Kale - Why Through History It Has Been a Super Food

One of the foods that are sometimes a forgotten superfood is that leafy vegetacble called kale. It has a long history of being cultivated, even dating back before the Greeks and Romans. In fact this vegetable related to cabbage is thought to be one of the earliest vegetables cultivated by man anywhere. Until the end of the Middle Ages kale was one of the most popular foods grown in Europe. During the Second World War this vegetable was cultivated in the United Kingdom because it was easy to grow, even in adverse weather conditions.

But of more importance is that kale provided many of the nutrients that were missing from the normal diet diting World War II because of rationing. Even though it was introduced to America by the British during the 1600s it eventually fell out of favor to the tastes of Americans over 100 years ago. 

Probably because in its natural state it has a bitter taste for most people, and as humans became more addicted to the sweetness of sugary foods, vegetable such as kale, as healthy as they are, were consumed less.

But you really don't have to give up on kale, as there is a trick to getting most of the bitterness out and leave the healthy nutrients in. And that is to simply boil it. Juicing with other healthy vegetables can also work. My favorite way of getting kale into my diet is to add it as part of soup. It goes great with beans or lentils and other types of vegetables plus your favorite spices.

Here are a couple of reasons why kale should be in every diet:

1. Kale as a cancer fighter. It has been found to help lower the risk in five types of cancer to date: cancers of the bladder, colon, prostate, ovary and breast. The major substances in kale are a special mix of glucosinolates, which are known to help prevent cancer. Once kale is digested in our system the glucosinolates are converted by our body into those compounds that prevent cancer.

Traditionally it has been thought that kale in its raw form is the healthiest, but now studies are suggesting that if it is cooked lightly this could improve the ability of kale to bind with bile acids in the digestive tract. This makes it easier for the bile acids, which have been associated with cancer risk, to be eliminated from the body.

2. Kale for natural detoxification. There are two stages of detoxification. The first is when toxins in the body are broken into smaller particles. Phase 2 kicks in when those toxins are flushed from the body. By eating foods that only support phase 1, we might have a lot of broken down toxins still in your body but not being eliminated.

Kale supports both aspects of the detox process on the cellular level. It has an unusually large number of sulfur compounds, and these compounds are immensely important in the process of detoxification by eliminating this waste material. This makes kale one of the most important foods for eliminating toxins from the body.

For more information on healthy eating visit our website Lose that Belly Fat, and to really get into food that works to make us all stay healthy see Mediterranean diet. This diet will truly make you feel more energized. Rich Carroll is a health advocate and writer who lives in Chicago.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Rich_Carroll/1009184

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