How Microgreens Can Help You Have Bright White Teeth And Clear Skin
Delicious microgreens… they're wonderfully healthy for you and packed with nutrition.
You probably heard how they can be healthy in general and are great in smoothies. But, here's something more specific to help keep your skin clear and your teeth white that may surprise you.
Let's take a look at what's going on.
Microgreen Nutrition & Just What Is A Microgreen
A microgreen is a small leaf, almost like a juvenile plant, from one of the green leafy vegetables. They're often lettuces, beets, turnips, cabbages, and spinach. Usually, these microgreens are plucked when they are only a few weeks old, barely more than 2-3" tall.
Because they're so young and small, these leaves are very tender. They still have a lot of flavor and nutrition, but not a lot of stringy fibers.
Some people include sprouts of legumes and Brassica plants as part of the microgreens. They have similar nutritional value and are still incredibly healthy. Sprouts are much younger plants, and you generally eat the seed along with the greens, therefore adding more texture and crunch when you add them to your salad or meal.
They're all loaded with nutrition. Besides being low in calories and carbs, they are particularly high in vitamins and minerals.
If you can, choose organic. If you choose non-organic, your microgreens might have been grown without many of the beneficial micronutrients found in soil. These leaves might be tender, but lacking in nutrients. Choosing organic does not guarantee you'll get those micronutrients, but it will give you a better chance.
How Microgreens Help Your Skin
The primary way microgreens help your skin is the polyphenol content and its antioxidant potential. These polyphenols help your skin to produce and protect the collagen and elastin that keep your skin smooth, soft, and elastic. When combined with a good collagen supplement, they can help keep you looking healthier.
Microgreens are great for reducing inflammation. The antioxidants and chlorophyll within the greens have a mild anti-inflammatory effect throughout the body. For example, some research shows that acne as a result of inflammation reduces when consuming microgreens.
Some tentative research shows that some skin conditions such as psoriasis and rosacea, along with skin damage from the sun, reduce when consuming microgreens regularly. Microgreens are not a cure nor a preventative, but they can help when your diet focuses more on fruits and vegetables.
Eating Microgreen & Your Teeth – You're Designed To Do It!
Eating fruits and vegetables is good for your teeth, and microgreens are no exception. The chewing action of eating your microgreen helps clear away debris. They have almost a mild brushing action. The act of eating the greens works with our teeth for grinding and breaking down the fibers.
But, that's not the primary reason to eat microgreens. They're fabulous for your gums, and healthy gums mean healthy teeth.
Microgreens contain folic acid, calcium, and other vitamins and minerals that support gum health. The anti-inflammatory action of some of the antioxidants helps reduce the bacteria in your mouth that cause gum disease. The low carbs starve harmful bacteria from growing.
How To Get More Microgreens In Your Diet
Salads are the obvious choice because microgreens are best when eaten raw. But, that's not all.
You can add a few leaves of microgreens to every meal as a type of garnish. They're also great for adding into soups at the last minute to give it a little bit of a crunch, especially if you're avoiding crackers or croutons.
They cook in seconds in stir-fries or the steamer basket, and you can lay hot pieces of fish or meat on top of a bed of microgreens for a pleasing look and lots of taste. Adding a handful of microgreens to your eggs in the morning is a delicious way to start your day.
And of course, there's the smoothie option. A handful of microgreens can add a different texture to your smoothies and give you your greens without the overwhelming flavors that fully grown kale or spinach add.
We hope you give microgreens a try, especially with the numerous ways you can put them all together. And if you want to give growing them a try, we recommend reading this article.