By Danielle Kate Wroe
Eating a healthy balanced diet can really help aid our fitness levels, and help our mood, and some foods can even prevent dementia according to research.
We're all looking for foods that can make us healthier, that also taste good at the same time, and with so many fad diets on the market, it can be hard to know which work and are actually legitimately going to help keep us fit and strong.
It turns out though, that eating more leafy greens in our diet could have a wealth of health benefits, and could even help to slow age-related cognitive decline.
Accordingto The Times, leafy greens such as spinach, kale, cabbage and lettuce are considered a brain food staple because of the essential nutrients, including vitamin K, lutein and folate, and the range of beneficial plant flavonoids they contain.
Eating a daily serving of leafy greens was shown by nutritionists at Rush University in Chicago to slow age-related cognitive decline. People who ate two or more servings in a day were typically able to display the memory and recall skills of someone who was 11 years younger than they were.
Further benefits from leafy greens include cutting bowel cancer risk by up to seven per cent after research by the World Cancer Research Fund studied 70,000 people and found those who ate leafy greens regularly lowered their risk.
Dr Linia Patel, a registered dietician, also says that "green leafy veg can have a profound effect on general health and on heart health". The British Heart Foundation said: "Green leafy vegetables, such as spinach, kale and watercress, are good sources of iron, folic acid and nitrates. Recent BHF-funded research found that nitrates present in greens can help widen blood vessels and thin the blood. This is one way eating more fruit and veg helps reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke."
Researchers at Edith Cowan University's Institute for Nutrition Research in Australia showed that a daily serving of leafy greens helped to "significantly reduce the risk of blood pressure and cardiovascular disease" in a study of nearly 3,000 people.
If you want to change your diet and lifestyle, contact your GP.
Do you have a story to share? Email: danielle.wroe@mirror.co.uk