What are nootropics and do they really boost your brain?

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Humans have long been searching for a “magic elixir” to make us smarter, and improve our focus and memory. This includes traditional Chinese medicine used thousands of years ago to improve cognitive function.

Now we have nootropics, also known as smart drugs, brain boosters or cognitive enhancers.

You can buy these gummies, chewing gums, pills and skin patches online, or from supermarkets, pharmacies or petrol stations. You don’t need a prescription or to consult a health professional.

But do nootropics actually boost your brain? Here’s what the science says.

LuckyStep/Shutterstock

What are nootropics and how do they work?

Romanian psychologist and chemist Cornelius E. Giurgea coined the term nootropics in the early 1970s to describe compounds that may boost memory and learning. The term comes from the Greek words nӧos (thinking) and tropein (guide).

Nootropics may work in the brain by improving transmission of signals between nerve cells, maintaining the health of nerve cells, and helping in energy production. Some nootropics have antioxidant properties and may reduce damage to nerve cells in the brain caused by the accumulation of free radicals.

But how safe and effective are they? Let’s look at four of the most widely used nootropics.

1. Caffeine

You might be surprised to know caffeine is a nootropic. No wonder so many of us start our day with a coffee. It stimulates our nervous system.

Caffeine is rapidly absorbed into the blood and distributed in nearly all human tissues. This includes the brain where it increases our alertness, reaction time and mood, and we feel as if we have more energy.

For caffeine to have these effects, you need to consume 32-300 milligrams in a single dose. That’s equivalent to around two espressos (for the 300mg dose). So, why the wide range? Genetic variations in a particular gene (the CYP1A2 gene) can affect how fast you metabolise caffeine. So this can explain why some people need more caffeine than others to recognise any neurostimulant effect.

Unfortunately too much caffeine can lead to anxiety-like symptoms and panic attacks, sleep disturbances, hallucinations, gut disturbances and heart problems.

So it’s recommended adults drink no more than 400mg caffeine a day, the equivalent of up to three espressos.

Two blue coffee cups on wooden table, one with coffee art, the other empty
Caffeine can make you feel alert and can boost your mood. That makes it a nootropic. LHshooter/Shutterstock

2. L-theanine

L-theanine comes as a supplement, chewing gum or in a beverage. It’s also the most common amino acid in green tea.

Consuming L-theanine as a supplement may increase production of alpha waves in the brain. These are associated with increased alertness and perception of calmness.

However, it’s effect on cognitive functioning is still unclear. Various studies including those comparing a single dose with a daily dose for several weeks, and in different populations, show different outcomes.

But taking L-theanine with caffeine as a supplement improved cognitive performance and alertness in one study. Young adults who consumed L-theanine (97mg) plus caffeine (40mg) could more accurately switch between tasks after a single dose, and said they were more alert.

Another study of people who took L-theanine with caffeine at similar doses to the study above found improvements in several cognitive outcomes, including being less susceptible to distraction.

Although pure L-theanine is well tolerated, there are still relatively few human trials to show it works or is safe over a prolonged period of time. Larger and longer studies examining the optimal dose are also needed.

Two clear mugs of green tea, with leaves on wooden table
The amino acid L-theanine is also in green tea. grafvision/Shutterstock

3. Ashwaghanda

Ashwaghanda is a plant extract commonly used in Indian Ayurvedic medicine for improving memory and cognitive function.

In one study, 225-400mg daily for 30 days improved cognitive performance in healthy males. There were significant improvements in cognitive flexibility (the ability to switch tasks), visual memory (recalling an image), reaction time (response to a stimulus) and executive functioning (recognising rules and categories, and managing rapid decision making).

There are similar effects in older adults with mild cognitive impairment.

But we should be cautious about results from studies using Ashwaghanda supplements; the studies are relatively small and only treated participants for a short time.

Ashwagandha is a plant extract
Ashwaghanda is a plant extract commonly used in Ayurvedic medicine. Agnieszka Kwiecień, Nova/Wikimedia, CC BY-SA

4. Creatine

Creatine is an organic compound involved in how the body generates energy and is used as a sports supplement. But it also has cognitive effects.

