Some words are always hard to pronounce…the Irish girl’s name Siobhan (Shivone) as in Siobhan Dervan, 4-time Irish National Road Race Champion; Worcestershire (worster-sheer) sauce, which left New Jersey chef Pasquale Schiarappa tongue-tied in a cooking video viewed more than 1 million times on YouTube; and the latest trendy pseudo-grain, quinoa (pronounced keen-wah).
But no matter how you say quinoa, its nutritional virtues are loud and clear. One study done by Rutgers University and international partners reports that quinoa contains a lot of health-beneficial phytochemicals, including amino acids, fiber, polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, (and say these next ones correctly) phytoecdysteroids, phenolics and glycine betaine. Plus they cite four clinical studies that say supplementing your diet with quinoa “exerts significant, positive effects on metabolic, cardiovascular, and gastrointestinal health…”
- Protein: It’s got more than barley, oat, rice and maize and delivers more than 180% of the daily recommended intake of 10 essential amino acids.
- Fiber: It’s 10% dietary fiber—and fiber boosts your digestive health, lowers lousy LDL cholesterol and helps control your appetite.
- Healthy Fats: Quinoa delivers anti-inflammatory omega-3 and omega-6 in a good ratio.
- Vitamins and Minerals:You’ll get a good dose of A, Bs, C and E. Plus more minerals, such as calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium and zinc, than in rice or wheat.
- Odd Stuff: Contains phytoecdysteroids that may help build muscle; phenolics that have anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antidiabetic, anti-obesity and cardio-protective effects; glycine betaine, an amino acid, helps manage diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease. Now that’s a mouthful.
Medically reviewed in November 2018.
