Cabbage and lettuce are both nutritious greens. Green, red and savoy cabbages are the most common in the United States out of the hundred or so kinds available. Lettuces fall into four groups: romaine, butterhead, crisphead and looseleaf. Iceberg, which belongs to the crisphead group, is popular in the U.S., but it is one of the least nutritious lettuces. Cabbage and lettuce are both low in calories and contain no fat and little protein, but each has its own strengths in terms of vitamins A and C, as well as phytochemical content.
Calories, Macronutrients and Fiber
A 1/2-cup serving of cooked cabbage contains about 15 to 20 calories, while a 1/2 cup of raw cabbage has about 10. The difference is explained by the fact that cabbage cooks down into a smaller quantity, so 1/2 cup cooked contains more vegetable. Lettuce is even lower in calories. To consume 15 calories in lettuce, you have to eat three times the amount of cabbage -- 1 1/2 cups.
Cabbage has no fat and almost no protein; lettuce is fat-free with 1 g of protein. A serving of raw cabbage contains 2 g of carbohydrates, 1 g of which is dietary fiber, while a serving of cooked cabbage has between 3 and 5 g of carbohydrates, with 2 g of fiber. Lettuce has 4 g of carbohydrates, with 2 g of fiber.
Vitamin A
Lettuce outshines cabbage in vitamin A content. Cabbage contains almost no vitamin A, while some varieties of lettuce contain as much as 40 percent of the adult dietary reference intake, or DRI, based on a 2,000-calorie-per-day diet. Red leaf and green leaf have 7,405 and 7,492 IUs, respectively, in 100 g -- a little over 1 1/2 cups. Romaine is also a good source at 5,807 IUs, but iceberg only has 502 IUs.
Vitamin C
Cabbage beats out most lettuce in vitamin C content. Based on a 2,000-calorie-per-day diet, a 1/2 cup serving of cooked cabbage provides 25 percent of the adult DRI for vitamin C; a serving of raw cabbage provides 30 percent. Three times that amount of most varieties of lettuce only provides about 6 percent. Romaine is an exception, providing between 25 and 30 percent of the adult DRI for vitamin C.
Phytochemicals
Phytochemicals are developed by plants to protect themselves from molds and bacteria. They give vegetables and fruits their color and provide health benefits to people. Cabbage is a good source of phytochemicals called isothiocyanates, which may play a role in preventing breast and prostate cancers by blocking steroid hormones. Lutein and zeaxanthin are phytochemicals present in lettuce, as well as in the retina of your eye. They may help protect against age-related macular degeneration and other age-related eye disorders. Romaine lettuce is the best source of lutein and zeaxanthin, followed by green leaf, red leaf and butterhead. Iceberg contains only small amounts.
References
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Vegetable of the Month: Cabbage
- Colorado State University Extension; Health Benefits and Safe Handling of Salad Greens; M. Bunning, et al.; June 2007
- USDA Household Commodity Fact Sheet; Cabbage; August 2009
- University of the District of Columbia Cooperative Extension Service: Lettuce
- University of Maryland Medical Center; Vitamins - Phytochemicals; H. Simon, et al.; February 2009
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