Healthy Salads to Add to Your Diet
Fresh fruits and vegetables are an absolute must for people with lupus, and so salads are a great addition to your diet. A good goal to aim for is to have salad for one meal at least five days of the week. But what will you put in your salads for lupus?
Nutritious Leaves
The base of your salad is a great place to start packing in the nutrients. Try…
- Spinach – High in iron, B vitamins, and folic acid
- Romaine lettuce – High in folic acid
- Arugula – Good source of sulphurous compounds that make muscles strong
Choose one or all of these to use as a base for your salad. Use a very large bowl and make a salad to last you two or three days – this is much easier than making new salads one day at a time.
Vegetables
Vegetables are next. Start with vegetables you don’t really like to eat in a cooked form. Many people cannot stand cooked broccoli or cauliflower and so might not think to put them in their salads. About ¼ cup of each, cut up into small florets, is a good serving in a salad.
Next consider sulphurous vegetables, like turnips, cabbage, horseradish, onions, and garlic. Choose two of these and add between ¼ cup and ½ cup to your salad. Sulphurous vegetables play an important role in keeping parasite count on the body low. One bodybuilder says this type of vegetable is what helped her break a global strength record. That goal may be a bit out of reach for you, but you still need your strength on a day-to-day basis.
Next think about your eyesight. How are you doing in this area? If there’s room for improvement, add some shredded carrots. They are easy to find at the store so you don’t have to shred them yourself on those days when your energy is dwindling. Cherry tomatoes are also great salad additions for your eyesight.
Protein
Remember that you need protein in every meal. The amount of protein you need is based on your height and weight, so it ends up being anywhere from 3 ounces to 6 ounces. It’s easy to grill up a steak and add it to your salad, chop up some leftover meat from last night’s dinner or throw in a boiled egg.
Dressing
The best – and healthiest – dressings are the simplest ones like vinegar and olive oil. Use these instead of store-bought dressings to avoid a lot of preservatives and chemicals, as well as hydrogenated fats.
Start making delicious, nutritious salads today!