I happened across this research article searching for some other info and thought it was pretty good so figured I'd share it here. The study basically looks at which foods provide the most health benefit in terms of preventing chronic disease and of course it should come as no surprise that the top foods are all vegetables and fruits with the majority being vegetables. What may surprise you though are some of the vegetables that are at the top of the list and that the majority of the foods on the list are vegetables with the handful of fruits that made the list being near the bottom.
In terms of ranking the foods a 2 step process was used that essentially identified foods that would qualify as a superfood based on current literature and guidelines and then assigning a nutrient density score which was determined based on the nutrients available in the food. While a total of 47 foods were tested, only foods with a score above 10 were ranked which resulted in a list of 41 foods. The foods left off the list included raspberries, tangerines, cranberries, garlic, onions, and blueberries.
Here's the list:
Watercress 100.00
Chinese cabbage 91.99
Chard 89.27
Beet - green 87.08
Spinach 86.43
Chicory 73.36
Leaf lettuce 70.73
Parsley 65.59
Romaine lettuce 63.48
Collard green 62.49
Turnip green 62.12
Mustard green 61.39
Endive 60.44
Chive 54.80
Kale 49.07
Dandelion green 46.34
Red pepper 41.26
Arugula 37.65
Broccoli 34.89
Pumpkin 33.82
Brussels sprout 32.23
Scallion 27.35
Kohlrabi 25.92
Cauliflower 25.13
Cabbage 24.51
Carrot 22.60
Tomato 20.37
Lemon 18.72
Iceberg lettuce 18.28
Strawberry 17.59
Radish 16.91
Winter squash 13.89
Orange 12.91
Lime 12.23
Grapefruit (P[HTML_REMOVED]R) 11.64
Rutabaga 11.58
Turnip 11.43
Blackberry 11.39
Leek 10.69
Sweet potato 10.51
Grapefruit (W) 10.47
Link to the full study: https://www.cdc.gov/pcd/issues/2014/13_0390.htm
We don't know what our limits are, so to start something with the idea of being limited actually ends up limiting us.
Ellen Langer
