Top Ten Vegetables to Eat for Good Health

Now that you've decided to start exercising, the next step is eating healthy.

Eating healthy is one of the most important things you can do in achieving a healthy lifestyle but do you really know how beneficial some vegetables are? You may be surprised to find that mom was actually right in trying to get you to clear your plate of veggies.

Enjoy re-learning the benefits of these veggies.

Popeye isn’t the only one that benefits from spinach, though he did have the right idea. Of course, filling your pipe with raw spinach won’t give you the affect it did him but there are a number of good reasons to enjoy spinach every now and then. You may already know that spinach is good for lowering blood pressure, fighting wrinkles and maintaining bone density but did you know that spinach is also full of anti-cancer properties and antioxidants that help protect your vision? Just one cup of spinach will give you about 20% of the recommended daily allowance of fiber.

Maybe if you had known as a child that broccoli was actually good for your long term health then it wouldn’t have been the last of the food cleared off your plate. There are so many positive attributes to broccoli; some you may know, others may come as a pleasant surprise. Broccoli not only helps maintain your nervous system and regulating blood pressure but will also assist in protecting your body from sun damage. You may also find it interesting that milk isn’t the only source of Vitamin K that will help strengthen your bones, broccoli will too.

If it looks like a fruit and is sweet like a fruit, it may just be a tomato. Though many would argue that the tomato is a fruit, few can argue the benefits of eating tomatoes. Being low in calories, abundant in Vitamin C and delicious aren’t the only reasons tomatoes should make the top of your vegetable super food list. Just one cup of cooked or raw tomato is full of Vitamin A, K and potassium. Tomatoes are also a filling snack that will curb those hunger pains which helps to reduce the snacking throughout the day in between meals.

There are many reasons why sweet potatoes are good for your health and iron is just one of them. Iron is important for energy but can also help with stress, immune system efficiency and white blood cell production. Sweet potatoes are also a good source of Vitamin C to ward off colds, Vitamin D to help with moods and energy and B6 that helps reduce your chances of heart attack. Don’t let the fact that sweet potatoes are a vegetable deter you from enjoying the sweetness in your next recipe. They are called sweet potato for a reason. Enjoy.

If there were a super hero in the vegetable family it would have to be Kale because it holds more minerals than any other vegetable; antioxidants, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, calcium, lutein, fiber and the
list goes on and on. The benefits of Kale range from cancer fighting agents and healthy digestion to good vision and anti-inflammatory minerals. Kale doesn’t stop there in saving the day as it also helps in reducing your chances of heart attack and strokes.

For as long as most people can remember, celery has been one of the healthiest and more popular snack options for kids, people on the go and anyone that has just started to diet. While you do know celery is a better snack option than that bag of chips, you may not be aware of the many benefits to your health. That simple stalk of celery can regulate a healthy blood pressure, lower cholesterol and prevent cancer.

Ever since you were a child your parents told you that eating carrots would give you good eye sight. They weren’t filling your head with fairy tales to get you to eat your veggies. There is actually a long list of true benefits to eating carrots as part of your daily diet. The one you are most familiar with is the beta-carotene factor. There isn’t another vegetable with more. While the beta-carotene factor of carrots will keep stomach cancers at bay and help prevent heart disease, the Vitamin A in carrots will keep your eyes strong.

If you love mushrooms on pizza, in salad or as a topping to those enchiladas, you’ll love the fact that they are good for you even more. Mushrooms are full of Vitamin D that help promote a healthy immune system and Vitamin B that helps with energy. Studies also show that mushrooms are beneficial to your body in reducing the chances of bladder cancer.

Onions may not be the best thing for your breath but are certainly good for getting your daily dose of Vitamin C, B6 and biotin. That isn’t all however. Onions are also shown to provide healthy levels of folic acid and Vitamin K. Sure onions are one of the best vegetables to cook with but also serve as a great, natural detoxifying agent for your system, removing lead, mercury and arsenic. One of the more well studied attributes to eating onions would be the benefit of good heart health. Onions help reduce bad cholesterol, lower blood pressure and boost ‘good cholesterol’ levels, otherwise known as your HDL cholesterol.

One tasty source of fiber and potassium are avocados. You may not realize however that the real benefit of avocados is the oleic acid factor. Oleic acid is shown to prevent breast cancer and oral cancers. Avocados are also shown to promote good eye health, prevent strokes and may even hold clues to eternal youth. They may not help you live forever but at least well into old age.

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