Current research tells us that up to 80% of all heart disease and 30-50% of all cancers are due to dietary factors. In other words, nearly all of the heart disease and up to half of the cancers that occur in the United States each year may be related to what we put in our mouths. Consider the case of cancer, a disease that causes untold amounts of suffering. Approximately 1.3 million cancers occur each year in the United States. About one-third of these cancers are due to tobacco, with another one-third to one-half being due to diet. That means that if everyone avoided tobacco and ate well, nearly 900,000 of these cancers never would occur! Isn’t it amazing to consider the power you have over your own health? It’s never too late to start.

     You may wonder why you should focus on green leafy foods to improve your diet. There are an incredible number of reasons to include these foods in the diet. Among the most important reasons is that green leafy vegetables are loaded with phytochemicals. Phytochemicals include vitamins and minerals, but phytochemicals are so much more than this.

     ‘Phyto’ means plant, so phytochemicals are ‘plant chemicals’. If the substance comes from a plant, including vitamins and minerals, it is a phytochemical. However, there are hundreds, even thousands, of other nutrients besides vitamins and minerals that are phytochemicals. Substances such as beta-carotene are phytochemicals too. Beta-carotene is just one of the thousands of phytochemicals that improve our health. The phytochemicals that are provided by green leafy vegetables truly are amazing. These phytochemicals do more than just fight disease, they improve total health.

     Among the benefits of green leafy foods are improved body detoxification, healthier hormone balance, and better protection against oxidation. It may be hard to believe that food is that powerful, but the research proves it.

     Eating green leafy vegetables enables the body to ‘detoxify’ or cleanse itself more effectively. The body has a natural ability to cleanse and rid itself of disease causing substances. Eating green leafy vegetables enhances this natural ability. These foods contain phytochemicals that quite literally, ‘turn on’ the detoxification systems in our bodies.

     Eating green leafy vegetables promotes a more healthful hormone balance within the body. For example, simply adding green leafy foods into the diet can change estrogen balance. There are many forms of estrogen in the female human. Some of these forms of estrogen are more likely to promote diseases such as breast and endometrial cancers. Other forms of estrogen do not appear to promote these ‘estrogen-related’ diseases and conditions. Green leafy vegetables encourage the body to produce the healthier estrogens, the estrogens that appear less likely to promote ‘estrogen-related’ diseases.

     Eating green leafy vegetables protects the body against a process called oxidation. As our bodies use oxygen to produce energy, oxygen by-products, called free radicals are formed. Another name for free radicals is oxidants. Oxidants cause oxidation, a process that damages cells and can lead to disease. To understand oxidation, think of rusting metal. This same type of process happens in the body. Green leafy foods are loaded with anti-oxidants. Anti-oxidants help stop the damage caused by oxidants. As a source of anti-oxidants, green leafy vegetables are hard to beat.

     Despite this knowledge, many people still fail to meet basic goals for healthy eating. Green leafy vegetables, with their pungent, sometimes bitter flavors and their tough, leafy exterior, often fall low on the list of healthy plant foods that people eat regularly. Given the amazing health benefits of these foods, this is unfortunate.

     This is where this book can help. We all owe a debt of gratitude to Linda Diane Feldt. In writing this book, Linda Diane has demystified the world of green leafy vegetables. With an understanding that most people are unfamiliar with these foods, Linda Diane has provided an invaluable resource for us all. She has addressed the need for practical and delicious ways to fix these foods. This book truly is a gift. In giving yourself this book, you will give yourself the gift of better health. It’s never too late to improve eating habits and you can use this book on your journey to optimal wellness.

Eat Well, Live Well, Be Well!

Suzanne W. Dixon, MPH, MS, RD