DAY 108 OF 365 DAYS TO A HEALTHIER LIFESTYLE
(Written by Sheila Gail Landgraf)
THE VERY HIGH VALUE OF WATERCRESS
Do you know the value of the foods you are consuming?
I mean REALLY? For instance; I did not know the value of watercress. For that matter, I thought watercress was just regular lettuce! I was so wrong, and when I started checking into the matter I realized how little I had paid attention to certain foods over the years. Even though watercress is a form of lettuce; it is the very specific form of lettuce that comes in the specific package of small, dark green, scalloped edged leaves with slender stems; not the lettuce you can buy by the head.
It felt so silly to learn that my thinking on so many different forms of the foods I eat was totally wrong. I didn't even understand the difference between regular lettuce and watercress! What else could I be missing in my food interpretations? If you had asked me I would have said that lettuce is almost all water; so it could not have much nutritional value. That is what I would have said before I started paying more attention to the stuff I put into my body. I learned that each type of lettuce is different; and each type has its own story and function.
If you sought to buy a car you would
compare prices and styles and check performances right? If you purchased a new home you would most likely think about
all the quality of the materials that go into making a house a good home for
you and your family. The same theory
should be true when you think about renewing your body and keeping it
healthy. You have to consider the qualities of the foods you feed yourself! You will need to know how to
treat your body. More specifically; you should know which foods you want to be using to make
your body the best body it can be. Just
like any other major hurdle you face in life; you need to do your
research. The devil's in the details! I’m shocked and appalled at
how little most people understand about nutrition today. I DO NOT claim to be a nutritionist; but some
things are pretty much common knowledge when you do start paying attention.
Several years ago I studied computer science. The very first thing they taught us was “garbage in equals garbage out.” That phrase would also be a good one to
remember when you are making healthy food choices. The problem is; you need to understand what
garbage is and what good food is before you can learn how to only be putting
the good stuff into your daily diet.
The scriptures make this very plain. Isaiah 55:2 says "Eat ye that which is good." I Corinthians 10:31 says; Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
Well; we all have good intentions; but just how do we KNOW the foods which are good?
Keeping this question in mind, I thought a good place to start would be to stroll through a few food choices; including vegetables, fruits, meats and spices, in order to get real familiar with each one available and in order to decide how nutritious they are so that we have a better idea of what we want to put into our bodies and what we want to avoid.
We have looked very close at the diet of some monks living in Greece, some common people living in Greece, some people living in Japan, and some other people groups. As I continued to do this I was struck by the thought that men always disappoint; but God never does. That made me think about the types of foods that Jesus would have been eating when He was walking around in a physical body. The bible refers to several of the food types that Jesus was most likely to consume. They include, pomegranates, fish, honey, olive oil and olives, grapes, vinegar, figs, lamb and bread. The only thing I am doing different than this list is the fact that I am not eating most breads, and Jesus most likely ate more unleavened bread or flat breads too; so we are even doing that right. Keep all of these foods at the top of your list and you can't go wrong.
What else can we know?
The scriptures make this very plain. Isaiah 55:2 says "Eat ye that which is good." I Corinthians 10:31 says; Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
Well; we all have good intentions; but just how do we KNOW the foods which are good?
Keeping this question in mind, I thought a good place to start would be to stroll through a few food choices; including vegetables, fruits, meats and spices, in order to get real familiar with each one available and in order to decide how nutritious they are so that we have a better idea of what we want to put into our bodies and what we want to avoid.
We have looked very close at the diet of some monks living in Greece, some common people living in Greece, some people living in Japan, and some other people groups. As I continued to do this I was struck by the thought that men always disappoint; but God never does. That made me think about the types of foods that Jesus would have been eating when He was walking around in a physical body. The bible refers to several of the food types that Jesus was most likely to consume. They include, pomegranates, fish, honey, olive oil and olives, grapes, vinegar, figs, lamb and bread. The only thing I am doing different than this list is the fact that I am not eating most breads, and Jesus most likely ate more unleavened bread or flat breads too; so we are even doing that right. Keep all of these foods at the top of your list and you can't go wrong.
What else can we know?
I decided to do a little research on which fruits and vegetables and spices are considered the
healthiest. Let’s start with those and
work our way through the fruit and vegetable and spices alphabet a little at a
time. Well, actually we want to remember this stuff; so let's only take one at a time, off and on, until we know about them all. Slow and steady progress is good progress.
Why not start out with a vegetable?
Why not start out with a vegetable?
The CDC (Center for Disease Control) has analyzed vegetables and ranked them for nutritional value on a scale from from one to 47. Each vegetable was checked and analyzed for the amounts of fiber they contained, the protein they contained, and the amount of potassium and vitamins they contained.
So which vegetable is considered to be
the healthiest vegetable you can eat in terms of good nutrition?
I wasn’t surprised to find that green, leafy vegetables topped the list. The number one choice though would never have crossed my mind. It is WATERCRESS. Watercress has a nutrient density score of 100; which makes it the most nutritious vegetable you can eat.
