan recipes with dark leafy greens Sure, you can eat dark leafy greens as they are, or with a little bit of seasoning.

Hannah Kaminsky 1 Healthy Vegan Smoothie We get it, not everyone likes the texture of greens. Get the recipe VegNews 2 Mediterranean Veggie Sushi Sushi is a great way to pack in loads of vegetables and enjoy them in tasty bite-sized pieces. Get the recipe Holly V. Get the recipe Jackie Sobon 4 Cheesy Vegan Spinach Lasagna Lasagne is the ultimate mid-week meal.

Get the recipe For more on vegan nutrition, read: Is Chicken Healthy? Why the Truth May Surprise You What are the Benefits of Miso Soup? What are the Benefits of Eating Rice?

Fiber helps you feel more full, gently cleans out the colon, and removes toxins and other waste from your system. It also feeds and nourishes beneficial bacteria — the ones that work hard to keep us healthy.

Think of it as a kitchen sponge, moving things along and cleaning as it goes. Not exactly. You see, there is fiber in other foods too, such as wheat. Keep that sponge in mind to get a clearer picture of what different types of fiber there are: the soft side of a sponge is like the fiber found in vegetables, oats and other solubles.

The fiber found in wheat is more like the abrasive side of the sponge — instead of moving things along, it takes a harder approach to your stomach, especially for those who are celiac or have a gluten intolerance.

Green veggies are packed with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, which help fight disease. A smoothie fortified with milk or yogurt will also provide potassium and calcium that can strengthen bones and lower blood pressure, which can contribute to better heart health.

No, not in the way heating vegetables does. Whenever you heat your vegetables, valuable vitamins are lost. The whole thing! There are nutrients in every part of the vegetable and when you blend it, you can use it all. As a rule, the darker green it is, the more you want it in your smoothie.

The colour is an indication of where the nutrients are. Sure, blending spinach and milk together does not sound appetizing. But you have lots of choices to add some sweetness to your smoothies to make them taste delicious — dates to add sweetness and more fiber , honey, numerous fruits that include raspberries, bananas, mangos, apples, pineapple, etc.

Another note of caution has to do with vitamin K, found in nearly all leafy green vegetables. This article originally appeared in the Live More, the exclusive healthy living magazine for John Hancock Vitality members, Spring edition. The views and opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily imply endorsement by Manulife.

If you are looking for a few more ways to squeeze a bit more H2O in, here are 10 simple tips on how to incorporate more water drinking into your daily routine. Our health and wellness as we get older are influenced by our diet, our physical and mental activity, and our approach to managing stress.

The benefits of eating green vegetables everyday. Because of their high content of antioxidants, green leafy vegetables may be one of the best cancer-preventing foods.

Studies have shown that eating 2 to 3 servings of green leafy vegetables per week may lower the risk of stomach, breast and skin cancer. These same antioxidants have also been proven to decrease the risk of heart disease.

Perhaps one of the most appealing benefits of dark green leafy vegetables is their low calorie and carbohydrate contents and their low glycemic index. These features make them an ideal food to facilitate achieving and maintaining a healthy body weight. Adding more green vegetables to a balanced diet increases the intake of dietary fiber which, in turn, regulates the digestive system and aids in bowel health and weight management.

These properties are particularly advantageous for those with type-2 diabetes. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends increasing average intakes of fruits and vegetables, particularly those that provide more vitamins, minerals and fiber.

Dark leafy greens fulfill this need. Many varieties of greens are available in the American markets-the most popular are collards, mustard greens, turnip greens, chard, spinach and kale. Eating dark green leafy vegetables is vital to a healthy, balanced diet.

There are many ways to enjoy a meal with leafy greens:. Make a salad: Keep salads interesting by varying their colors, textures and varieties. Perk them up with small tender leafy greens such as romaine lettuce, spinach and arugula mixed with different kinds of tomatoes, cucumbers and carrots.

Wrap it up: Make a wrap with tuna, chicken or turkey and add romaine lettuce, spinach, arugula, and other veggies for some extra flavor. Add to soup: Add greens with larger, tougher leaves such as collard greens, kale or mustard greens into your favorite soup. Stir-fry: Add chopped spinach, bok choy or broccoli to chicken or tofu stir-fried with olive or canola oil with some garlic, onion or ginger.

Steamed: Steaming collard greens, mustard greens, kale or spinach until they are slightly soft. Menu Agricultural Research Service U. Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center: Grand Forks, ND.

