Spring is finally in the air! Well, sort of. While Mother Nature seems to be struggling with a severe case of indecisiveness, we can all feel more “spring-y” with the foods we eat. When I think of spring, I think of green vegetables. We are constantly encouraged to incorporate more greens in our diet, and spring is the perfect time to do that, especially because they will help make those summer bodies! Asparagus is the number one vegetable that screams SPRING! in my book and it has lots of benefits.

Benefits of Asparagus:

• Rich inVitamin K, which helps protect blood, bone, and heart health

• It’s a natural diuretic, so bye-bye bloating

• Is anti-inflammatory

• Has antioxidant properties

• Rich in folate so eat up, pregos, because folic acid is very important for a healthy bun in the oven

• Has lots of soluble fiber, which helps lower heart disease

• Rich in Vitamin B, the “energy vitamin”

• Helps fight cancer

Pee-ew!

Even though there are clearly many benefits to eating asparagus, just beware of a not-so-pleasant side-effect. Asparagus is known to give urine a foul odor. The sulfurous amino acids break down during digestion and transform into smelly chemical components, which are airborne, making us able to smell it.

Fun Fact:   While asparagus is the primary scapegoat, other vegetables can cause urine to have foul odor, too. Cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, cauliflower or Brussels sprouts and garlic also contribute to smelly urine. And HELLO pink-ish urine from wayyyy too many beets! LOL This urine may not be stinky but def a nice pretty hue (or just enough of a tint, that the first time you experience this, it is enough to give you a heart attack and think that you are bleeding internally LOL).TMI?! Just keeping it real, bc this gal LOVES beets!

Bottom Line

You shouldn’t banish asparagus from your diet just because of a minor drawback. It’s a great springtime vegetable with lots of benefits, and not to mention delicious!

Here’s an asparagus dish that my clients (and I) love:

Spring Veggie Quinoa

A lovely blend of quinoa, sweet peas, roasted asparagus, wilted spinach, arugula, tarragon, thyme, parsley, sliced almonds and parsley tossed in a Dijon/cider dressing.

What’s your favorite spring vegetable?

Sources:

https://draxe.com/asparagus-nutrition/

https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/features/why-pee-smells-funny-eat-asparagus