Arugula is a common salad green, but did you know that this vegetable has been shown to help prevent cancer?
Arugula is part of the mustard plant family, and has been grown for food and medicine since at least the times of the Old Testament, and more notably by the Romans in the height of the Roman Empire.
The leaves are cultivated, often for salad, but they can be added to your diet in a variety of ways. The leaves have a slight bitterness to them (not too strong), which adds an extra flavour profile to your dish.
Arugula is a good source of protein, thiamin, riboflavin, vitamin B6, pantothenic acid, zinc, and copper. It is an excellent source of dietary fibre, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, folate, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, and manganese.
Arugula Health Benefits
Arugula has a high nutrient to calorie balance, which makes it excellent for weight loss, and for provides you with a serious boost in many important vitamins, minerals, and anti-inflammatory properties.
Arugula contains a chemical compound called erucin. This is an important compound with a lot positive side effects that you’ll want to pay attention to. Erucin suppresses and inhibits the replication of tumour cells. While the exact method that this compound reacts to suppress tumour growth isn’t fully understood, its effects are plainly visible. While erucin isn’t unique to arugula, it is abundant in the plant, making arugula a great food for anyone.
If you have cancer or a tumour you may benefit from arugula (and it won’t hurt), but it is foremost a great preventative food. Eating arugula won’t stop you from getting cancer, but removing highly inflammatory foods and replacing them with good foods that reduce inflammation and suppress tumour growth is clearly going to be a healthier and wiser choice for you.
Arugula can also help lower blood-glucose levels. It also improves lipid levels, and the decrease in glucose levels in the blood results in reduced inflammation. While inflammation has its purpose, it is very harmful to be in an inflamed state for any length of time.
Inflammation is hard on all organs, and is a factor in the formation of most major diseases. It also causes wear on the body. An inflamed body is under stress and has to work harder, aging it at a faster rate. It’s smart to cut back on inflammatory foods, and it’s important to get a healthy amount of anti-inflammatory foods, like arugula, in your diet to prevent stress and deterioration throughout the body. Whether for internal health or pure vanity reasons, reducing inflammation is worth it.
Arugula is a great source of carotenoids (vitamin A). A 100g serving of Arugula (approximately 50 arugula leaves) contains 47% of your daily vitamin A intake. This is a very important vitamin for ocular health, and protecting your eyes and eyesight. Vitamin A also works as an antioxidant, fighting inflammation and oxidative stress.
Eating leafy greens like arugula is great for your heart. A diet rich in plant-based foods is associated with longevity and a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death in North America.
The vitamin K1 in arugula is needed for proper blood flow and clotting. It is a necessary vitamin for human life, and arugula has more than your daily-required value in a 100g serving.
Arugula is an old plant, with its own history of uses. Arugula was frequently noted throughout the age of the Roman Empire for its medicinal uses. Arugula has been historically used as an aphrodisiac. While modern science hasn’t uncovered the exact cause and effect, for centuries this plant was prescribed to stimulate sexual desire. It could be the general improvement of health, the increased blood flow, or something completely different. Try it for yourself and you be the judge.
Arugula is very well digested by most individuals, and is a very rare source of allergens, or other health problems. This makes it a great food for pretty much everyone.
Arugula is best planted in spring or late summer when the days are shorter. You can plant and grow arugula in the height of the summer, but the heat and long days will have your plants to seed before they’ve had the time to grow a lot of vegetation (the part of the plant you actually want to eat).
Arugula has too many health benefits to ignore. This green, leafy plant can improve your eyes and heart, heal your body, and keep your body feeling and looking young. Be green and think arugula today.
