For some–at least for me–as a kid, spinach was the vegetable that represented everything I hated about vegetables. “Ewwww…. spinach,” by 7 year-old self would whine at the dinner table.

It’s fine. Kids rarely understand much about health, because most of them feel great most of the time. There has been so much less time for disease and inflammation and toxic build-up to accumulate. Plus, their palettes are less developed by physiological and experiential maturity.

But for adults, there are very few foods more healthy (or, in German, gesündlich per the title) than spinach. It’s an interesting little leaf. It is thought to have originated in what is modern-day Iran. It didn’t make it to Europe until the Middle Ages–the 14th Century–and it became a rather famous food there because it would start growing earlier in the Spring than other vegetables.

Why spinach is so good for you

The micronutrients – Spinach is a great source of Vitamins A, K, B6 and C. It is high in folate and magnesium as well. These particular nutrients are quite good for the bones, and for people who don’t drink milk, it’s a great way to get enough calcium into the bones because Vitamin K is essential in the production of an important bone protein that often begins to deteriorate with age.

If you’re dieting – Spinach is a great source of fiber, which slows down digestion, helps curb food cravings and helps to stabilize blood sugars.

For your eyes – The combination of Vitamin A and compounds called carotenoids (yes, because we first found them in carrots, even though spinach has more, pound-for-pound, than carrots) are great for eye health. The Vitamin A is crucial for healthy mucous membranes in and out of the eyes and carotenoids are important for the inner-workings of the eye–particularly light filtration. The more spinach you eat, the less likely you are to experience macular degeneration as you get older.

For asthma – As previously mentioned, spinach is quite high in magnesium. The lower your magnesium levels, the more likely you are to have lower lung flow and volume. The higher your magnesium (to a point), the more capacity your lungs have.

For cancer – Studies have found spinach to be a great food-related treatment to stomach cancer, prostate cancer and skin cancer. Much of this has to do with the high levels of the antioxidant phytonutrients.

For heart health – And we’re back to magnesium. This amazing mineral has been shown to lower stress and anxiety by, among other methods, regulating cortisol levels (the stress hormone). Spinach also helps the sodium/potassium balance, which is crucial for the passage of nutrients/waste into and out of the cells AND regulating sodium levels, which are linked to cardiovascular issues. AND, the Vitamin C in spinach helps lower hypertension. All combined, that is one heart health food.

One word of caution

In 2017, spinach was ranked a shocking #2 on the Environmental Working Group’s famous “Dirty Dozen” list.

This means that, in all of the fruits and vegetables grown in the United States, spinach contains the second highest amount of toxic pesticide, herbicide and fungicide residue (#1 is strawberries).

Consequently, if you buy non-organic spinach, all of those benefits will be effectively neutralized as the carcinogenic, hormone-disrupting, nutrient-blocking effects of industrial chemicals will provide you with just as much disease as the spinach gives you health–or more.

Just make sure to buy organic spinach and you’ll be fine.