Salad Eaters: Higher Nutrient Intake

Seems kinda ridiculous to me that we need a study to show that raw veggetables and salad increase our body's nutrients level.

I have no doubt that the report that salad dressing is "also beneficial" is only a product of who funded the study. If you look at a majority of the dressings people use on their salad - they have no nutritional benefits at all and are high in fat, HFC, and calories. Those who choose a little bit of olive oil, nuts or seeds to "dress" their salads will get some "benefits" of course - but the multiple tablespoons of Caesar dressing (200 plus calories) on a cup of lettuce and shredded carrots that most people associate as a "salad" will have very, very minimal "benefits." No wonder American's are confused.

I usually dress my salad with a mixture of wine vineagar and evoo (that's extra virgin olive oil) and a sprinkling of herbs. I only use a little oil so the dressing is lower in fat and calories, but yet still has enough fat to help absorb nutrients.

But seriously, I could've told you that veggie-eaters get more nutrients....spinach, leafy greens, carrots, tomatoes, etc., are all full of vitamins. If you eat them often, of course your intake of them will be higher.

@noelle

"Seems kinda ridiculous to me that we need a study to show that raw veggetables and salad increase our body's nutrients level."

Lol, that's exactly what I was thinking. Next will have a study: "Studies show that frequent exercise is good for you, but you need really, really expensive running shoes"...sponsored by Nike.

Studies seem to be the new advertising medium.

Agreed - but the thing here is raw vegetables have a place in our diets.

I love my veggies.
I do not feel it's a silly study. The study is very helpful in fact.
A lot of people think in getting everything through pills and supplements when veggies and fortified cereals are much better.

I notice the left out half of the vitamins.

So does selective research, only select those vitamins that are in fashion?

I think you'll find there are more vitamins that we need!

iportion--good point on the supplement thing. I know a lot of people who think that if they pop a multivitamin every day, they don't need to eat veggies and fruits and healthy food in general. What people don't realize is that most veggies have phytochemicals in them that are cofactors, antioxidants, etc., that help enhance the effects and absorption of the vitamins. Natural is definitely better.

Andy - Ha! very true. I like that one.

Given the fact that American soil has been significantly depleted, add to that the toxins we absorb everyday through the polluted air we breathe, I think whole food supplements should have a place in our diets. Supplements aren't natural per se, but then again, we don't live in a natural world. Extreme circumstances calls for extreme measures.

we have to educate the lesser inteligent or the rest of us will never afford health insurance better than a study that says with fastfood is better for u (it all will kill u ten years early) sad part is large ones will read that study just be glad u where gifted with intelligence for a long life !!!!! LIVE WELL

I have always had a problem with eating vegetables and fruits. They are my least favorite of the food pyramid. So I have to take those antioxidant supplements and get my nutrients other ways. I am sure steaming mixed vegetables and eating with lean meat is the way to go. I am trying the Vegan/ Raw diets, which doesn't necessarily mean you have to eat all fruits and vegetables. But for eating fruits and vegtables, I have a few questions:

What about people who don't like raw wegetables? I know I have a hard time chewing them, unless they're cooked. and even if they're cooked, I still don't like the taste and I usually end up moving most of it to the side.

How much of the olive oil do you add to the salad? That's another thing. Adding these oils may not be enough for taste if you only put a little and putting too much is not good.

What do you tell people who don't like to cook or prepare food, like vegetables?

Doesn't cooking the vegetables kill most of the nutrients? And if you don't cook it, won't it taste awful?

For me, without adding something tasty like bread or meat to vegetables, it's hard to want to eat them. But I do find ways to incoporate vegetables into my diet, by eating from a vegan restaurant that incorporates the vegetables by cooking them with other vegan foods. Oh, and yes, I do buy alot of supplements.

Unfortunately, I've quit my gym. Although, I believe that a gym is very important in keeping a healthy body. The strength training is especially important. The cardio is needed. I use to suffer form body aches and the strength training and cardio helped with that. I also was much stronger in doing daily hard activities like housework. Those different fun classes at the gym are good. Yoga is excellent. But aerobics really burns the fat. Those 80s aerobics use to really help me lose weight well. Anything that involves fast movements of the entrie body and continuosly changing those body movements, helps to burn fat. I don't like step aerobics though. Kickboxing aerobics is good. I would do dance aerobics, but that's hard for me.

I just hate vegetables. I even have a friend who's been vegetarian her whole life and jokes saying she hates vegetables but that she's a potatoe vegetarian. She eats alot of potatoe made stuff. I'm assuming potatoe stews, chips and fries are a staple of her diet or use to be, before she had her first baby. But I think she eats alot of grains too and gets her protein from dairy products and probably from certain beans and so forth. She use to be overweaight in highschool, but became thin later. She's now skinny after having her first child. She's 30 now. She was on the low carb diet as a vegetarian after her baby, and she became really skinny.

I never saw her starve though. She ate couscous, tea biscuits, pizza, low carb icecream and whatever else. So, she certainly didn't seem deprived and was always, always busy. One good way of getting your vegetables is putting them on pizza, if you're a pizza lover, like she and I are. She owned a pizza parlor, so she certainly had her pizza, but I'm assuming in a healthy way. I eat pizza now without the cheese and I order a small thin pie. I should incorporate more vegetables.