By Dr. MercolaOne of the most effec

By Dr. Mercola

One of the most effective ways to achieve optimal health is to eat plenty of whole, organically-grown foods, and sprouts may offer some of the highest levels of nutrition.

Best of all, you can easily and inexpensively grow sprouts at home. They're a particularly excellent choice during winter months, when outdoor gardening is limited or ruled out. Another major benefit is that you don't have to cook them.

If you aren't already gardening, they are a terrific way to get your toe in the water and start to experiment with the joy of growing your own food. The beautiful thing about sprouts, unlike gardening, is that you can harvest your food within about a week of starting the process.

They are eaten raw, usually as an addition to salad or juice. What exactly are "sprouts," and what makes them so nutritious? As explained by The World's Healthiest Food:1

"[M]any of the foods we eat begin their plant life as sprouts."Sprouting" is simply the way that a seed cracks open for the first time and sends a root or a leaf stalk poking upward out of the soil and into the open air.

Because the sprouting stage of growth is so unique in the life of a plant, there has been special interest in potential health benefits that might be associated with this stage of growth.

In general, sprouts are often more concentrated in certain nutrients-including some key antioxidants-when compared with fully mature plants."

Sprouts—Potent Nutrition Delivered in 'Small Packages'

Indeed, sprouts may be small, but they are packed with nutrition, including vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and enzymes that help protect against free radical damage.Watercress, for example, is an absolute powerhouse of nutrition. It may actually be the most nutrient-dense vegetable out there.

Based on 17 nutrients— including potassium, fiber, protein, calcium, iron, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, folate, zinc, and vitamins A, B6, B12, C, D, E, and K— watercress scored a perfect 100 in a recent study titled, "Defining Powerhouse Fruits and Vegetables: A Nutrient Density Approach."2,3

Two of my personal favorites are sunflower seed and pea shoots—both of which are typically about 30 times more nutritious than organic vegetables. They're also among the highest in protein. In addition, sunflower seeds contain healthy fats, essential fatty acids, and fiber—all of which are important for optimal health.

I typically have three trays of sunflower sprouts growing whenever I'm not travelling and usually eat them nearly every day when I'm at home. Other commonly sprouted beans, nuts, seeds, and grains include:

Alfalfa: a good source of vitamins A, B, C, D, E, F, and K
Wheatgrass: high in vitamins B, C, E, and many minerals
Mung bean: good source of protein, fiber, and vitamins C and A
Lentil sprouts: contain 26 percent protein and can be eaten without cooking
Brussels sprouts: One cup of cooked Brussels sprouts contains just 56 calories but is packed with more than 240 percent of the recommended daily amount (RDA) for vitamin K1, and nearly 130 percent of the RDA for vitamin C.
Plus, Brussels sprouts are a good source of fiber, manganese, potassium, choline, B vitamins, antioxidants, and other health-promoting phytochemicals

Great Reasons to Eat More Sprouts

Many of the benefits of sprouts relate to the fact that, in their initial phase of growth, the plants contain more concentrated amounts of nutrients. As a result, you need to eat far less sprouts, in terms of amount, compared to a mature plant. For example, when sprouting seeds, nuts, beans, and grains you get:

Higher vitamin content. In some seeds, the vitamin content is increased by as much as 20 times during the sprouting process. Some go even higher. The B1 in mung beans, for example, increases by 285 percent when sprouted; B2 go up by 515 percent; and B3 (niacin) by 256 percent.4
Higher enzyme content. Sprouts contain an estimated 100 times more enzymes than fresh fruits and vegetables. These enzymes allow your body to extract higher levels of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients from other foods you eat in conjunction with the sprouts as well.
Increased essential fatty acid and fiber content. The essential fatty acid and fiber content also increases dramatically during the sprouting process. Most people do not get enough fiber or healthy fats in their diet for optimal health, and sprouts can be a great source of both.
Increased bioavailability of minerals and protein. When the seed starts to sprout, minerals such as calcium and magnesium bind to proteins in the seed, which makes both the minerals and the protein more readily available and usable in your body.
In addition, the proteins are altered in beneficial ways during the process of sprouting, so you get more, and higher quality, protein from sprouts compared to eating the unsprouted seed.

Besides their superior nutritional benefits, sprouts are also the ultimate in home-grown foods. When you grow them yourself, provided you're using organic seeds, nuts, beans, and grains, you can be sure you're not exposing yourself and your family to harmful pesticides and other chemicals.

Sprouts are also among the least expensive foods you can buy or grow. Many say they cannot afford to eat healthy, but sprouts are so inexpensive, there's really no excuse for avoiding them—especially if you grow them yourself. Doing so can cut the cost by about 90 percent or more, compared to buying them.

