Salad Idea: Arugula

By June Lay
Junefit.com

We Americans are still not eating enough fruits and vegetables! This is what research continues to show, as reported by the USDA (are we surprised?). In fact, a recent study of over 5,700 Americans showed that we tend to overestimate our intake of fruits and vegetables while we underestimate our intake of sweets, fats and starches (no wonder we're always on a diet).

So today, let's talk green -- Arugula green, one of my favorite salad greens.

One easy way we can start to eat more vegetables is to have a large salad every day. Remember the saying, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away"? Well, I think that this can apply to eating more salad greens. There are many varieties of lettuce, but keep in mind that the darker the leaf, the higher the nutrient content becomes.

Arugula, one of my favorites, happens to be at the top of the list, with the highest amounts of calcium, vitamin C and beta carotene (an important phytochemical). Arugula (also called Rocket or Roquette) is in fact higher in these nutrients than all the other well-known salad greens such as romaine, escarole, watercress and red leaf. It is also categorized as a cruciferous vegetable, which are known for their cancer-fighting properties (we love tasty, cancer-fighting foods!).

Aside from its high nutritional value, it's very low in calories (low-calorie and nutrient-dense, a win-win combo!). Two cups of arugula supply about 25 calories, with no fat. Of course, as with other salad greens and fresh vegetables, it supplies us with many other vitamins and minerals vital to our health.

If we're creative, a salad can be a meal by itself, a filling appetizer or a side dish that fills us up without fattening us up.

So, if we're not getting our vegetable quota of three to five servings per day, let's resolve to fix that by eating a salad a day. Who knows? Maybe it'll help us cut down on those other foods we seem to have no problem getting enough of.

Here's to our health!

Source: HealthNewsDigest.com