Walter Willett of the Harvard School of Public Health recommends eating vegetables "in abundance" every day. This is because, of all the foods available, vegetables have the highest ratio of nutrition to calories in each serving.
Low Calorie Vegetables
The lowest-calorie vegetable by volume is romaine lettuce at 9 calories per cup. Runners-up include celery, cucumbers and radishes, each at 20 calories per cup.
Negative Calories
Celery stands alone among vegetables in that it takes more calories to eat than it brings to the table. Because of its high fiber content and stringy structure, a stick of celery burns 10 to 15 calories to eat, but delivers only about 8. Although urban legend website Snopes.com has debunked all other "negative calorie" claims, it supports this claim about celery alone.
Calorie-Nutrition Ratio
Although celery, cucumbers and romaine lettuce have the lowest calorie content, they are also among the lowest in terms of nutrition delivered. The lowest-calorie vegetable in comparison to nutritional value is spinach. At just 40 calories per cup, it delivers iron, calcium, protein, B-complex vitamins and micronutrients in great enough amounts to qualify as one of Dr. Steven Pratt's "Superfoods."
References
- "National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference"; U.S. Department of Education; 2009
- "Superfoods Rx"; Steven Pratt and Kathy Matthews; 2005
- Snopes: Negative Calories
- Diet Bites: Ultra Low Calorie Vegetables
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