All food contains all of the nutrients we need to be healthy, it is necessary to eat various foods in sufficient amounts. A good diet will include many different foods, and sufficient in quantity and quality to meet an individual’s need for food energy and other micro nutrients.

Peaches Nectarines

Peanuts

Pears

Peas

Peppers

RHUBARB

Typical serving size:

1 cup (122 g)

HOW IT HARMS

Poisonous (leaves) Mineral absorption Kidney stones Gallstones

WHAT IT HEALS

Cancer High blood pressure Rhubarb is botanically a vegetable, although everyone calls it a fruit
It is available in frozen and canned forms, but most people prefer to cook the fresh stalks
One cup of fresh diced rhubarb yields a mere 26 calories, provides 10 mg of vitamin C, 350 mg of potassium, and 2 g of fiber
A popular springtime pie filling often combined with strawberries, rhubarb can also be made into preserves or stewed to make a sauce to complement poultry, meats, pork, and desserts

QUICK TIP:

Create a sugar-free compote For each cup of chopped rhubarb in a nonaluminum saucepan, mix in ¼ cup golden raisins and ¼ cup pineapple juice
Simmer for about 10 minutes, or until softened
Serve warm or cold

Health Benefits

May prevent cancer
Researchers in Great Britain discovered that baking rhubarb for 20 minutes releases high levels of anti-cancerous polyphenols
Scientists are now hoping to use the results to study the effect that rhubarb’s antioxidants may play in treating leukemia
Keeps cells healthy
The antioxidant vitamin C in rhubarb helps to prevent harmful free radicals that are produced by the body’s digestive process and by exposure to tobacco smoke, radiation, and other environmental toxins
Helps control blood pressure
The potassium in rhubarb lessens the effects of sodium in raising blood pressure

Health Risks

Poisonous
If eaten, rhubarb leaves (not the stalks) cause oxalic acid poisoning
Symptoms can include difficulty breathing, vomiting, and diarrhea
It would take a great deal of leaves for the poisoning to be fatal
The rhubarb stalks are perfectly safe to eat
Mineral absorption
Even though one 1 cup (244 g) of fresh diced rhubarb contains more than 100 mg of calcium, it is not considered a good source of this mineral
That’s because rhubarb also contains oxalic acid, which blocks the absorption of calcium needed for healthy bones and teeth
Kidney stones or gallstones
Large amounts of rhubarb should be avoided by those who have a tendency to develop oxalate-containing kidney stones or gallstones

Allergies

Cook equal parts of chopped rhubarb and dates for a spread

Replace berries with finely chopped rhubarb in muffins

Add some rhubarb to a pork and vegetable ragout

Buying Tip

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Choose firm, blemish-free red stalks with red flesh

Storing Tips

Cut off the leaves (if attached) and discard

Wash the knife with hot soapy water to make sure no poisonous residue from the leaves remains

Wash the stalks in cold water, then pat dry

Store in a plastic bag in the refrigerator crisper
Use within 1 week

Do not use if the stalks become mushy or discolored

Freeze rhubarb for future use by washing the stalks and cutting them into ½-in pieces
Pack the pieces into a sealed plastic container and freeze for up to 1 year