Kết quả (Việt) 1:

Bởi tiến sĩ MercolaMột trong những cách hiệu quả nhất để đạt được sức khỏe tối ưu là để ăn nhiều loại thực phẩm toàn bộ, hữu cơ phát triển, và giá có thể cung cấp một số mức độ cao nhất của dinh dưỡng.Tốt nhất của tất cả, bạn có thể dễ dàng và tiết kiệm chi phí phát triển mầm tại nhà. Họ là một sự lựa chọn tuyệt vời đặc biệt là trong mùa đông tháng, khi làm vườn ngoài trời giới hạn hoặc loại trừ. Một lợi ích chính là bạn không cần phải nấu ăn cho họ.Nếu bạn không đã làm vườn, họ là một cách tuyệt vời để có được ngón chân của bạn trong nước và bắt đầu thử nghiệm với niềm vui của phát triển thực phẩm riêng của bạn. Điều đẹp về giá, không giống như làm vườn, là bạn có thể thu hoạch thức ăn của bạn trong vòng khoảng một tuần của bắt đầu quá trình.Họ được ăn sống, thường là một bổ sung cho salad hoặc nước trái cây. Những gì chính xác là "giá" và những gì làm cho chúng rất bổ dưỡng? Như được giải thích bởi The thế giới lành mạnh thực phẩm: 1"[M] bất kỳ của các loại thực phẩm chúng ta ăn bắt đầu của đời sống thực vật giá." Mọc"là chỉ đơn giản là cách một vết nứt hạt giống mở cho người đầu tiên thời gian và gửi bản gốc hoặc một cuống lá poking trở lên ra khỏi đất và vào trong không khí mở.Vì giai đoạn mọc tăng trưởng là để duy nhất trong cuộc đời của một nhà máy, có đã là quan tâm đặc biệt trong những lợi ích sức khỏe tiềm năng mà có thể được kết hợp với giai đoạn này của sự tăng trưởng.Nói chung, giá thường xuyên hơn tập trung ở một số chất dinh dưỡng, bao gồm một số chất chống oxy hoá quan trọng-khi so sánh với cây trưởng thành đầy đủ. "Sprouts—Potent Nutrition Delivered in 'Small Packages'Indeed, sprouts may be small, but they are packed with nutrition, including vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and enzymes that help protect against free radical damage.Watercress, for example, is an absolute powerhouse of nutrition. It may actually be the most nutrient-dense vegetable out there.Based on 17 nutrients— including potassium, fiber, protein, calcium, iron, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, folate, zinc, and vitamins A, B6, B12, C, D, E, and K— watercress scored a perfect 100 in a recent study titled, "Defining Powerhouse Fruits and Vegetables: A Nutrient Density Approach."2,3Two of my personal favorites are sunflower seed and pea shoots—both of which are typically about 30 times more nutritious than organic vegetables. They're also among the highest in protein. In addition, sunflower seeds contain healthy fats, essential fatty acids, and fiber—all of which are important for optimal health.I typically have three trays of sunflower sprouts growing whenever I'm not travelling and usually eat them nearly every day when I'm at home. Other commonly sprouted beans, nuts, seeds, and grains include:Alfalfa: a good source of vitamins A, B, C, D, E, F, and KWheatgrass: high in vitamins B, C, E, and many mineralsMung bean: good source of protein, fiber, and vitamins C and ALentil sprouts: contain 26 percent protein and can be eaten without cookingBrussels sprouts: One cup of cooked Brussels sprouts contains just 56 calories but is packed with more than 240 percent of the recommended daily amount (RDA) for vitamin K1, and nearly 130 percent of the RDA for vitamin C.Plus, Brussels sprouts are a good source of fiber, manganese, potassium, choline, B vitamins, antioxidants, and other health-promoting phytochemicalsGreat Reasons to Eat More SproutsMany of the benefits of sprouts relate to the fact that, in their initial phase of growth, the plants contain more concentrated amounts of nutrients. As a result, you need to eat far less sprouts, in terms of amount, compared to a mature plant. For example, when sprouting seeds, nuts, beans, and grains you get:Higher vitamin content. In some seeds, the vitamin content is increased by as much as 20 times during the sprouting process. Some go even higher. The B1 in mung beans, for example, increases by 285 percent when sprouted; B2 go up by 515 percent; and B3 (niacin) by 256 percent.4Higher enzyme content. Sprouts contain an estimated 100 times more enzymes than fresh fruits and vegetables. These enzymes allow your body to extract higher levels of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients from other foods you eat in conjunction with the sprouts as well.Increased essential fatty acid and fiber content. The essential fatty acid and fiber content also increases dramatically during the sprouting process. Most people do not get enough fiber or healthy fats in their diet for optimal health, and sprouts can be a great source of both.Increased bioavailability of minerals and protein. When the seed starts to sprout, minerals such as calcium and magnesium bind to proteins in the seed, which makes both the minerals and the protein more readily available and usable in your body.In addition, the proteins are altered in beneficial ways during the process of sprouting, so you get more, and higher quality, protein from sprouts compared to eating the unsprouted seed.Besides their superior nutritional benefits, sprouts are also the ultimate in home-grown foods. When you grow them yourself, provided you're using organic seeds, nuts, beans, and grains, you can be sure you're not exposing yourself and your family to harmful pesticides and other chemicals.Sprouts are also among the least expensive foods you can buy or grow. Many say they cannot afford to eat healthy, but sprouts are so inexpensive, there's really no excuse for avoiding them—especially if you grow them yourself. Doing so can cut the cost by about 90 percent or more, compared to buying them.