15 MAGNIFICENT HEALTH BENEFITS OF CABBAGE - NUTRITION - 2024

The benefits of cabbage make it an essential cruciferous in our diet to maintain powerful health.

Cabbage, or cabbage, is a vegetable native to southern and central Europe, although it is grown practically all over the world.

15 healthy properties of cabbage

1- Improve defenses

The regular consumption of crucifers, especially cabbage, is closely related to an increase in our defenses at the gastrointestinal level.

Our body comes into contact with the outside world mainly through the intestinal mucosa. This mucosa, which can measure up to 180 square meters, is very thin (like tissue paper) since the nutritional substances contained in food have to pass into the blood.

As you can imagine, it is very important that our defenses are very strong to protect us from the invasion of pathogens that can arrive both with food and from any external environment.

For this reason, special leukocytes, called intraepithelial cells, come into action, which have a double function: they produce and repair the intestinal mucosa, representing at the same time the first defense barrier against pathogens. These leukocytes are activated thanks to specific receptors that cover their surface.

Recent studies have discovered that crucifers, and with them cabbage, activate these receptors and with them leukocytes. For this reason consuming cabbage helps to improve our defenses.

In addition to what I just explained to you, cabbage is a food very rich in vitamin C that acts directly on the immune system. How? Stimulating phagocytosis, by macrophages, of foreign bodies and pathogens such as bacteria and viruses.

It also increases the production of antibodies and has an antioxidant action, that is, it eliminates free radicals, reducing oxidative stress. Red cabbage is especially rich in antioxidants.

2- It is an anticancer food

Its ability to protect us from tumors (especially breast and lung) is related to a substance called sulforaphane, which is formed exclusively in crucifers.

But how is this substance formed? It is very simple. It is created from a chemical reaction between a precursor compound with an enzyme called thioglucosidase, which is deactivated by cooking.

However, although eating raw cabbage is the most immediate way to take advantage of all its properties, there is a way that we can take advantage of it also if we cook it. How? Cutting the raw cabbage and leaving it for half an hour before cooking.

In this way the chemical reaction that creates sulforaphane is activated and when we cook this vegetable it is not lost. The anticancer power of sulforaphane is connected to its ability to inhibit factors that have the power to alter the cell and make it mutate.

In addition, they have a protective effect against sex hormones, directly involved in many types of tumors, such as breast and prostate.

In this list you can find other anticancer foods.

3- Improves vision

Cabbage is rich in provitamin A, which is transformed into vitamin A, an essential nutrient essential for our vision. Also in this case it is very important to consume raw cabbage, so that this function is not lost. let's cook

4- Improves intestinal transit

Cabbage is a food very rich in fiber, being very good for intestinal transit and preventing constipation. It also has diuretic and cleansing benefits, helping not only in the case of fluid retention, but also when it comes to eliminating toxins that accumulate in our body.

5- Purify the body

The stress to which we are subjected due to the frenetic rhythms of each day and environmental pollution, are just some of the factors that cause an overload for our liver, which prevents its correct and normal functioning.

For this reason, it is very important to take care of this organ to help us keep our body clean and free of pathogens and harmful substances.

Cabbage in this sense is one of the most suitable foods for our body to be clean. Some studies on women with breast cancer have further revealed its cleansing power on the liver, thanks to its ability to activate specific detoxifying enzymes.

6- Helps maintain a healthy weight

Recent research has discovered a valuable content in cabbage called tartronic acid, which inhibits the conversion of sugar and other carbohydrates into fat. Therefore, it is of great value in reducing weight.

In addition, it provides a high water content, few calories and a high fiber content, which helps to have a feeling of fullness for a long time, helping to eat in a balanced way and then to lose weight naturally.

7- It is good for pregnancy

Due to its folate content, its consumption is recommended in the diet of pregnant women, since it is an essential nutrient for the correct development of the neural tube of the fetus.

8- Slows aging and protects DNA

Recent studies have discovered that the consumption of cabbage favors the regeneration of cells, slowing down aging.

At the same time, it has been seen that this food protects DNA from damage caused by genetic mutations often implicated in the development of cancer.

