Watercress nutrition facts
Watercress is a common types of plant that many of us are heard of. However, we don’t know much about its nutritional facts and health benefits. Watercress is also termed cress in common language. It is a perennial aquatic plant and belongs to the family of mustard plant called Brassicaceae. It is native to the Eurasia. Now, its cultivation is neutralized throughout entire North America. If we talk about temperature, the aquatic plant thrives in cold flowing streams. It grows often as submerged plants and the leaves float on water. The leaves might be seen spread over the surfaces of the mud.
Many farmers are cultivating watercress in moist soil or. People use the plant as an edible shoot. The leaves are dleivately peppery in flavorr. The entire plant is rich in vitamin C, besides its other several nutritional contents.
Some people might confuse the watercress with the ornamental plant which is called nasturtium. It is not even closely related to the edible watercress plants.
Without further ado, let’s get to know the main nutritional as well as health benefits of the watercress plants
It helps increase the bone density
When you eat as much as 100g of watercress every day, you are increasing the density of your bones. This is highly essential when you are in a growing stage. When you have stopped growing, you need to maintain bone density. Hence, watercress helps in that. Additionally, it has vitamin K which is a key nutrient in developing our bones. An amazing fact to know is that Vitamin K is not easily absorbed from plants as it is of animal origin. Hence, when you have watercress, it may give you proper dosage of vitamin K. it is a good source of a valuable vitamin.
Watercress also helps us in maintaining the health of our gut and hence, the entire digestive system. Gut bacteria derive their energy from the fermented fiber which we get from the food we eat. Microbes are highly essential in the long-term health of our digestive system. It also helps in enhancing our immunity system. It also helps avoid various bowel diseases. Watercress is a good source of fiber. It also has a great number of antioxidants that are activated by our digestive or gut system. The gut activates these antioxidants so that they turn into essential elements that may detox and reduce DNA damage from toxins our body is exposed to daily. This further enhances the metabolic rate process in our body.
Watercress also helps in recovering our muscles especially after sport or any type of intensive workout. Exercises elevate our oxidative stress which also results in DNA damage. It even increases lipid peroxidation. Hence, you can avoid all these by eating watercress before exercises as it reduces such stress. The plant provides support to our body in dealing with the exercise-induced damage of DNA.
Now, let’s know some more nutritional benefits of watercress:
Helps in preventing Breast Cancer
Watercress has such an effective cancer preventive phytonutrient that in any case, eating a single serving of mixed greens shows an increase in molecules into the body’s circulatory framework that might forestall and stop the recurrence of breast cancer. In light of an examination, the individuals who ate somewhere around 80 grams of watercress consistently were displayed to have beneficial outcomes.
One more research on the counter carcinogenic capacities of watercress showed extraordinary advantage when added to the eating routine as a cancer preventive for stomach, lung, and breast cancer.
Watercress is demonstrated to be effective in reversing DNA harm to white blood cells. This investigation of cigarette smokers, who participated in eating 85g of new watercress every day had a 22.9 percent decrease in cellular structure harm. Additionally, the cells were more ready to protect themselves as displayed when hydrogen peroxide was introduced into the cells and the harm was 9.4 percent lower than expected.
There are many types of research that propose that it’s the phytochemical compound that gives watercress and other cruciferous vegetables their harsh character. This phytochemical invigorates the body’s normal guard promoting cellular protection. A similar report expresses that the counter carcinogenic advantages might be from the cell reinforcements lutein and beta-carotene since these were determined to be at raised levels in the bloodstream of participants. These examinations conclude that there are advantages of adding watercress to the ordinary eating regimen including preventing the recurrence of breast cancer just as preventing its beginning.
Watercress is rich in vitamin C, which is additionally beneficial in reducing oxidative pressure caused by cancer in high concentrations and preventing growth. Folate is additionally is associated with an okay of cancer. Everyday consumption of folate over a long-term period by ladies showed aftereffects of a 22% reduction in breast cancers. The increased day-by-day consumption of folate didn’t represent any health chances. In fact, it ended up being beneficial against ‘estrogen negative receptor’ breast cancer growths instead of ‘estrogen-positive receptor’ cancers.
Helps to avoid the onset of diseases such as Colorectal Cancer
Although studies have shown doubtful outcomes, many have concluded that the dietary intake of folate as a component of a day-by-day diet might act as a preventive against colorectal cancer. This advantage was observed to be gigantic when folate was taken for a very long time or more.
Works on Functioning of Thyroid Gland
Watercress has shown a beneficial effect on thyroid health.8 It works by reducing thyroid chemical production and is most beneficial when eaten crude. It is a great idea to softly steam watercress, in request to partake in the entirety of its dietary benefit.
Works on Cardiovascular Health
Along with the supplement content of watercress, it additionally has numerous secondary metabolites that might assist lower with risking of different chronic illnesses. Cruciferous plants like watercress are demonstrated to be beneficial in lowering LDL or terrible cholesterol, which reduces the danger of cardiovascular infections such as arteriosclerosis and other chronic heart illnesses. Watercress contains vitamin C which fills in as a cell reinforcement and helps in reducing heart tissue harm caused by oxidative pressure. Vitamin C is an active component in the process of embryonic cells developing into cardiac myocytes and improving heart health.
