Senior Health 5 Fantastic Artichoke Benefits 3/15/2024 | By Seraphina Seow Did you know that when you eat artichokes, you’re eating flower buds that haven’t bloomed? Artichokes are a pinecone-shaped vegetable that are in season in spring and fall. You can eat the artichoke’s leaves and heart, which refers to the fleshy center part of the plant inside its many layers of leaves and below the non edible “choke.” Besides being incredibly delicious and easy to cook, artichokes have a ton of health benefits because they’re packed with important nutrients. Nutrition experts list the unique benefits of artichokes, and why they’re such a healthy veggie. Top benefits of artichokes 1. They’re full of fiber. A medium-sized artichoke provides about 7 grams of fiber, which is almost 30% of the recommended amount of 25 grams of fiber per day for healthy adult women (38 grams for men). Fiber is important for keeping your gut healthy and improving your digestive symptoms, says Krista Linares, MPH, RDN, registered dietitian and owner of Nutrition con Sabor. She adds that fiber also has longer-term health benefits, such as helping to improve cholesterol levels, reduce heart disease risk, and reduce diabetes risk. Artichokes are especially high in a type of fiber called inulin, says Ginger Hultin, MS, RDN, CSO, registered dietitian and owner of Ginger Hultin Nutrition and author of the e-book Anti-Inflammatory Diet Meal Prep, which is “a highly fermentable fiber.” This means that it’s easily broken down and used by the good gut bacteria as a food source. “In turn, the gut bacteria make byproducts that are beneficial to human health, like short chain fatty acids,” explains Hultin. Short chain fatty acids have been linked to lowering the risk of developing medical conditions like diabetes, heart disease, and inflammatory diseases. 2. They’re rich in potassium. “Potassium is really important for blood pressure,” Linares says. “If you have high blood pressure, a lot of us naturally think that we should reduce sodium, but the other thing that we should be doing at the same time is increasing potassium.” This is because your kidneys clear more sodium from your blood when potassium enters the bloodstream, lowering your blood pressure. 3. They’re a good source of folate. Healthy adults require 400 micrograms DFE of folate, or vitamin B9, per day. A medium artichoke has 61.2 micrograms DFE of folate. Your body uses folate to form tissues, DNA, and red blood cells, and to help cells divide. This vitamin is particularly important for pregnant women, who need to have 500 micrograms DFE per day in order to help prevent neural tube defects in the growing fetus. 4. They’re high in magnesium. A medium artichoke has 24% of the RDA of magnesium for healthy adult women. Magnesium is needed for your nerves, muscles and heart to work well, for producing energy, for good control of your blood sugar and blood pressure, and to form protein, DNA, and bones. 5. They contain vitamin C and other potent antioxidants. Artichokes provide you with antioxidants, which help reduce the amount of reactive oxygen species, or ROS, in the body. These are waste products formed by the body. Too much ROS can result in excessive inflammation, and long-term excessive inflammation can increase the risk of a number of diseases. Real Simple magazine provides smart, realistic solutions to everyday challenges. Online at www.realsimple.com. ©2024 Dotdash Meredith. All rights reserved. Used with permission. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Related: Can Apples Help You Lose Weight? Read More Seraphina Seow