Lettuce and greens

Not all lettuces and greens are created equal. As an illustration look at this nutritional comparison:



As you can see, iceberg lettuce is the least nutritious green of the five. Kale, chard and romaine are all significantly more nutritious. Here's another set of greens, including kale again as a comparitor:



On average, spinach is the most nutritious. It's higher in almost everything except Vitamin C. Parsley, kale, chard, and romaine are pretty equal in nutritional value, and just a notch below spinach. Collard greens, arugula, Boston lettuce and iceberg lettuce are all very good for you for the amount of calories they provide, but don't measure up to the other greens.

Notice how similar these greens are in protein and carbohydrate composition! The values shown are for the amount needed to get 100 calories. You have to eat a lot of lettuce to get 100 calories (and the nutrition that goes with it) - over 1 1/2 pounds! These are very nutritious foods for their low calorie content. The large amounts of A and C these foods contain throw the comparison scale off, so it's not easy to see how valuable these foods are for B vitamins and minerals as well. Notice that 100 calories of spinach has close to the RDA of iron and magnesium. All these foods are rich in nutrients if you eat enough of them. Even though iceberg lettuce looks weak in this comparison - it's 50% more nutritious than steamed green beans.

So don't be afraid to eat all the greens that you can manage. I see people leaving lettuce on their plates all the time. Finish your salad. Fill your bowl.