Works on Bone Health
Studies show that the inclusion of calcium-rich food such as watercress works in reducing the hazard of osteoporosis. Calcium works in repairing and building the bones by causing an increase in the production of osteoblasts, the cells liable for this beneficial activity. This advantage of calcium is fundamental for the aging populace, however, the young may likewise benefit if their lifestyle is stationary, which advances bone thickness misfortune. Watercress is likewise a decent source of folate which assumes a direct part as an interactive supplement in maintaining bone thickness. Post-menopausal ladies may likewise profit from folate in their eating routine as a preventive against osteoporosis.
Rich in Calcium
Numerous researchers concur that calcium through the dietary intake is necessary and maybe the most beneficial in the anticipation of numerous illnesses such as cardiovascular sicknesses, diabetes, metabolic condition, and hypertension. Calcium through food sources such as watercress is likewise demonstrated to be protected against antagonistic cardiac effects.6 If supplemental calcium of 500 mg is added to the everyday diet, it is sufficient for most ladies to help their day-by-day food intake. However sums up to 1000 mg day by day are taken by certain, dangers of calcium stores and health issues, which result from them might occur. Generally speaking, food sources remain the most ideal approach to maintain healthy degrees of calcium in the body.
Numerous different examinations have shown that the advantage of standard consumption of watercress might be from secondary metabolites and other phytonutrients which fix cellular harm and work effectively as a preventive against certain cancers, and cardiovascular, and thyroid symptoms diseases.
Rich in Folate
Folate is a fundamental supplement that assumes a part in preventing birth defects and in everyday health maintenance. Folate levels are affected by alcohol consumption. An eating routine rich in folate-containing food such as watercress and other cruciferous vegetables can be preventive and even determine certain health conditions.
Acts as Antidepressant
Low folate levels might be caused by a lack of dietary intake or excessive alcohol intake. A meta-examination of 19 investigations, inclusive of 15,315 participants, showed that low folate level increases the danger of sadness. Folate works with synapses, the pathways of the central sensory system, affecting the production of neurochemicals such as serotonin. With discouragement affecting a significant percentage of the total populace, the expansion of food with high folate content such as watercress is a significant dietary enhancement in reducing the danger of this chronic sickness.
Prevents Stroke
A cross-sectional investigation of 662 grown-ups showed beneficial consequences of food varieties fortified with folate in preventing stroke. If not eating fortified food varieties, a lot of folate-containing food varieties such as watercress should be consumed in request to reach a similar degree of beneficial supplement status.
Acts as a supplement in Pregnancy
Folate is significant for the improvement of a healthy incipient organism as it assumes a crucial part in a typical cellular division. Moreover, consumption of essentially 400mcg of folate day by day by pregnant ladies is displayed to reduce the incidence of neural cylinder deficiency. Watercress with its high content of folate might help in reducing the danger of these sicknesses.
Reduces Cognitive Disorders
Folate might act as a preventive against cognitive decline. Aftereffects of an investigation, of guys matured between 50-70 years showed that participants given 800 mcg of folate every day were displayed to beneficially affect cognition and verbal fluency. An inclusion of watercress which has a high folate content might protect against cognitive decline.
Rich in Vitamin C
Vitamin C is a water-solvent vitamin which indicates that it is excreted through urinary excretion consistently. Both, dietary and supplemental day-by-day intake helps in preventing sicknesses and treating numerous physiological frameworks when vitamin C is found in high concentrations in the blood. Watercress contains a higher measure of vitamin C than an orange and is beneficial to providing and maintaining blood levels.
Watercress Improves Brain Health
Consumption of vitamin C-rich food sources might be beneficial in preventing cognitive changes related to Alzheimer’s and aging; it likewise helps in protecting and repairing the brain tissues. It likewise attempts to reduce bleeding when the stroke has occurred. Different outcomes have shown that those having sustained traumatic head injury regularly have lower blood concentrations of vitamin C. These examinations recommend that the everyday intake of vitamin C-rich food such as watercress might benefit in preventing harm and improving the outcomes of brain injury. In fact, the high concentration of vitamin C might assume a part in neuron-building activity.
Reduces Oxidative Damage to Blood Cells
A research study recommends that vitamin C alongside vitamin E is effective in reducing oxidative harm to red blood cells. However the examination depends on supplements, it is additionally recommended that consumption of food varieties such as watercress with these nutrients might be beneficial to health.
Helps improve Eyesight
An European report recommends that vitamin C may be effective in reducing the danger of cataract development.3 An inclusion of watercress with a lot of vitamin C might be beneficial in protection against cataracts.
Forestalls Common Cold
Vitamin C-rich food is an effective solution for the common cold. An examination of this safe protective capacity of vitamin C shows that consuming food rich in vitamin C might reduce the danger of a cold by 66 %.2 Watercress is a decent source of vitamin C.
Eases Pediatric Asthma
An investigation of children suffering from asthma showed aftereffects of significantly increased forced expiratory volume (FEV) with vitamin C of essentially 0.2g every day. These outcomes differed with each child’s set of experiences of shape and soddenness openness. Those having no openness saw a 37% increase and those with openness, saw a 21% increase of FEV each second. Intake of food such as watercress might give alleviation from pediatric asthma.
Conclusion
Watercress has no harmful effects on our bodies. The only thing that makes people avoid eating it is its taste. If you can deal with it, you can easily have an unending supply of a high amount of nutrients for your body. Watercress is easily available in local markets.
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