Healthy Food Tips from Karen Stoehr

Health Benefits of Kale

If vitamins could be packaged and labeled as such, they would look very much like kale. That’s because the vitamins offered by just one cup of this relatively little-known veggie can trump a whole week’s worth of other foods: 684% of the daily value of vitamin K, 206% of the suggested daily amount of vitamin A, and 134% of vitamin C (and even more vitamin C in the Scottish curly-leaf variety).

Kale can legitimately be called a superfood, if only after one particular study, which reported the high antioxidant activity in this vegetable. The phytonutrient indole-3-carbinol aids in DNA cell repair, while at the same time slowing the growth of cancer cells. With its sulforaphane content, kale protects against prostate and colon cancers. It also has properties that studies show ca ease lung congestion, and is beneficial to your stomach, liver, and immune system. It contains lutein and zeaxanthin, which help protect your eyes from macular degeneration.

Kale has been compared to beef, which is known as a “go-to” food for iron, protein, and calcium. Kale’s anti-inflammatory capabilities are unrivaled among leafy greens, especially relating to the prevention and even reversal of arthritis, heart disease, and several autoimmune diseases.

Omega-fatty acids are called essential because your body needs them to remain healthy, but they need to come from sources outside the body; kale is an excellent source of these healthy fats. Benefits of these often-talked about but little understood compounds include their ability to help regulate blood clotting, build cell membranes in your brain, and protect you against heart disease and stroke. They may also help combat autoimmune diseases, such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

One serving of kale contains 121 milligrams of omega-3 fatty acids and 92.4 milligrams of omega-6 fatty acids.

Kale is one of the best vegetables for your health. 

Health Benefits of Lemons

It's probably no surprise that lemons provide a lot of vitamin C, but the amount per serving is pretty impressive at 187% of the daily value, making it a super infection fighter. Teamed with flavonoid glycosides called esperetin and naringenin (found in most citrus fruits), the combination provides radical free-radical zapping activity. Free radicals can do serious damage to blood vessels and can contribute to cholesterol build up in artery walls, atherosclerosis, and even heart disease.

Lemons are also a good source of thiamin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, iron, and magnesium, and are an excellent source of fiber, vitamin B6, calcium, potassium, and copper, as well as folate and potassium.
If you've ever wondered about the difference in raw lemons compared to bottled lemon juice, the vitamin C goes from 139% to about 100% of the daily value per serving, with the calcium from 7% diminished to 3%. In addition, bottled lemon juice and other processed fruit juices are not as healthy as they seem, and contain very high amounts of fructose and potentially dangerous additives.

The citric acid in lemons aids in digestion and helps to dissolve kidney stones, while the ascorbic acid is a natural antioxidant that prevents the sailor's dread - scurvy. Other antioxidants in lemons include ß-carotenes, beta-cryptoxanthin, zeaxanthin, lutein, and vitamin A, which promotes healthy mucus membranes, skin, and vision. Pantothenic acid and folates, provided by lemons, are compounds needed by the body, but can only be derived from sources outside the body.

Lemons and limes are great for juicing, too! They have virtually none of the offending sugar – fructose – that causes most of the metabolic complications. Additionally, there are amazing at eliminating the occasional bitter taste of some dark, deep green leafy vegetables that provide most of the benefits of juicing. 

Karen Stoehr

9th Street Wellness Center

Sources: Dr. Joseph Mercola, www.drmercola.com/