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Leafy greens surpass other vegetables in their abundance of vitamins A, E, K, folate , minerals calcium, potassium , fiber, and phytonutrients, on a calorie-for-calorie basis, registered dietitian nutritionist Jenn Schmidt told Health. As part of a healthy diet, vegetables in general offer a wealth of health benefits, including supporting the immune system , and reducing the risk of chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes , heart disease , and certain types of cancer.

The U. Dietary Guidelines recommend that adults consume cups of vegetables daily, and leafy greens are an excellent way to meet this recommendation. With a wide variety of leafy greens available, incorporating them into your diet is simple and enjoyable. Here are 15 different types of leafy greens, their nutritional value, and tips on how to incorporate them into your daily meals.

Swiss chard is in the same family as beets , Cheryl Mussatto , a clinical dietitian at Cotton O'Neil Diabetes and Endocrinology Clinic in Topeka, Kansas, told Health. Swiss chard is especially rich in vitamin K, an important nutrient involved in blood clotting and bone health.

Swiss chard is best from spring through fall. Enjoy Swiss chard raw in salads and sandwiches, or cooked by boiling, sautéing, braising, or adding to soups, casseroles, and stir-fries.

Turnip greens are particularly popular in Soul food cuisine, noted Mussatto, adding that they offer calcium , an important nutrient for bone and dental health.

Turnip greens are a powerhouse of nutrients, boasting high levels of vitamin K and folate, a B vitamin essential for DNA synthesis and preventing neural tube defects.

Turnip greens are best from October through early spring. You can cook turnip greens many ways, said Mussatto, adding that one indulgent way to enjoy them is to slow-cook them in broth with a splash of extra virgin olive oil , honey , and apple cider vinegar. Like turnip greens, kale is best from October through early spring.

While kale is a popular leafy green for salads, its bitterness can be off-putting to some. To temper this bitterness, try incorporating sweetness into your kale salad with the addition of chopped apples or dried fruit, advised Mussatto.

Collard greens are a Southern nutritional packed staple, prized for their hearty flavor. Collard greens are best from October through early spring.

Like other dark leafy greens such as kale and Swiss chard, collard greens offer lutein and zeaxanthin, dietary carotenoids that support eye health and have a beneficial effect in delaying eye-related diseases like macular degeneration.

One cooked cup of collard greens supplies a total of 4, mcg of lutein and zeaxanthin. Although there's no established daily value for lutein and zeaxanthin, researchers recommend a daily intake of 10 mg of lutein and 2 mg of zeaxanthin 1 mg is 1, mcg.

Mustard greens have a peppery flavor like mustard, so they pair well with hearty foods like cheese, curry, and meats, registered dietitian and author at Consumer Health Digest, Carmelita Lombera told Health.

Like kale, collard, and turnip greens, mustard greens are best from October through early spring. Similar to many leafy greens, mustard greens are rich in vitamins A and C. They also offer small amounts of minerals like magnesium and potassium.

Known as the relaxation mineral, magnesium is involved in regulating blood sugar, blood pressure, and muscle and nerve functions. Potassium is involved in many bodily functions including kidney, heart, muscle, and nerve health.

Spinach is a popular leafy green that's eaten raw in a variety of ways from smoothies and salads to wraps and sandwiches, registered dietitian and plant-based recipe developer Stephanie McKercher told Health.

Considered a multi-purpose leafy green, you can also add a handful of spinach to cooked meals like pasta , soup, and eggs. Spinach is typically available year-round and offers iron, a vital mineral required for making hemoglobin, the protein that provides oxygen to the muscles.

One cup of raw spinach provides 0. Bok choy , also known as Chinese cabbage, is a member of the nutrient-dense cruciferous vegetable family, providing many of the mentioned nutrients. Bok choy is in season during late summer and early fall, noted McKercher.

Radish greens are the edible leafy greens of the radish root vegetable. They're best from March through June. The leaves are fresh and tender and can be prepared like spinach, said Lombera. Make a peppery pesto by mixing radish greens with basil, olive oil, parmesan cheese, and pine nuts. Arugula , a peppery-flavored leafy green, is a great addition to the top of pizza to make it a more balanced nutrient-dense meal, noted Schmidt.

While available year-round, arugula is best in the early spring or fall months, said Schmidt. Similar to other cruciferous vegetables like Bok Choy and cabbage, arugula contains glucosinolates, compounds that exhibit anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.

Although vitamin C is most known for its role in immune health, it also offers collagen , a protein needed for wound healing.

