The powerhouse of Greenkale
Greenkale is a green leafy vegetable belongs to cruciferous family. The ancient original Danish type Curly Kale (re-cultivated native seeds from Nordkap Seed Bank) used for our Greenkale/kalohas production is a low-calorie food with almost no fats and a good level of protein, but packed with large amounts of vitamin C, A, K, and calcium, potassium, as well as significant amounts of other vitamins, minerals and bioactive compounds necessary for your body.
Eating Greenkale is a great way to increase the nutrient contents of your diet.
Low calories and low fats
Greenkale is low in calorie and contains almost no fat. It is also a food with very low glycemic index, which means that your blood glucose level will not increase very much after eating it. Clinical trials have shown that low glycemic index diets improve glycemic control in diabetes, increase insulin sensitivity, reduce body weight, and reduce serum LDL-cholesterol level. [1].
Therefore, eating Greenkale is helpful not only to those who want to keep slim, but also to people suffer from diabetes and high cholesterol.
Rich in fiber
Greenkale is rich in dietary fiber [2]. Fiber is first known by its effect on relieve constipation, but then it is found that high fiber diet can help with [3]:
- Reduce blood LDL- cholesterol level, thus lower risk of cardiovascular disease and coronary heart disease
- Regulates blood glucose level, thus lower risk of diabetes
- Make you feel full without increasing caloric intake, thus reduce body weight and prevent obesity
- Reduce symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease, thus improve colon health
Excellent source of vitamins and minerals
Greenkale is a rich source of vitamin A (beta-carotene), vitamin C, vitamin K, folate, riboflavin, calcium, potassium and manganese [4, 5] , and the content of these nutrients are higher than other cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, cauliflower, collards, cabbage, Brussels sprouts [6]. It also contains lots of other dietary vitamins and minerals that are necessary for your body.
Vitamin A
Actually, Greenkale contains a large amount of beta-carotene. Beta-carotene is pro-vitamin A, which can be converted to vitamin A in your body. The content of vitamin A in food is often calculated from its beta-carotene content, and expressed as vitamin A equivalence. Vitamin A helps your eyes to maintain normal vision [7], accelerates wound healing of skin [8], and also help you to keep a healthy immune system [9].
Vitamin K
Greenkale is also extremely rich in vitamin K. It provides over 30% of your daily needs by just one serving. This vitamin is essential for normal blood clotting and bone health, thus gives you strong bones [10].
Vitamin C
Greenkale is extremely rich in vitamin C, higher than most other vegetables. Vitamin C is also called ascorbic acid because it is essential to prevent scurvy, and it is key in maintaining normal body function. It is one of the most potent antioxidants in your body [11], and can protect your body from oxidative stress, make you recover faster from diseases and tiredness, and help to prevent heart diseases, stroke and cancer. [12, 13]. Normal skin also contains high concentrations of vitamin C, it stimulates collagen synthesis and acts as antioxidant to protect the skin against UV-damage [14].
Potassium
The most important function of potassium is to maintain the fluid balance and normal blood pressure in your body. Too little potassium in your diet will cause your body to retain water, which increases blood pressure and may lead to kidney stones. It is also important for your nervous system, and regulates muscle and heart contractions, protest against stroke. [15]
Manganese
It is an essential dietary element that is required for diverse biological activity in your body, involved in nutrient metabolism, bone formation, and particularly in neurological disease [16].
Riboflavin
It plays important roles in the biological reactions in your body. It is an antioxidant and neuroprotective nutrient. It helps with a wide array of health diseases like Parkinson disease, migraine, multiple sclerosis, anemia, cancer, hyperglycemia, hypertension, diabetes, and oxidative stress [17].
Folate
Folate is an essential nutrient for health, growth and reproduction. Especially, it can prevent neural tube defects in babies during pregnancy [18].
Kalcium
Greenkale not only contains more calcium than milk per gram, the calcium from Greenkale is also much easier for body to absorb and use [19]. Calcium is the material for building your bones and teeth, and it helps them as well as your muscles stay strong. It is very important for normal bone growth of children, and for the prevention of osteoporosis in post-menopausal women as well as elderly man. [20, 21].
Source of health-promoting phytochemicals
Besides numerous essential vitamins and minerals, Greenkale also contains high levels of health-promoting phytochemicals (chemicals from plant) including carotenoids, polyphenols and glucosinolates [22]. These phytochemicals are linked to many powerful health benefits.