Most people eat watercress either in salads or sandwiches. Keep in mind that leavened bread and flour are not on the diet I’m recommending for good health; but you can eat flat breads. So remember to be putting some watercress on those flat bread sandwiches!
I wasn’t surprised to find that green, leafy vegetables topped the list. The number one choice though would never have crossed my mind. It is WATERCRESS. Watercress has a nutrient density score of 100; which makes it the most nutritious vegetable you can eat.
Most people eat watercress either in salads or sandwiches. Keep in mind that leavened bread and flour are not on the diet I’m recommending for good health; but you can eat flat breads. So remember to be putting some watercress on those flat bread sandwiches!
The watercress plant is deep green and
has small, round, scalloped leaves . It grows in water and because of that it should always be washed thoroughly, then
soaked for half an hour or so in cool water with hydrogen peroxide added (one tablespoon
per quart) to remove any pollutants, parasites or other impurities. After cleaning you can submerge it in water
and store in the refrigerator for up to three days before eating. When you are ready to use it wash it again
and separate the leaves from the fibers and roots.
Using this green leafy vegetable in your diet will bring you great benefits. It is considered an herb actually, and scientists have identified more than 15 vitamins and minerals in watercress. I was very surprised to learn that watercress contains more iron than spinach, and more calcium than milk, and more vitamin C than oranges.
Using this green leafy vegetable in your diet will bring you great benefits. It is considered an herb actually, and scientists have identified more than 15 vitamins and minerals in watercress. I was very surprised to learn that watercress contains more iron than spinach, and more calcium than milk, and more vitamin C than oranges.
Watercress is also very low in calories and contains lots of antioxidants which provide many disease preventative properties. Watercress is known to inhibit carcinogens.
Vitamin K is the most prominent nutrient of watercress. That means this vegetable is good for your bones and that it helps to fight diseases of the brain such as Alzheimer’s disease.
All of the vitamin C found in this healthy vegetable helps you to fight infections. It wards off colds and flu and helps your connective tissues to function properly. It is a great aid in preventing iron deficiencies.
The vitamin A contained in watercress is good for the retina of your eyes. Vitamin A also helps to keep your immunity up
The flavanoids produced from the antioxidants of watercress fight
against lung and mouth cancers.
Sometimes the DNA can become damaged
in your blood cells. Eating watercress
daily has the ability to significantly reduce this damage. When 60 men and women ate one and ½ cups of
watercress daily for eight weeks they saw a reduction in triglyceride levels by
an average of 10%. Their lutein and beta-carotene levels were greatly increased, and they all
had lower incidents of eye diseases such as cataracts and macular
degeneration.
Scientists are also finding that certain elements in watercress are helpful in reducing breast cancer.
Scientists are also finding that certain elements in watercress are helpful in reducing breast cancer.
Below is one of my favorite uses for watercress. This is probably one of the healthiest, yet tastiest recipes on earth!
(This makes six servings)
Ingredients:
¼ cup rice vinegar (unflavored)
1 Tablespoon grated Vidalia onion
¼ cup grated Gala Apple
4 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon honey (locally grown, please)
3 tablespoons olive oil (extra virgin
pure, please)
6 cups watercress (washed and chilled
with the stems removed)
1 firm ripe avocado
Directions:
Trim watercress ahead and chill in a
sealed bag lined with a damp paper towel.
Stir the vinegar, onion, apple, soy sauce and honey together, then add
the oil and stir well again. Toss the
watercress with enough dressing to coat the leaves. Quarter, pit and peel the avocado. Cut crosswise into ¼ inch slices. Gently toss all together. It is a good idea to try to incorporate some type of use of watercress into your daily intake. Use it instead of regular lettuce on sandwiches and salads whenever you can. It is delicious and well worth the little bit of extra effort to include it into your menus. It should not be too hard to find anywhere that you shop for organic foods; but if you are looking for a regular grocery store; I've found it in bags at Publix.
This discovery about watercress has really increased my awareness! I hope like me, you will be eating more watercress! Just keep saying over and over to yourself - "garbage in equals garbage out." Soon you will find yourself consuming more and more watercress and less and less garbage.
Galations 6:7 says; "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." It seems to be pretty plain that those who break God's rules for caring for their bodies will reap bad health. That isn't to say that all bad health is a result of human carelessness, of course it isn't! Some things happen that are far beyond our control, and it is not the fault of anyone. The above verse is speaking to people who deliberately abuse their bodies; those of us who are not paying attention to our temples. Just as one who abuses his automobile will reap car trouble eventually, those who continue to break God's laws of health will ultimately experience unwanted serious health problems. Why not just pay more attention and eat more watercress? What could it hurt? These natural established laws that God gave us to allow good nutrition and health are not arbitrary.
So now we have good instruction and knowledge. Now we know the number one vegetable not to be leaving out of our diet. It is a great start; and tomorrow is a whole new day. May your journey to better health habits be a happy one full of the joy that comes from putting good things into your life and leaving the garbage outisde where it belongs.
