The Top 41 Disease-Fighting Fruits and Vegetables
When it comes to nutrition, we always hear the same things over and over again. Eat organic. Eat more vegetables. Eat more kale.
But is kale the nutritional powerhouse everyone makes it out to be? Are some vegetables better than others, and are there any surprising ones we should include in our diets for optimum health?
To find out, Dr. Jennifer Di Noia of William Paterson University studied 47 powerhouse fruits and vegetables (PFV) to determine which ones were most strongly associated with reduced chronic disease risk. She focused on the 17 nutrients of public health importance per the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and Institute of Medicine, including potassium, fiber, protein, calcium, iron, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, folate, zinc, and vitamins A, B6, B12, C, D, E, and K.
Di Noia then calculated how many of these nutrients per calorie the PFV contained, arriving at a nutrient density score. The more nutrients per calorie, the higher the fruit or vegetable ranked in nutritional value.
Since it wasn't possible to include phytonutrient data in the calculation of the nutrient density scores, there's an absence of certain foods usually associated as powerhouses, like acai berries and blueberries. But the study is a first step in defining what a "powerhouse" fruit or vegetable is, and how the nutrient density scores differ between each one.
The surprising winner? Watercress, with a top score of 100. Kale, on the other hand, is nearly halfway down the list with a score of 49.07.
The Top 41 Disease-Fighting Fruits and Vegetables
- 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 (all varieties): 13.89
- Orange: 12.91
- Lime: 12.23
- Grapefruit (pink and red): 11.64
- Rutabaga: 11.58
- Turnip: 11.43
- Blackberry: 11.39
- Leek: 10.69
- Sweet potato: 10.51
- Grapefruit (white): 10.47