Swiss chard, whose scientific name is Beta vulgaris cicla, is a leafy green vegetable with red, white, or yellow leaf stalks. A member of the beet family, Swiss chard is an extremely nutritious but often overlooked food. Low in calories as well as in saturated fat and cholesterol, Swiss chard is an excellent source of […] More
Spinach, whose scientific name is Spinacia oleracea, is a family of nutritious leafy green vegetables. Like other leafy greens, spinach is an easy vegetable to grow in a home garden from spring through fall. Although high in natural sodium, spinach is low in saturated fat and very low in cholesterol. The leafy green is also […] More
My favorite plant to grow in my home garden, pumpkins — whose scientific names are Cucurbita pepo, Cucurbita maxima, Cucurbita mixta, and Cucurbita moschata — refer to a family of gourd-like squashes whose colors range from bright orange to tannish yellow. I love cooking with pumpkin in the fall and winter and decorating my house […] More
Basil is a delicious herb that I enjoy putting on pizza or cooking into a pesto sauce. The herb is low in saturated fat and very low in cholesterol and sodium and provides protein, vitamin E, riboflavin, niacin, dietary fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, vitamin B6, folate, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, […] More
Like kale, leaf lettuce is an especially easy vegetable to grow in a home garden. Lettuce, whose scientific name is Lactuca sativa, is a family of nutritious leafy green vegetables. Just like other leafy greens, most varieties of lettuce (leaf, Cos or romaine, crisphead, butterhead, and stem) are an excellent source of vitamins and minerals […] More
Kale is an especially easy vegetable to grow in a home garden. The leafy green is also packed full of nutrients. Kale is low in saturated fat; very low in cholesterol; high in dietary fiber, protein, thiamin, riboflavin, folate, iron, magnesium, and phosphorus; and very high in vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, vitamin B6, […] More
Beets are a delicious and nutritious root vegetable grown in many home gardens. Although fairly high in natural sugars, beets are very low in saturated fat and cholesterol and high in vitamin C, iron, magnesium, dietary fiber, folate, potassium, and manganese. Beet greens, which grow above ground, are low in saturated fat and cholesterol; high […] More
Next to pumpkins, squash is my favorite vegetable to grow in my home garden. I love cooking with squash in the fall and winter. All varieties of squash are also extremely nutritious. For example, yellow summer squash is low in saturated fat and sodium and very low in cholesterol. Although also high in natural sugars, […] More
Cucumber, whose scientific name is Cucumis sativus, is a family of gourd-like warm weather vegetables that is related to squash and melon. My family and I love eating cool cucumbers during the warm summer months. Cucumbers are low in saturated fat and very low in cholesterol and sodium. Although a large portion of the calories […] More
High blood pressure is a significant risk factor for heart disease. However, eating a vegetarian diet may help lower blood pressure, suggests a new analysis published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine. Previous research has suggested a link between vegetarian diets and lower blood pressure. For the present study, researchers from Osaka, Japan sought to […] More
Tomatoes are a popular plant among home gardeners. The vegetable is fairly easy to grow and packed full of healthy nutrients. Tomatoes are low in saturated fat; very low in cholesterol; high in dietary fiber, thiamin, riboflavin, vitamin B6, iron, magnesium, and phosphorus; and very high in vitamin C, niacin, folate, potassium, copper, and manganese. […] More
Previous research has concluded that a high fiber diet protects against obesity and diabetes. However, how a fiber-rich diet protects health was unknown until a recent study by researchers from France and Sweden as published in the journal Cell. Researchers led by Giles Mithieux of the French National Centre for Scientific research (Centre National de […] More