In a review of available evidence, healthy adults aged 66-76 who took creatine supplements had improved short-term memory.

Long-term supplementation may also have benefits. In another study, people with fatigue after COVID took 4g a day of creatine for six months and reported they were better able to concentrate, and were less fatigued. Creatine may reduce brain inflammation and oxidative stress, to improve cognitive performance and reduce fatigue.

Side effects of creatine supplements in studies are rarely reported. But they include weight gain, gastrointestinal upset and changes in the liver and kidneys.

Where to now?

There is good evidence for brain boosting effects of caffeine and creatine. But the jury is still out on the efficacy, optimal dose and safety of most other nootropics.

So until we have more evidence, consult your health professional before taking a nootropic.

But drinking your daily coffee isn’t likely to do much harm. Thank goodness, because for some of us, it is a magic elixir.

Nenad Naumovski, Professor in Food Science and Human Nutrition, University of Canberra; Amanda Bulman, PhD candidate studying the effects of nutrients on sleep, University of Canberra, and Andrew McKune, Professor, Exercise Science, University of Canberra

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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  • How To Rebuild Your Neurons’ Myelin Sheaths

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    PS: We Love You

    Phosphatidylserine, or “PS” for short, is a phospholipid found in the brain. In other words, a kind of fatty compound that is such stuff as our brains are made of.

    In particular, it’s required for healthy nerve cell membranes and myelin (the protective sheath that neurons live in—basically, myelin sheaths do for neurons what telomere caps do for DNA).

    For an overview that’s more comprehensive than we have room for here, check out:

    Phosphatidylserine and the human brain

    Many people take it as a supplement.

    Does taking it as a supplement work?

    This is a valid question, as a lot of supplements can’t be absorbed well, and/or can’t pass the blood-brain barrier. But, as the above-linked study notes:

    ❝Exogenous PS (300-800 mg/d) is absorbed efficiently in humans, crosses the blood-brain barrier, and safely slows, halts, or reverses biochemical alterations and structural deterioration in nerve cells. It supports human cognitive functions, including the formation of short-term memory, the consolidation of long-term memory, the ability to create new memories, the ability to retrieve memories, the ability to learn and recall information, the ability to focus attention and concentrate, the ability to reason and solve problems, language skills, and the ability to communicate. It also supports locomotor functions, especially rapid reactions and reflexes.❞

    ~ Glade & Smith.

    (“Exogenous” means “coming from outside of the body”, as opposed to “endogenous”, meaning “made inside the body”. Effectively, in this context “exogenous” means “taken as a supplement”.)

    Why do people take it?

    The health claims for phosphatidylserine fall into two main categories:

    1. Neuroprotection (helping your brain to avoid age-related decline in the long term)
    2. Cognitive enhancement (helping your brain work better in the short term)

    What does the science say?

    There’s a lot of science that’s been done on the neuroprotective properties of PS, and there are thousands of studies we could draw from here. The upshot is that regular phosphatidylserine supplementation (most often 300mg/day, but studies are also found for 100–500mg/day) is strongly associated with a reduction in cognitive decline over the course of 12 weeks (a common study duration). Here are a some spotlight studies showing this:

    Note: PS can be derived from various sources, with the two most common forms being bovine (i.e., from cow brains) or soy-derived.

    There is no established difference in the efficacy of these.

    There have been some concerns raised about the risk of CJD (the human form of BSE, as in “mad cow disease”) from consuming brain matter from cows, but studies have not found any evidence of this actually happening.

    There is also some evidence that phosphatidyserine significantly boosts cognitive performance, even in young people with no extant cognitive decline, for example:

    The effects of [phosphatidylserine supplementation] on cognitive function, mood and endocrine response before and following acute exercise

    (as the title suggests, they did also test for its effect on mood and endocrine response, but found it made no difference to those, just the cognitive function—which enjoyed a boost before exercise, as well as after it, meaning that the boost wasn’t dependent on the exercise)

    PS for cognitive enhancement in the young and healthy is not nearly so well-explored as its use as a later-life guard against age-related cognitive decline. However, just because the studies in younger people are dwarfed in number by the studies in older people, doesn’t detract from the validity of the studies in younger people.

