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Health Benefits of Spinach for Dogs, Cats and Us
Can dogs eat spinach? Can cats eat spinach? You bet!
Happy National Spinach Day! The creators of Popeye weren’t wrong when they choose spinach as Popeye’s superfood. When choosing healthy foods for our pets and ourselves, remember that leafy greens such as spinach contain a lot of health benefits for dogs, cats, and ourselves. I’ll discuss some of the health benefits of spinach.
Spinach Health Benefits
Spinach contains high amounts of phytonutrients or “phyto.” Phytonutrients help in preventing disease. There are more than 25,000 phytonutrients, including flavonoids. Spinach is high in flavonoids, which help fight inflammation and cancer.
Spinach is also high in antioxidants, calcium, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, and vitamin K. Toss in a good portion of manganese, zinc, iron, and selenium, and it’s no wonder spinach is a superfood. Spinach also contains a good amount of lutein and zeaxanthin, which help support eye health. Spinach is one of the richest vegetables in vitamin K, which helps maintain good bone health.
Look at spinach through the eyes of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Spinach is energetically cooling to the body. Spinach also nourishes the Blood. From a TCM perspective, Blood is responsible for keeping the body nourished and maintaining a healthy mind, memory, and spirit. It also aids in restful sleep and helps keep us calm and clear-headed. Spinach also strengthens the digestive system and helps regulate normal bowel movements. Now we can see why Popeye loved his spinach so much!
Spinach does have a high oxalate content. Although oxalates are found in a variety of healthy foods, they can become a problem if they are over-consumed, causing kidney problems such as oxalate kidney stones. One way you can reduce the oxalate content in spinach is to boil the spinach for 1 minute and discard the water. If you or your pet is prone to stones or kidney disease, please speak with your veterinarian or doctor. As with most things, being healthy is about moderation.
Do you or your pets eat spinach regularly? Tell me in the comments.
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I buy a lot of spinach for our family. The people, dogs, tortoise, and rabbit all enjoy it, but our cat just isn’t into spinach.
Hehe The only way I can get my cat to eat spinach is when it’s cooked in his home cooked meals. 🙂