Is water cress more healthy than mustard cress or land cress?

[Nick Blair]

Is water cress more healthy than mustard cress or land cress?

Watercress is said to be a superfood, full of vitamins. The other types don't seem to have the same reputation. Is it because water cress is better?

I prefer mustard cress and land cress.

[solway cropper]

It's not healthy if you gather it from streams running through fields which have livestock in them, especially sheep.

The notion of superfoods is just marketing hype so they can charge more for something. Compare the price of a blueberry and a blackcurrant bush and you'll see what I mean. Both fruits are equally good for you.

[Nick Blair]

It's not healthy if you gather it from streams running through fields which have livestock in them, especially sheep.

The notion of superfoods is just marketing hype so they can charge more for something. Compare the price of a blueberry and a blackcurrant bush and you'll see what I mean. Both fruits are equally good for you.

A book I was reading claimed that water cress is one of the best foods; it claims that it contains over 15 vitamins.

I heard of liver flook but I think water cress from garden and supermarket is safe.

[maypril]

Is water cress more healthy than mustard cress or land cress?

Every year, people are trying to promote some brand new 'superfood', it's all a load of b*****ks! As science progresses, we'll learn more and more about the nutrition in foods, and the press make a big ballyhoo about each development as it occurs. Lately it's all been about 'antioxidants', we've had superfood hype about whole grains, Omega-3, various vitamins, polyunsaturated fats, once, believe it or not, we even had hype about how hydrogenated fats were good for us (sponsored by the margerine industry of course)!

The truth is that most foods have benefits and a lot of them also have toxins too, in one form or another. If you eat a varied and balanced diet and then you will get a good share of what's good for you and any bad stuff and toxins will be of such low concentrations that it won't do any harm.

I think it does help to keep yourself grounded in science, that way you'll have a better idea of what is hype and what is real science. The key thing is to eat as much variety as you can. If you really don't like it, then don't eat it. If you prefer watercress to mustard then eat watercress, if you prefer land cress then eat that. Just don't pig out on one type of food continuously, eat a varied diet!

Don't get hung up about what advertising sponsored magazines are trying to sell to you. Just use a bit of common sense!

Most of the crap about 'superfoods' you read in the non-scientific literature is sponsored somewhere along the line by someone that is set to make money from you buying into said superfood. In the scientific literature you wont see such hype-loaded terms as 'superfood'.

[maypril]

A book I was reading claimed that water cress is one of the best foods; it claims that it contains over 15 vitamins.

WOW FIFTEEN!!!!!!

I gather this book told you which vitamins they were and the concentrations of each is a sound, scientific fashion?

[Nick Blair]

WOW FIFTEEN!!!!!!

I gather this book told you which vitamins they were and the concentrations of each is a sound, scientific fashion?

I have not found that anywhere but would it good for their reputation to lie?

One book I got names some vitamins and minarals but not all.

Would it be legal for them to claim water cress has a lot more vitamins than is true by science and analysis?

[Nick Blair]

I found this: Watercress nutritional analysis

[Sheikh Yerboutti]

Its fantastic for water purification. Ive got it growing in my duckpond filter and Ive never seen the water so crystal clear. Before, with just gravel in the filter tank, the water was allways cloudy with suspended matter. The cress is growing like crazy too so obviously it likes duck $h1te

[Nick Blair]

An interesting article in the Jewish Chornicle.

Time to fress on cress | The Jewish Chronicle

"No vegetable packs a bigger nutritional punch than watercress" Is argued in this article.

[taff]

I think you may be putting too much faith in newspaper articles nick.
The only bit that discusses it's properties is the second paragraph, but it just says it has more calcium/vitamin c by weight than milk/orange. It doesn't make any other comparison, if any other vegetable/leaf has more than that or not.
All the history stuff is just that, history. It doesn't tell you Egyptians made poultices out of river mud or that Greeks made them out of mouse droppings, so it's all selective to argue their point.

It's all done by weight in the nutitional analysis thing isn't it? 80g of watercress v 80g of whatever. Get 2 plates, put 80g of watercress on one, 80g of broccoli/whatever on the other, see which one it's more feasible to eat regularly, and which one is cheaper to buy...

[womble]

I read somewhere that they are going to ban foods being sold as a superfood, as it has no meaning, or something like that.
I suspect plants may still be sold using it Isn't it every year we have a "new" superfood must buy, berry plant?

[snakeshack]

watercress grows real fast in my pond I pull it out by the binbag every couple of weeks,the chooks like it and it's a good compost activator.All this because I put in one sprig of watercress from the supermarket 2 years ago,nothing shifts it but I must admit it does help the pond clear,probably because of the speed of nutrient extraction to produce all that lush growth.