Little Step No. 41
What to do:
Add ONE bitter tasting veg to your shopping basket.
Why this step works:
I was once lucky enough to watch Tina Turner live. And one of the things I will always remember was how much time she gave at the end, to thank EVERYONE involved in her show.
It got me thinking that there are powerful substances in our food that are like all those people working behind the scenes at a music concert - doing incredible and essential jobs yet rarely given the recognition they deserve.
So here's a Tina Turner-style shout out to bitter-tasting veg, because they are super busy in the background doing incredible and mind-blowing things for our health, yet don’t get noticed or talked about anywhere near enough.
What are bitter-tasting veg?
Rocket (arugula)
Chicory
Watercress
Raddichio
Dandelion
Endive
Pain de sucre
So what’s so great about bitter veg?
We often think of ‘taste’ as something that happens just in our mouths, yet fascinating research has found that we actually have ‘taste’ receptors in many locations outside of our mouths too, including the airway, kidney, brain, immune system and the gastrointestinal tract. Further to this, scientists have found that the way our whole bodies respond to bitter-tasting foods is particularly fascinating:
-Digestion – It seems bitter foods may help to stimulate important digestive secretions which help to break food down into tiny components so they can be used as building blocks for essential processes; without optimal digestion you won’t get the full goodness out of your food.
-Body weight – Scientists have also found bitter food intake may be linked to hormones which help to regulate food intake and feelings of fullness after eating. Thus they may be a useful support for achieving and maintaining a healthy body weight.
- Blood sugar balance – Whilst the term ‘blood sugar balance’ may sound a bit complicated, all you really need to know for now is that it is key for many aspects of health from body weight, hormone balance and heart health to energy, sleep and reducing type 2 diabetes risk. And whilst there are many diet and lifestyle steps you can take to support 'blood sugar balance', the teeniest tiniest golden take away here is that research has found that adding bitter foods to your plate may be particularly useful. There is now even substantial scientific interest in harnessing the power of bitter foods for the management of obesity and type 2 diabetes.
When you’re next in the supermarket, add ONE bitter-tasting veg to your shopping basket. And when this finds its way on to your plate, perhaps take a moment to acknowledge and appreciate the many ways that your backstage bitter food crew is quietly working away to support your health.