discover the benefits of Christmas vegetables

Sprouts are very common on Christmas tables. Understand how to choose them and what advantages they have for your health.

You sprouts are herbaceous plants from Asia. Their stalks, leaves and inflorescences are consumed. Its cultivation takes place in autumn and winter, all over the country, and it is normally harvested between November and March.

For this reason, turnip greens are a regular presence at the Christmas table, as a companion to the cod and potatoes?? But what are its health benefits? What advantages does its consumption bring? Get to know.

Turnip greens, a vegetable full of health benefits

Consumed all year round, turnip greens and cabbage in general have their golden season at Christmas. As versatile foods that they are, they can accompany both fish and meat dishes, whether cooked or roasted.

We can consider that, probably, these are the healthiest and most nutritionally balanced ingredients that you will have on your Christmas table, so let’s say that you can “abuse” them a little, not least because their benefits, as you will see, are more than many!

Features

This vegetable is low in calories and extremely nutritious. It is rich in minerals and vitamins, such as calcium, iron, potassium, phosphorus, copper, vitamins A, C, B9, E and K. It also contains many fibers that reduce blood glucose levels and regulate intestinal transit.

Its bioactive compounds, such as carotenoids and polyphenols, improve the body’s functioning and prevent the early onset of various types of diseases.

Sprouts should be eaten while they are tender and have a light colored stalk. Their taste is bitter, but once cooked they are very tasty. They can be blanched in boiling water or sautéed with garlic.

To make the most of their properties, you should blanch the turnip greens and reserve the water in which they were cooked, so that you can use it in soups or broths, in order to take advantage of the nutrients left in that liquid.

If you prefer, you can even chop the sprouts and eat them raw in salads, steamed or, as we said, sautéed in a frying pan. They are excellent accompaniments, and can also be an ingredient in delicious soups.

Benefits

• eye health: Sprouts have vitamin A, which helps maintain normal eyesight
• Blood formation: Folate, present in the composition of sprouts, contributes to normal blood formation.
• weight maintenance: The energy value and high fiber content of sprouts help to prolong the feeling of satiety, thus helping to maintain weight.
• Pregnancy: The turnip greens have folic acidwhich helps in normal tissue growth and blood formation, preventing malformations in the neural tube of the fetus.
• Muscle: The properties of this vegetable make it a great muscle anti-inflammatory.
• Defenses: In addition to being good for the body, this vegetable strengthens the immune system.
• Heart: Eating sprouts regularly prevents the cardiovascular diseases.
• Skin: Sprouts are still good for slowing down the skin aging.
• bones: The substances that make up this vegetable improve bone health, preventing osteoporosis.

Grilles and exercise

Especially for athletes, a nutritious and balanced diet is essential. For this reason, sprouts can play an essential role in the diet of athletes, as an important source of minerals.

In an athlete’s organism, the components of this vegetable will contribute to muscle contraction and control nerve impulses and heart rate during physical exertion. As for the vitamins offered by this vegetable, they will have an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory action, balance cortisol levels and fight free radicals.