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# Benefits of eating a few leafy greens
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/benefits-of-eating-a-few-leafy-greens/
- Published: 2008-04-10T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T23:52:48.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Opinion, Main St, #archive-import

*By Elizabeth Brown Kitchen Vixen ELIZABETH BROWN is a registered dietitian, certified holistic chef and weight management specialist in Santa Monica. She*

KERMIT THE FROG SANG ABOUT BEING green and how it’s not so easy, yet, he pulled it off. He was green, and proud, and in love with a pig? I am not asking you to hit the tanning salon or roll around in a pig pen. I am simply asking you to try to eat green — more green vegetables that is. I know, I sound like your mother, right? But I am not your mother. I am simply a concerned dietitian.

I have always felt that leafy green vegetables were the best food on this planet because they have the ability to harness energy from the sun and turn it into energy for the growing plant. Imagine being able to harness the energy of the sun to help your own body grow and repair itself. Well, you can’t, sorry, but you can eat leafy greens and get the next best thing.

Knowing that greens are so great and that eating more would be most beneficial to health, I have been trying to come up with clever ways to do so. So, I decided to buy a book all about juicing greens aptly named, “Green for Life.” This book is off the hook. These people literally live on these green gook concoctions which incorporate greens from every walk of life and even from the cracks in the sidewalk. Weeds are actually really nutritious. That does not mean you should walk down Main Street and pick your salad ingredients along the way. But you might want to do as I do and think about more creative ways to eat more greens.

I also have another goal which is to get more Omega-3 rich foods in my diet. I recently learned that romaine lettuce is a good source of the essential Omega-3 fatty acid called Alpha-Linolenic-Acid or ALA. Romaine is a cold weather plant meaning that it does well in the cold and does not have to be protected from harsh climates. Those plants that adapt well under extreme conditions (weeds are another example) tend to be higher in Omega-3 Fatty Acids.

The Omega-3’s make the plant’s cell walls more pliable or flexible so that they can bend and adjust to various climates. This “flexibility” also allows for quick delivery of nutrients in and out of the plant’s cells. Omega- 3’s work the same way in your body cells, too. Omega-3’s tend be found in higher concentrations in cells that require rapid response such as the cells in the brain, the eyes, the heart, and the muscles of trained athletes where “flexibility” and rapid responses are a must.

The current ratio of Omega-6 to Omega- 3 fats in the typical American diet is 15:1 but the ideal goal is 2 or 3:1\. This Omega-3 Rich recipe gives you a ratio of 1:4\. Yes, it is a reverse increase. There are four times as many Omega-3’s as there are Omega-6’s. The problem with the current excess of Omega-6’s is that these types of fats cause clotting and inflammation, both of which are necessary to protect the body, but detrimental in the long run because excessive clotting can cause a heart attack or stroke and chronic inflammation can lead to chronic problems such as heart disease. We need more Omega-3 fats to help the body achieve more of a balance. So drink or eat up and enjoy the balanced way you will feel from the inside out!

Knowing that romaine is a good source of some Omega-3’s and having that goal of eating more greens, perhaps now you will be more motivated to try one of these recipes to help you get started. You can juice your greens for quick greens-on-the-go, or use the same ingredients to make a salad topped with balsamic vinaigrette. Either way you are now on your way to eating green.

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 10, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/041008.pdf?ref=smdp.com)