Surprisingly Healthy!
Recent research reveals remarkable benefit of the humble leafy green.
Rabbit food. Not the dry pellets and hay, but the green, leafy type. You know, the sort of stuff that you are careful about who watches you eat it at work. Everyone knows they should eat it, and everyone knows it’s generally “good for you”. If that’s a bit too vague, you’ll be interested in some new research that has demonstrated another specific advantage of eating leafy greens and, believe it or not, it isn’t putting hair on your chest.
A study involving 960 participants over nearly 5 years has shown that eating a little over one serving of leafy green vegetables (spinach, kale, lettuce etc.) each day can reduce cognitive decline. The participants were tested on memory and thinking skills, and by the end of the study, those who had consumed at least one serve of leafy, green vegetables a day were the equivalent of 11 years younger compared to those who ate almost no vegetables. And yes, the difference was calculated after the researchers accounted for other factors that affect mental health like age, gender, education, exercise, smoking, participation in cognitive activities, and the consumption of seafood and alcohol.
So, on top of being packed full of vitamins and minerals, there is now evidence that they directly impact the health of your brain. As is usually the case, this is more evidence that the simple things in health are the most effective. Eat well, it’s good for your brain, even if it doesn’t put hair on your chest.
Reference:
Morris MC et al., 2017, Nutrients and Bioactives in Green Leafy Vegetables and Cognitive Decline: Prospective Study, Neurology, DOI: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000004815
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