The nutrients that best support your health include dietary fiber, healthy fatty acids and all the essential vitamins and minerals. A varied diet that limits less-healthy saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium and sugar allows extra room for the more beneficial nutrients. When your diet needs a boost, however, turn to a few nutrient-dense foods that have large amounts of the good stuff with little of the bad -- including calories.
Wheat Bran Cereal
Some brands of fortified cereal epitomize nutrient density, with an impressive array of nutrients locked into fewer than 100 calories. Wheat bran cereals tend to have the most fiber, the least sugar and up to 100 percent of the daily value, or DV, of vitamins A, B, C, D and E and iron, potassium and calcium per suggested serving. When you add fat-free milk, you'll further increase your totals of calcium and vitamins A, B and D.
Sockeye Salmon
Sockeye salmon represents a superior protein source with value-added nutrition. Higher in cholesterol-balancing omega-3 fatty acids than other salmon species, sockeye salmon contains some niacin and other B vitamins and is one of the few food sources of essential vitamin D. The American Heart Association suggests eating salmon in place of meats as a way to lower your saturated fat consumption and your risk for heart disease.
Cooked Spinach
For higher vitamin, fiber and mineral concentrations, steam your spinach instead of eating it raw. Some of the nutrient totals per 1 cup -- such as 377 percent DV of vitamin A and 1111 percent DV of vitamin K -- are astronomical, while most are still in the range that the FDA considers high content, or above 20 percent DV. These nutrients include folate and other B vitamins, vitamin C, calcium, magnesium, potassium and iron.
Oranges
Eating a single orange gives you a full day's supply of vitamin C plus a healthy dose of fiber, according to the USDA. Moderate amounts of vitamin A and potassium, as well as natural sugar for taste, round out the orange's nutritional profile. Nutrient contents, especially of fiber, are lower in juiced oranges, so the USDA recommends eating whole fruits more often than juices.
Fat-Free Yogurt
Plain fat-free yogurt has the highest calcium content per cup among dairy products, and it doubles as an excellent, low-fat protein source. For good morning nutrition, fat-free yogurt with little or no added sugar perfectly meets the requirements of a nutrient-dense breakfast food to help control your weight.
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