    Basically: its use in older people has been studied the most, but all available evidence points to it being beneficial to brain health at all ages.

    Where can we get it?

    We don’t sell it (or anything else), but for your convenience, here’s an example product on Amazon.

    Enjoy!

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  • Luxurious Longevity Risotto

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Pearl barley is not only tasty and fiber-rich, but also, it contains propionic acid, which lowers cholesterol. The fiber content also lowers cholesterol too, of course, by the usual mechanism. The dish’s health benefits don’t end there, though; check out the science section at the end of the recipe!

    You will need

    • 2 cups pearl barley
    • 3 cups sliced chestnut mushrooms
    • 2 onions, finely chopped
    • 6 large leaves collard greens, shredded
    • ½ bulb garlic, finely chopped
    • 8 spring onions, sliced
    • 1½ quarts low-sodium vegetable stock
    • 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
    • 1 tbsp chia seeds
    • 1 tbsp black pepper, coarse ground
    • 1 tsp MSG or 2 tsp low-sodium salt
    • 1 tsp rosemary
    • 1 tsp thyme
    • Extra virgin olive oil, for cooking
    • Optional garnish: fresh basil leaves

    Method

    (we suggest you read everything at least once before doing anything)

    1) Heat a little oil in a large sauté pan; add the onions and garlic and cook for 5 minutes; add the mushrooms and cook for another 5 minutes.

    2) Add the pearl barley and a cup of the vegetable stock. Cook, stirring, until the liquid is nearly all absorbed, and add more stock every few minutes, as per any other risotto. You may or may not use all the stock you had ready. Pearl barley takes longer to cook than rice, so be patient—it’ll be worth the wait!

    Alternative: an alternative is to use a slow cooker, adding a quart of the stock at once and coming back about 4 hours later—thus, it’ll take a lot longer, but will require minimal/no supervision.

    3) When the pearl barley has softened, become pearl-like, and the dish is taking on a creamy texture, stir in the rest of the ingredients. Once the greens have softened, the dish is done, and it’s time to serve. Add the garnish if using one:

    Enjoy!

    Want to learn more?

    For those interested in some of the science of what we have going on today:

    Take care!

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  • Why the WHO has recommended switching to a healthier salt alternative

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    This week the World Health Organization (WHO) released new guidelines recommending people switch the regular salt they use at home for substitutes containing less sodium.

    But what exactly are these salt alternatives? And why is the WHO recommending this? Let’s take a look.

    goodbishop/Shutterstock

    A new solution to an old problem

    Advice to eat less salt (sodium chloride) is not new. It has been part of international and Australian guidelines for decades. This is because evidence clearly shows the sodium in salt can harm our health when we eat too much of it.

    Excess sodium increases the risk of high blood pressure, which affects millions of Australians (around one in three adults). High blood pressure (hypertension) in turn increases the risk of heart disease, stroke and kidney disease, among other conditions.

    The WHO estimates 1.9 million deaths globally each year can be attributed to eating too much salt.

    The WHO recommends consuming no more than 2g of sodium daily. However people eat on average more than double this, around 4.3g a day.

    In 2013, WHO member states committed to reducing population sodium intake by 30% by 2025. But cutting salt intake has proved very hard. Most countries, including Australia, will not meet the WHO’s goal for reducing sodium intake by 2025. The WHO has since set the same target for 2030.

    The difficulty is that eating less salt means accepting a less salty taste. It also requires changes to established ways of preparing food. This has proved too much to ask of people making food at home, and too much for the food industry.

    A salt shaker spilling onto a table.
    There’s been little progress on efforts to cut sodium intake. snezhana k/Shutterstock

    Enter potassium-enriched salt

    The main lower-sodium salt substitute is called potassium-enriched salt. This is salt where some of the sodium chloride has been replaced with potassium chloride.

    Potassium is an essential mineral, playing a key role in all the body’s functions. The high potassium content of fresh fruit and vegetables is one of the main reasons they’re so good for you. While people are eating more sodium than they should, many don’t get enough potassium.

