Health Benefits of Cabbage

Cabbage ranks right up there with broccoli, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts with a reputation for fighting cancer. It's also a good source ofvitamin C, fiber, potassium, and other nutrients. Cabbage also offers a major payoff -- the fewest calories and least fat of any vegetable.

From green cabbage you'll enjoy a fiber boost and a respectable amount of vitamin C. Two types of cabbage, savoy and bok choy, provide beta-carotene -- an antioxidant that battles cancer and heart disease. For those who don't eat dairy products, bok choy is an important source of calcium, which may help prevent osteoporosis and aid in controlling blood pressure. 

Cabbage isn’t the most glamorous offering in the produce aisle, but this humble vegetable hides a wealth of important nutrients and disease-fighting superpowers. Studies show cabbage can help prevent cancer, reduce cholesterol, and heal ulcers.

Cabbage is an important member of the brassica family which also includes broccoli, cauliflower and brussel sprouts. It is a round and leafy vegetable that is believed to have originated in the Eastern Mediterranean and Asia Minor. Available all the year round, it forms a part of a healthy diet.

§         Fresh cabbage is an excellent source of natural antioxidant, vitamin C. Provides 36.6 mg or about 61% of RDA per 100 g. Regular consumption of foods rich in vitamin C helps the body develop resistance against infectious agents and scavenge harmful, pro-inflammatory free radicals.

§         Total antioxidant strength measured in terms of oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC value) is 508 µmol TE/100 g. Red cabbages contain more antioxidant value, 2252 µmol TE/100 g.

§         It is also rich in essential vitamins such as pantothenic acid (vitamin B-5), pyridoxine (vitamin B-6) and thiamin (vitamin B-1). These vitamins are essential in the sense that our body requires them from external sources to replenish.

§         It also contains a adequate amount of minerals like potassium, manganese, iron, and magnesium. Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids that helps controlling heart rate and blood pressure. Manganese is used by the body as a co-factor for the antioxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase. Iron is required for the red blood cell formation.

§         Cabbage is a very good source of vitamin K, provides about 63% of RDA levels. Vitamin-K has the potential role in bone metabolism by promoting osteotrophic activity in them. So enough vitamin K in the diet gives you healthy bones. In addition, vitamin-K also has established role in curing Alzheimer's disease patients by limiting neuronal damage in their brain.

The health benefits of cabbage include frequent use as a treatment for constipation, stomach ulcers, headaches, obesity, skin disorders, eczema, jaundice, scurvy, rheumatism, arthritis, gout, eye disorders, heart diseases, aging, and Alzheimer’s disease.

Did you know that the inexpensive, humble and widely used cabbage can practically work miracles? Cabbage is a leafy vegetable of Brassica family, and is round or oval in shape. It consists of soft, light green or whitish inner leaves covered with harder and dark green outer leaves. It is widely used throughout the world, and can be prepared in a number of ways, but most commonly, it is included as either a cooked or raw part of many salads.