Cabbage

3 Awesome Health Benefits of Cabbage

Cabbage is a vegetable that many of you will probably be familiar with for the wrong reasons.

Often served as a side dish, cabbage is often overcooked so that it becomes pale, bland, and mushy which is why it isn’t always regarded fondly.

In reality, this green leafy vegetable is not only delicious as a side dish and a healthy accompaniment to your main meal, but it too can serve as the star of the show.

Cabbages are green leafy vegetables which are very closely related to other healthy veggies including broccoli and cauliflower.  Cabbages also come in a number of different varieties. Commonly, you’ll find white, green, and red cabbage in most grocery stores.

As well as tasting great if prepared right, cabbages can provide numerous health benefits for those that consume them.

Cabbages fight inflammation, they can help ease pain and discomfort, they strengthen immunity, they can keep your heart healthy, they can improve digestive health, and a whole lot more on top of that.

Here are just 3 of the many awesome health benefits of cabbage.

Improves digestion

Cabbages are rich in soluble and insoluble fiber that help to keep the gut and digestive system healthy and functional.

The fiber in cabbages adds bulk to the stools, it promotes healthy gut bacteria, it aids in digestion, it improves nutrient absorption rates, and it even helps to prevent digestive issues such as constipation.

Cabbage also serves as a prebiotic, meaning that it serves as a fuel source for healthy bacteria found in the gut and digestive tract.

Promotes cardiovascular health

Cabbage, especially red cabbage, is packed full of potent compounds which are known as anthocyanins.

These are antioxidants that give the cabbage its amazing purple/red colour.

These plant pigments are members of the flavonoid family and consequently they have been linked with cardiovascular health and function.

By increasing your consumption of anthocyanins you are able to reduce blood pressure, strengthen the heart, strengthen the arteries, and reduce your risk of coronary artery disease.

Reduced blood pressure

Hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, is a very common health condition in the developed world that claims hundreds of thousands of lives every single year.

Hypertension can lead to strokes, heart attacks, heart disease, organ failure, and plenty more on top of that. Furthermore, it is also very difficult to detect which is why it is sometimes called ‘the silent killer’.

Cabbage has been found to help reduce blood pressure due largely to the fact that it is rich in potassium.

Studies have linked increased potassium intake with reduced blood pressure as it helps to counteract the ill-effects of excess sodium in the body, which actually can promote hypertension if consumed in large doses.

Potassium helps the kidneys to filter out excess sodium and excrete it via urine, before it has chance to hike your blood pressure levels, as well as helping to relax the blood vessels and boost circulation.

If you’re worried about hypertension, cabbage is a veggie you should definitely consume more of on a regular basis.