    The WHO recommends a daily potassium intake of 3.5g, but on the whole, people in most countries consume significantly less than this.

    Potassium-enriched salt benefits our health by cutting the amount of sodium we consume, and increasing the amount of potassium in our diets. Both help to lower blood pressure.

    Switching regular salt for potassium-enriched salt has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke and premature death in large trials around the world.

    Modelling studies have projected that population-wide switches to potassium-enriched salt use would prevent hundreds of thousands of deaths from cardiovascular disease (such as heart attack and stroke) each year in China and India alone.

    The key advantage of switching rather than cutting salt intake is that potassium-enriched salt can be used as a direct one-for-one swap for regular salt. It looks the same, works for seasoning and in recipes, and most people don’t notice any important difference in taste.

    In the largest trial of potassium-enriched salt to date, more than 90% of people were still using the product after five years.

    A female nurse taking a senior man's blood pressure.
    Excess sodium intake increases the risk of high blood pressure, which can cause a range of health problems. PeopleImages.com – Yuri A/Shutterstock

    Making the switch: some challenges

    If fully implemented, this could be one of the most consequential pieces of advice the WHO has ever provided.

    Millions of strokes and heart attacks could be prevented worldwide each year with a simple switch to the way we prepare foods. But there are some obstacles to overcome before we get to this point.

    First, it will be important to balance the benefits and the risks. For example, people with advanced kidney disease don’t handle potassium well and so these products are not suitable for them. This is only a small proportion of the population, but we need to ensure potassium-enriched salt products are labelled with appropriate warnings.

    A key challenge will be making potassium-enriched salt more affordable and accessible. Potassium chloride is more expensive to produce than sodium chloride, and at present, potassium-enriched salt is mostly sold as a niche health product at a premium price.

    If you’re looking for it, salt substitutes may also be called low-sodium salt, potassium salt, heart salt, mineral salt, or sodium-reduced salt.

    A review published in 2021 found low sodium salts were marketed in only 47 countries, mostly high-income ones. Prices ranged from the same as regular salt to almost 15 times higher.

    An expanded supply chain that produces much more food-grade potassium chloride will be needed to enable wider availability of the product. And we’ll need to see potassium-enriched salt on the shelves next to regular salt so it’s easy for people to find.

    In countries like Australia, about 80% of the salt we eat comes from processed foods. The WHO guideline falls short by not explicitly prioritising a switch for the salt used in food manufacturing.

    Stakeholders working with government to encourage food industry uptake will be essential for maximising the health benefits.

    Xiaoyue (Luna) Xu, Scientia Lecturer, School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney and Bruce Neal, Executive Director, George Institute Australia, George Institute for Global Health

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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  • Why You Can’t Skimp On Amino Acids

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Our body requires 20 amino acids (the building blocks of protein), 9 of which it can’t synthesize (thus called: “essential”) and absolutely must get from food. Normally, we get these amino acids from protein in our diet, and we can also supplement them by taking amino acid supplements if we wish.

    Specifically, we require (per kg of bodyweight) a daily average of:

    1. Histidine: 10 mg
    2. Isoleucine: 20 mg
    3. Leucine: 39 mg
    4. Lysine: 30 mg
    5. Methionine: 10.4 mg
    6. Phenylalanine*: 25 mg
    7. Threonine: 15 mg
    8. Tryptophan: 4 mg
    9. Valine: 26 mg

    *combined with the non-essential amino acid tyrosine

    Source: Protein and Amino Acid Requirements In Human Nutrition: WHO Technical Report

    Why this matters

    A lot of attention is given to protein, and making sure we get enough of it, especially as we get older, because the risk of sarcopenia (muscle mass loss) increases with age:

    Protein vs Sarcopenia

    However, not every protein comes with a complete set of essential amino acids, and/or have only trace amounts of of some amino acids, meaning that a dietary deficiency can arrive if one’s diet is too restrictive.

