Here are a couple more veggies with health benefits: onions and cucumbers — who knew!

Value: In addition to their health benefits, they add flavor to foods.


Nutrients: A half cup is a good source of vitamin C (10 percent of the recommended daily value) and also contains potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and dietary fiber.


Health Perks: Onions contain more quercetin - an antioxidant linked to reducing the risk of heart disease, Alzheimer's, prostatitis and a variety of cancers - than any other common fruit or vegetable. Onions also contain disulfides, trisulfides, cepaene and vinyl dithiins, all phytochemicals known for their anticancer and antimicrobial properties. And, according to researchers at University of Wisconsin-Madison, onions also show anti-platelet activity (platelet accumulation is linked to heart disease), and also may protect against gastric ulcers by preventing growth of Helicobacter pylori, a microorganism.

Finally, onions contain inulin, a probiotic fiber that can selectively improve the proportion of good bacteria in the colon. “These ‘good' gut bugs, as well as providing a physical barrier to infection, have been linked to improved absorption of important minerals like calcium and magnesium,” says Nicholas D. Gillitt, a nutrition researcher at Dole Nutrition Institute.


Nutrition Stats: Serving size: ½ cup, chopped (80g), 32 calories, 0.08g fat, 7.47g carbs, 1.4g dietary fiber, 0.88g protein.

Value: A half cup of sliced cucumber has less than 10 calories.


Nutrients: One 8 ¼ -inch cucumber has 1.5 grams of fiber and is a good source of vitamin C (14 percent of the recommended daily value). It also contains thiamin, riboflavin, niacin and vitamin B6 — all essential for cell metabolism, red blood cell production and a healthy immune system. It's also a source of vitamin A, which might help with eye health and reduce the risk of heart disease. Cucumbers also have a decent amount of calcium, iron , magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, zinc and copper.


Health Perks: One cucumber has about one-third the recommended dose of vitamin K, which is required to make proteins essential for bone formation. “Studies have also linked diets adequate in vitamin K with a reduced risk of hip fracture in the elderly,” says Gillitt.


Nutrition Stats: Serving size: one cucumber (8¼ inches), 45 calories, 0.33g fat, 10.93g carbs, 1.5g fiber, 1.96g protein.