Which fruits and vegetables are highly nutritious yet also light? An expert at William Paterson University asked herself exactly that, and drew up a ranking of 41 plant foods. What could be at the top?
With summer just around the corner, when the heat and the beach body test are looming, there is nothing better than stocking up on vitamins and minerals with a diet even richer in plant foods.
Researchers at William Paterson University, in New Jersey, have produced, for this purpose, a list of the 41 most nutritious and low-calorie fruits and vegetables, which they defined as "powerhouse", ranked by quantity of 17 essential nutrients: fibre, potassium, protein, calcium, iron, zinc, folic acid, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B3, vitamins A, B6, B12, C, D, E, and K, considered to be of great value for health.
Jennifer Di Noia, a sociologist specialising in public health and lead author of the study, first approached a list of 47 supernutrient foods. For example, berries, garlic and onion were included in the assessment "in light of their association with reduced risks for cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases and for certain types of cancer". Di Noia then ranked the plant foods according to their nutritional richness, focusing on the 17 components listed above. Each selected food was deemed a privileged source when it demonstrated the ability to provide at least 10 per cent of the recommended daily intake of a given nutrient. Bioavailability and low calorie content were the other elements taken into consideration in compiling the list.
Six foods (raspberry, tangerine, cranberry, garlic, onion, and blueberry) present on the initial list of 47 did not meet the reference "powerhouse" criteria. The remaining 41, ranked on the basis of nutrient density and low calorie content, are shown in these photos. From last to first.
