Is Your Diet Green Enough?
Leafy greens are one of the most powerful among all superfoods. They have more nutrients per calorie than most vegetables and fruits that are consumed. Not only are they full of healthy vitamins like A, C, E, K and variants of vitamin B, but they are also rich in fibre, proteins and low in fate and carbohydrates. And so, nutritional experts continually recommend that leafy greens should be an integral part of the daily diet.
Beneficial To The Body
It is also important to eat green leafy vegetables to produce healthy immune cells in the stomach lining. These immune cells are extremely beneficial to the body as they help in controlling food allergies, inflammation, obesity and even bowel cancer. Besides this, regularly consuming leafy green vegetables also helps lower risk of stroke, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, heart disease, cancer, eye diseases, kidney stones, bone loss and digestive problems.
Green leafy veggies also supply the body with high levels of antioxidants thus, reducing oxidative stress on the body. Studies have shown that eating greens with your food every day also leads to higher cognitive functioning.
Incorporate These Foods In Your Diet
While the fads for leafy greens like kale or Swiss chard have been doing the rounds, these are not very easily available in India. But, plenty others are readily available for consumption.Here are some of the greens available in India and tips on how you can incorporate them in your diet.
Spinach
Spinach is a good source of calcium and is extremely beneficial for the bones and eyes. It can be cooked in the form of flatbreads or parathas or as an independent vegetable, dal or curry. You can also add spinach along with a few other greens and ingredients such as bananas, apples, oranges, and oats to prepare a delicious green smoothie. Spinach can be consumed on a daily basis for good health results.
Amaranth (Math)
Amaranth is commonly eaten in India, but while it is considered part of the healthy leafy kind, it is usually reddish in colour. Amaranth or math dal, is a very tasty dish you can even eat every day. It’s cooked along with tur dal, ginger, onions, chillies and turmeric and often eaten with rice. Make sure to add amaranth to your diet at least twice a week.
Fenugreek (Methi)
Methi is very easily available in India in its fresh, leafy form. The texture is soft and the taste is slightly bitter. When consuming, make sure to thoroughly rinse and clean the leaves. Methican be included in the diet in many ways such as in parathas, as a curry, or even by lightly tossing it with garlic and chili and adding it in salads. Eat methi as often as possible, as it is a great source of nutrition and can do a lot of wonders for one’s health.
Coriander
Coriander is always present in almost every Indian kitchen. It can be added to salads, yogurt, vegetable curries, as a garnish or can even be cooked as cutlets or vadas and eaten with ketchup and chutney. Coriander can be consumed along with every meal.
Ensure that at least one portion of every meal is green to get the best of nutrients from every plateful of food.
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