A study on chronic smokers showed that an increase in the consumption of cabbage reduced genetic mutations by 41% compared to those who did not eat it. This result is thought to be related to the ability of cabbage to stimulate the activity of enzymes that purify the liver, thus eliminating part of the carcinogens.

9- Prevents anemia

Due to its richness in minerals, especially iron, it has remineralizing, anti-anemic and restorative virtues. Therefore, they are widely used to combat anemia and weakness.

However, in these cases, its cooking should be avoided since its great richness in chlorophyll is destroyed, which in the human body is transformed into hemoglobin and it is recommended that people who have these conditions take raw or juiced cabbage.

10- Helps regulate hormones

Estrogen is a natural hormone essential for female breasts and sexual development. It is responsible for regulating the menstrual cycle, controlling the functioning of the uterus and ovaries, and stimulating the normal growth and division of mammary cells.

Weight, exercise, alcohol consumption, and hormone replacement therapy are factors that influence estrogen levels.

Even the foods you eat can affect your body's estrogen levels. As you can imagine, it is essential that the levels of these hormones are balanced.

Cabbage is one of foods rich in phytoestrogens, whose molecular structure is similar to that of human estrogens. Eating foods rich in phytoestrogens, such as cabbage, naturally stimulate estrogen production in the body and, in turn, these plant hormones bind with human estrogen receptors in the body, helping to regulate hormone levels.

A Swedish study of postmenopausal women shows a 20 to 40 percent reduction in breast cancer risk by adding one to two daily servings of cruciferous vegetables.

Women who consume raw cabbage three or more times a week also show a significant decrease in the risk of contracting breast cancer thanks to its ability to regulate hormonal concentrations in the body.

11- Helps balance the nervous system

Due to its high content of vitamin K and anthocyanins that help with mental function and concentration. These nutrients also prevent nerve damage, improve defense against Alzheimer's and dementia. It is also high in minerals such as potassium, necessary for the transmission and generation of the nerve impulse, as well as for muscular activity.

A recent study has brought to light the efficacy of cabbage in treating autism. This is due to the same substance responsible for its anticancer power, sulforaphane.

A double-blind study of autistic boys has shown that 2-3 servings of cabbage and cruciferous in general per day improved social interaction, abnormal behaviors and verbal communication in just a few weeks. This is thought to be due to the scavenging effect of sulforaphane.

12- Lower the level of bad cholesterol

Cabbage is a very suitable food for all those who suffer from hypercholesterolemia, that is, they have a very high content of cholesterol in the blood. This because it helps the body to lower plasma concentrations of bad cholesterol or LDL.

And how do you do it? It first acts together with bile acids, in the digestive process, to remove cholesterol from the blood. Second for its fiber content, cabbage reduces the absorption of cholesterol contained in food, since fiber traps and eliminates it. Third, it reduces the production of LDL apolipoprotein in the liver, since there is less cholesterol to transport. Finally, by having an antioxidant action, it degrades adipose tissue and redirects it to the cell to obtain energy.

In addition, these same antioxidants are those that prevent the oxidation of fatty acids, preventing them from adhering to the arterial walls. In this way, the probability of an atheroma that prevents normal blood circulation is reduced.

13- Helps against constipation

Cabbage provides the fiber that is essential to stimulate the intestine. A meal of raw cabbage is an excellent remedy for constipation. It acts immediately, without any adverse effect. This meal can be prepared by adding a little salt, pepper, and minced raw lemon juice.

In this list you can find other good foods for constipation.

14- Strengthens and helps the formation of bones

Eating cabbage provides vitamin C which is necessary for healthy bones, skin, mucous membranes, and a healthy immune system. Containing glutamine, an amino acid that has been used to relieve pain caused by arthritis, cabbage is a good home remedy for this disease.

To treat it, some leaves can be chopped and wrapped in gauze. They are then applied to the sore or inflamed joint and left to act overnight.

Cabbage is also rich in vitamin K, an essential nutrient to strengthen the composition of bones, and boron, which reduces urinary excretion of magnesium and calcium, essential for bone health.

15- It is anti-inflammatory

Cabbages accumulate in their leaves a substance that we already saw above, glutamine. Glutamine is a strong anti-inflammatory agent, so consuming cabbage can reduce the effects of many types of inflammation, irritation, allergies, joint pain, fever, and various skin disorders.

References

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