Why Spinach Is Good For You

Any nutritionist will tell you that greens should be present in a healthy diet. It is unusually rich in vitamins, minerals, fiber, which are so necessary for the proper functioning of the human body. However, not all greens are equally healthy. Spinach is rightfully considered the absolute record holder: its leaves contain a huge amount of nutrients that can hardly be found in any other product. Why spinach needs to be added to the diet and in what form it is better to eat it, we will tell you in our material.

Why spinach is good for you

With its low calorie content (23 kcal per 100g), spinach is unusually rich in vitamins and minerals. This is a real storehouse of vitamin C - a powerful natural antioxidant that is essential for heart health, strong immunity and skin beauty. Just one cup of fresh spinach contains the entire daily requirement of vitamin K - essential for bone and cardiovascular health. Deficiency of vitamin K can cause disturbances in the work of the heart muscle, as well as cause damage to the walls of blood vessels and their calcification.

In addition, green spinach leaves are unusually rich in B vitamins (especially folic acid), which are essential for red blood cell synthesis and proper cognitive and muscle function. The mineral composition of spinach is also impressive - it contains iron, magnesium, potassium and calcium, which are necessary for the proper functioning of all body systems and are responsible for the normalization of water balance.

In addition to the already mentioned vitamin C, spinach is rich in other antioxidants, including kaempferol and quercetin. Free radicals, damaging the cells of the body, trigger oxidative processes in them, which can cause many chronic diseases and premature aging. Antioxidants protect the body from free radicals as well as UV exposure, which can cause wrinkles, hyperpigmentation, and even melanoma.

The active substances contained in spinach leaves help to normalize blood pressure, and they are suitable for people with both hyper- and hypotension. The high content of vitamin A in the greens protects the eyes from daily stress and helps in the prevention of age-related "drop" of vision.

In what form is it better to eat

Spinach can be eaten both raw and cooked, and nutritionists do not recommend dwelling on one thing. While some nutrients in spinach are destroyed by high temperatures, others increase in concentration. That is why it is worth adding fresh spinach leaves to your salads, smoothies and sandwiches, and thermally processed ones to hot dishes.

Most importantly, do not forget about healthy fats: vitamins A and K are fat-soluble, which means that the body will not absorb them without fats. A great pair of spinach is avocado, fatty red fish and olive oil.