The good points –
– Its best seasons are from March to May and September to October but you can get it any time of the year really.
– It provides more nutrients than any other type of food – think on that!
– It can help protect you from heart disease, osteoporosis, arthritis, and even colon cancer
– It contains vitamin K – great for bone health!
- I’m not finished yet. It also has significant amounts of vitamin C and A which are important antioxidants to help prevent cholesterol from being oxidized. You don’t want oxidized cholesterol sticking to your artery walls right?
- Spinach is so cool that some scientists (due to it’s anti-cancer properties} are now making specialized extracts for its use in controlled studies. One study in New England (late 1980s) showed to have an inverse affect on breast cancer. It has also shown to have a positive effects on reducing the incidence of skin cancer, prostate cancer and stomach cancer.
- One element in spinach known to be responsible for this is kaempferol which is also present in tea (nonherbal), onions, curly kale, leeks, broccoli, and berries (specifically blueberries).
- Other ingredients include folate and it’s an anti-inflammatory as well. The list of benefits just goes on and on.
- It helps to reduce mental health issues and aged related brain function problems.
- There’s a thing called Lutein, it’s a carotenoid which protects against eye diseases such as age-related macular degeneration and cataract, and it is available in green vegetables, notably spinach, along with kale and you guessed it, broccoli.
- You might like to know that vegetables, but not fruits, when typically consumed with some fat, like extra virgin olive oil, increases the body’s ability to absorb vitamin E. Isn’t interesting that Popeye went out with a girl called Olive… hmmm!
Storage
Choose spinach that has dark or deep green leaves and avoid spinach with yellowing leaves. A slimy coating indicates that it’s decaying. You should store only fresh spinach. Make sure it’s loosely packed in a plastic bag in the crisper where it will last about four or five days. Do not wash it before storing as moisture will cause it to go-off. Best not to store cooked spinach because it will go-off even quicker.
There’s a whole heap of other benefits I haven’t mentioned here but I’m sure you catch my drift. This is a special vegetable that should find it’s way into your weekly dietary habits no matter what! I’m now going to research some spinach recipes for you.
…get well and stay well,
Ray Baker