What Is The Health Benefit of Spinach? Just Ask Popeye!

The health benefit of spinach.

Spinach...yes a staple diet of Popeye. Unlike the cartoon character it won't give you big muscles and great strength instantly...but it has an extraordinary high nutritional value especially when fresh, steamed, or quickly boiled, and contains vital antioxidants. It is a formidable free radical fighter.

Spinach contains essential vitamins A, C and E and is a rich sorce of folic acid (great for all you pregnant mums as protection against Spina Bifida in developing babies). But research has found at least 13 types of flavonoids that double up as anti-cancer agents and antioxidants.

Recent research on spinach extracts has shown it to slow down cell division in stomach cancer cells and also reduce incidents of skin cancer.

It is also thought to protect against colon cancer,breast cancer in women, and the very common prostate cancer in men.

The health benefit of spinach is also thought to help asthma sufferers, aid osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis with its anti-inflammatory properties.

Blood pressure? Magnesium can lower your blood pressure...and spinach has plenty of that too!

Are you a stroke victim? If you are then really consider eating spinach.

Research has shown it not only to reduce age related effects on the brain by protecting against oxidative stress of brain cells, but, along with spirulina and blueberries,



stroke victims recover more of their ability to move and suffer less brain cell loss when fed diets rich in these foods...gaining more blood flow to the brain.

Eyesight is helped greatly too. Age related macular degeneration and cataracts are helped by the carotenoid 'Lutein' present in spinach.

There are 3 basic types of Spinach:

Savoy... has dark green, crinkly and curly leaves. It is the type sold in fresh bunches in most supermarkets.

Flat/smooth leaf spinach has broad smooth leaves that are easier to clean than savoy. This type is often grown for canned and frozen spinach, as well as soups, baby foods, and processed foods.

Semi-savoy is a hybrid variety. It has slightly crinkled leaves. It has the same texture as savoy, but it is not as difficult to clean. It is grown for both fresh market, and processing. Five Star is a widely grown variety and has good resistance to running up to seed.

One cup of boiled spinach provides around 1000% daily value of vitamin K, 66% daily value of folic acid and 39% of daily magnesium requirement.

One cup of fresh spinach provides 200% of daily value of vitamin K.

Cooked spinach is an excellent source of iron...especially needed for people such as menstruating women, adolescents and growing children...as these groups have an increased iron need.

Big Cooking Tip!Remember that spinach reduces by three quarters in size when cooked.

So, the health benefit of spinach, make sure you stock up with plenty of it. As you can see, it really is a super food that can be introduced quite easily into your diet.

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