    And, if we become deficient in even just one amino acid, then bad things start to happen quite soon. We only have so much space, so we’re going to oversimplify here, but:

    1. Histidine: is needed to produce histamine (vital for immune responses, amongst other things), and is also important for maintaining the myelin sheaths on nerve cells.
    2. Isoleucine: is very involved in muscle metabolism and makes up the bulk of muscle tissue.
    3. Leucine: is critical for muscle synthesis and repair, as well as wound healing in general, and blood sugar regulation.
    4. Lysine: is also critical in muscle synthesis, as well as calcium absorption and hormone production, as well as making collagen.
    5. Methionine: is very important for energy metabolism, zinc absorption, and detoxification.
    6. Phenylalanine: is a necessary building block of a lot of neurotransmitters, as well as being a building block of some amino acids not listed here (i.e., the ones your body synthesizes, but can’t without phenylalanine).
    7. Threonine: is mostly about collagen and elastin production, and is also very important for your joints, as well as fat metabolism.
    8. Tryptophan: is the body’s primary precursor to serotonin, so good luck making the latter without the former.
    9. Valine: is mostly about muscle growth and regeneration.

    So there you see, the ill effects of deficiency can range from “muscle atrophy” to “brain stops working” and “bones fall apart” and more. In short, any essential amino acid deficiency not remedied will ultimately result in death; we literally become non-viable as organisms without these 9 things.

    What to do about it (the “life hack” part)

    Firstly, if you eat a lot of animal products, those are “complete” proteins, meaning that they contain all 9 essential amino acids in sensible quantities. The reason that all animal products have these, is because they are just as essential for the other animals as they are for us, so they, just like us, must consume (and thus contain) them.

    However, a lot of animal products come with other health risks:

    Do We Need Animal Products To Be Healthy? ← this covers which animal products are definitely very health-risky, and which are probably fine according to current best science

    …so many people may prefer to get more (or possibly all) dietary protein from plants.

    However, plants, unlike us, do not need to consume all 9 essential amino acids, and this may or may not contain them all.

    Soy is famously a “complete” protein insofar as it has all the amino acids we need.

    But what if you’re allergic to soy?

    Good news! Peas are also a “complete” protein and will do the job just fine. They’re also usually cheaper.

    Final note

    An oft-forgotten thing is that some other amino acids are “conditionally essential”, meaning that while we can technically synthesize them, sometimes we can’t synthesize enough and must get them from our diet.

    The conditions that trigger this “conditionally essential” status are usually such things as fighting a serious illness, recovering from a serious injury, or pregnancy—basically, things where your body has to work at 110% efficiency if it wants to get through it in one piece, and that extra 10% has to come from somewhere outside the body.

    Examples of commonly conditionally essential amino acids are arginine and glycine.

    Arginine is critical for a lot of cell-signalling processes as well as mitochondrial function, as well as being a precursor to other amino acids, including creatine.

    As for glycine?

    Check out: The Sweet Truth About Glycine

    Enjoy!

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  • The Kitchen Doctor

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    Dr. Rupy Aujla: The Kitchen Doctor

    This is Dr. Rupy Aujla, and he’s a medical doctor. He didn’t set out to become a “health influencer”.

    But then, a significant heart condition changed his life. Having a stronger motivation to learn more about nutritional medicine, he did a deep dive into the scientific literature, because that’s what you do when your life is on the line, especially if you’re a doctor!

    Using what he learned, he was able to reverse his condition using a food and lifestyle approach. Now, he devotes himself to sharing what he learned—and what he continues to learn as he goes along.

    One important thing he learned because of what happened to him, was that he hadn’t been paying enough attention to what his body was trying to tell him.

    He wants us to know about interoception—which isn’t a Chris Nolan movie. Rather, interoception is the sense of what is going on inside one’s own body.

    The counterpart of this is exteroception: our ability to perceive the outside world by means of our various senses.

    Interoception is still using the senses, but is sensing internal body sensations. Effectively, the brain interprets and integrates what happens in our organs.

    When interoception goes wrong, researchers found, it can lead to a greater likelihood of mental health problems. Having an anxiety disorder, depression, mood disorder, or an eating disorder often comes with difficulties in sensing what is going on inside the body.