Cabbage can be enjoyed in a variety of ways, from raw in salads and slaws to cooked in soups and stir-fries. It can also be fermented into sauerkraut or kimchi for a tangy and probiotic-rich addition to your diet. Also a member of the family of cruciferous vegetables, watercress is available year-round and has a peppery flavor.

They don't last very long so they must be consumed immediately. Fold watercress into a dip or sauce or add to a salad. From salads and lettuce wraps to sandwiches and taco fillings, romaine lettuce is a versatile leafy green that adds a delightful crunch to any dish.

It's also available year-round. One cup of shredded romaine lettuce offers In addition to its role in blood clotting, vitamin K is essential for bone health.

Additionally, vitamin A is especially important for immune, eye , and reproductive health. Endive is a long crispy leaf with a bitter flavor, noted Lombera. They can be eaten raw, but when cooked their flavor mellows to nutty sweetness, she added. One tasty way to enjoy them is by brushing each leaf with olive oil, grilling until golden brown, then topping with balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and toasted nuts like walnuts or pecans.

Apart from its role in DNA synthesis and preventing neural tube defects, adequate folate intake helps prevent megaloblastic anemia, a type of blood disorder that causes symptoms like fatigue , trouble concentrating, and heart palpitations.

Beet greens are the large leaves sprouting from the beetroot , noted Lombera. They have a mild, slightly sweet flavor and can be enjoyed raw, braised, or sauteed. They're best from the spring through the fall and can wilt right away, so enjoy them immediately. Beet greens contain powerful antioxidants and more iron than spinach, said Lombera.

Though most known for its role in oxygen transport, iron is also needed for making hormones. Dandelion greens are the most commonly used portion of the dandelion plant.

Spring is the best time to enjoy dandelion greens and while they can be consumed raw, they taste better when cooked as the heat takes away some of the bitter flavor, noted Lombera.

Dandelion greens contain many of the above-mentioned nutrients and one cup of these raw leafy greens offers 7, mcg of lutein and zeaxanthin. Leafy greens are nutrient-packed powerhouses that offer a wealth of health benefits and culinary versatility.

From the peppery bite of mustard greens to the hearty crunch of cabbage, each variety brings its unique flavor profile and nutritional value to the table.

For those new to leafy greens, begin with milder options like spinach or Bok choy. To temper the bitterness of more assertive leafy greens, consider cooking them or incorporating them into salads with milder greens, fruits, and nuts for a balanced flavor profile. Incorporate these leafy wonders into your daily diet by adding them to cold foods such as wraps and sandwiches as well as hot meals like soups and pasta.

Those who take blood thinners need to eat consistent amounts of vitamin K each day. They should also notify their health care providers before incorporating more greens into their diet. Studies have shown that increasing your intake of green leafy vegetables may help prevent certain diseases.

A study published in the journal Neurology found that a diet containing one serving of green leafy vegetables per day is associated with slower age-related cognitive decline. A large meta-analysis showed that the consumption of green leafy vegetables including cruciferous vegetables significantly reduces the incidence of cardiovascular disease.

And one study even showed that increasing your intake of green leafy vegetables may improve the effectiveness of omega-3 supplements in certain populations, although researchers acknowledged that more research is needed to confirm the benefit.

There are countless varieties of both dark green and dark green leafy vegetables to choose from. To boost variety in your diet, try to experiment and consume different types and different preparation methods.

Consider these three ways to add leafy greens to your diet:. In addition, folate supplements provide many of the nutrients of dark leafy green vegetables.

Consuming more dark green leafy vegetables is easy, inexpensive, and simple if you do a little bit of advance planning. Try adding them to to to three meals per week to begin, then add a few more as you find recipes and varieties that you enjoy.

Ellis, E. How to Get Your Kids to Eat Dark Leafy Greens. Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Vitamin K Fact Sheet for Health Professionals. National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements.

Vitamin K. Fact Sheet for Professionals. National Institutes of Health. Di Noia J. Defining Powerhouse Fruits and Vegetables: A Nutrient Density Approach. Prev Chronic Dis ; Morris MC, et al. Nutrients and bioactives in green leafy vegetables and cognitive decline. doi: O'Sullivan, A. Habitual diets rich in dark-green vegetables are associated with an increased response to ω-3 fatty acid supplementation in Americans of African ancestry.

The Journal of nutrition , 2 , — Pollock R. The effect of green leafy and cruciferous vegetable intake on the incidence of cardiovascular disease: A meta-analysis. JRSM cardiovascular disease , 5 , By Laura Dolson Laura Dolson is a health and food writer who develops low-carb and gluten-free recipes for home cooks.

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