    Improving our awareness of body cues

    Those same researchers suggested therapies and strategies aimed at improving awareness of mind-body connections. For example, mindfulness-based stress reduction, yoga, meditation and movement-based treatments. They could improve awareness of body cues by attending to sensations of breathing, cognitions and other body states.

    But where Dr. Aujla puts his focus is “the heart of the home”, the kitchen.

    The pleasure of food

    ❝Eating is not simply ingesting a mixture of nutrients. Otherwise, we would all be eating astronaut food. But food is not only a tool for health. It’s also an important pleasure in life, allowing us to connect to others, the present moment and nature.❞

    Dr. Rupy Aujla

    Dr. Aujla wants to help shift any idea of a separation between health and pleasure, because he believes in food as a positive route to well-being, joy and health. For him, it starts with self-awareness and acceptance of the sensory pleasures of eating and nourishing our bodies, instead of focusing externally on avoiding perceived temptations.

    Most importantly:

    We can use the pleasure of food as an ally to healthy eating.

    Instead of spending our time and energy fighting the urge to eat unhealthy things that may present a “quick fix” to some cravings but aren’t what our body actually wants, needs, Dr. Aujla advises us to pay just a little more attention, to make sure the body’s real needs are met.

    His top tips for such are:

    • Create an enjoyable relaxing eating environment

    To help cultivate positive emotions around food and signal to the nervous system a shift to food-processing time. Try setting the table with nothing else on it beyond what’s relevant to the dinner, putting away distractions, using your favorite plates, tablecloth, etc.

    • Take 3 deep abdominal breaths before eating

    To help you relax and ground yourself in the present moment, which in turn is to prepare your digestive system to receive and digest food.

    • Pay attention to the way you sit

    Take some time to sit comfortably with your feet grounded on the floor, not slouching, to give your stomach space to digest the food.

    • Appreciate what it took to bring this food to your plate

    Who was involved in the growing process and production, the weather and soil it took to grow the food, and where in the world it came from.

    • Enjoy the sensations

    When you’re cooking, serving, and eating your food, be attentive to color, texture, aroma and even sound. Taste the individual ingredients and seasonings along the way, when safe and convenient to do so.

    • Journal

    If you like journaling, you can try adding a mindful eating section to that. Ask questions such as: “how did I feel before, during, and after the meal?”

    In closing…

    Remember that this is a process, not only on an individual level but as a society too.

    Oftentimes it’s hard to eat healthily… We can be given to wonder even “what is healthy, after all?”, and we can be limited by what is available, what is affordable, and what we have time to prepare.

    But if we make a conscious commitment to make the best choices we reasonably can as we go along, then small changes can soon add up.

    Interested in what kind of recipes Dr. Aujla goes for?

    Check out his recipe page here!

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  • Lettuce vs Arugula – Which is Healthier?

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    Our Verdict

    When comparing lettuce to arugula, we picked the arugula.

    Why?

    These two salad leaves that often fulfil quite similar culinary roles (base of a green salad) are actually of different families, and it shows…

    In terms of macros, arugula is lower in carbs, and much higher in protein and fiber—to the point that the protein content in arugula is almost equal to the carb content, which for leaves, is not that common a thing to see.

    When it comes to vitamins, things are more even: lettuce has more of vitamins A, B1, B3, B6, and K, while arugula has more of vitamins B5, B9, C, E, and choline. All in all, we can comfortably call it a tie on the vitamin front.

    In the category of minerals, things are once again more decided: arugula has more calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, and zinc. In contrast, lettuce boasts only more selenium. An easy win for arugula.

    Both of these plants have plenty of health-giving phytochemicals, including flavonoids and carotenoids along with other less talked-about things, and while the profiles are quite different for each of them, they stack up about the same in terms of overall benefits in this category.

    Taking the various categories into account, this of course adds up to an easy win for arugula, but do enjoy both, especially as lettuce brings benefits that arugula doesn’t in the two categories where they tied!

    Want to learn more?

    You might like to read:

    Take care!

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