Growing Edible Sprouts/Nutrition

Sprouts are often classified as herbs rather than vegetables in grocery stores in the United States, the assumption being that sprouts are used to provide flavor or texture to food, rather than being a significant part of a person's diet. Not all sprout varieties have been analyzed for nutritional content. Two types of sprouts, mung bean sprouts and alfalfa sprouts, are analyzed by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) for content of certain nutrients.http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/index.html The USDA analyzes food by weight and volume for specific nutrients considered essential to good health at certain levels. As is true with most edible plants, alfalfa sprouts and mung bean sprouts contain protein, carbohydrates, lipids (fats), minerals, vitamins, and other nutrients. Alfalfa sprouts weigh 33 grams (1.2 oz) per cup volume, and mung bean sprouts weigh 104 grams (3.7 oz) per cup volume. (Keep in mind that a cup volume is not the same as a liquid measure of one cup, which is 8 fluid ounces.) Mung bean sprouts, by weight and volume, have most nutrient values exceeding raw spinach, a vegetable high in most plant-based nutrients analyzed by the USDA. Alfalfa sprouts have four times the protein of iceberg lettuce by weight, but only twice its protein by volume. Lettuce has less vitamin C and more vitamin A than alfalfa sprouts. "Seeds that sprout in distilled water contain more potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium, and sulphur than before the seeds begin to sprout."http://www.falunau.org/insightsArticle.jsp?itemID=927 Note: It would be best to reference the original research that concluded this. Nutritional Content of Alfalfa Sprouts Comparing the nutrients in a cup of alfalfa sprouts to the nutrients in the same volume of lettuce or spinach will give you some idea how young leafy sprout nutrients compare to those in the mature leaves of commonly consumed plants. Alfalfa sprouts are higher in protein and lipids than lettuce and spinach greens, but alfalfa sprouts contain very little sugar. Alfalfa sprouts are a good source of phosphorus and zinc, but they are not an especially good source of calcium or iron. Alfalfa sprouts are not a good source of vitamins A, E or K, but the lipids in alfalfa sprouts are predominantly polyunsaturated. Alfalfa sprouts are not a good source of beta carotene. Alfalfa SproutsLettuce (Iceberg)SpinachUOM33 gm72 gm30 gmPROXIMATESWatergm30.6368.8627.42Energykcal8107Proteingm1.320.650.86Total lipid (fat)gm0.230.10.12Ashgm0.130.260.52Carbohydrate, by differencegm0.692.141.09Fiber, total dietarygm0.60.90.7Sugars, totalgm0.061.420.13Sucrosegm00.040.02Glucose (dextrose)gm0.030.660.03Fructosegm0.040.720.04Lactosegm000Maltosegm000Galactosegm000.03MINERALSCalcium (Ca)mg111330Iron (Fe)mg0.320.30.81Magnesium (Mg)mg9524Phosphorus (P)mg231415Potassium (K)mg26102167Sodium (Na)mg2724Zinc (Zn)mg0.30.110.16Copper (Cu)mg0.0520.0180.039Manganese (Mn)mg0.0620.090.269Selenium (Se)mcg0.20.10.3VITAMINSVitamin C, total ascorbic acidmg2.728.4Thiaminmg0.0250.030.023Riboflavinmg0.0420.0180.057Niacinmg0.1590.0890.217Pantothenic acid mg0.1860.0660.02Vitamin B-6mg0.0110.030.059Folate, total mcg122158Folic acid mcg000Folate, foodmcg122158Folate, DFEmcg_DFE122158Choline, totalmg4.84.85.4Betainemg0.10.1165.1Vitamin B-12mcg000Vitamin A (IU)IU513612813Vitamin A (RAE) mcg_RAE318141Retinol mcg000Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol)mg0.010.130.61Tocopherol, beta mg00Tocopherol, gammamg0.060.05Tocopherol, deltamg00Vitamin K (phylloquinone)mcg10.117.4144.9LIPIDSFatty acids, total saturatedgm0.0230.0130.019Fatty acids, total monounsaturated gm0.0180.0040.003Fatty acids, total polyunsaturatedgm0.1350.0530.05Cholesterol mg000Phytosterolsmg73AMINO ACIDSTryptophangm0.0060.012Threoninegm0.0440.0180.037Isoleucinegm0.0470.0130.044Leucinegm0.0880.0180.067Lysinegm0.0710.0170.052Methioninegm0.0040.016Cystinegm0.0040.011Phenylalaninegm0.0170.039Tyrosinegm0.0050.032Valinegm0.0480.0170.048Argininegm0.0110.049Histidinegm0.0060.019Alaninegm0.0180.043Aspartic acid gm0.090.072Glutamic acid gm0.140.103Glycine gm0.0110.04Prolinegm0.0070.034Serinegm0.0180.031OTHERCarotene, beta mcg292151688Carotene, alpha mcg230Cryptoxanthin, beta mcg200Lutein + zeaxanthin mcg01993659 Toxins in Sprouts Some legumes can contain toxins, which can be reduced by soaking, sprouting and cooking (e.g., stir frying). Joy Larkcom advises that to be on the safe side “one shouldn’t eat large quantities of raw legume sprouts on a regular basis, no more than about 550g (20oz) daily”.Larkcom, Joy Salads For Small Gardens, p.98 Hamlyn 1995 0-600-58509-3 Buckwheat greens contain fagopyrin, a naturally occurring substance in the buckwheat plant. When ingested in sufficient quantity, fagopyrin is known to cause the skin of animals and people to become phototoxic, which is to say hypersensitive to sunlight, particularly if juiced or eaten in large quantities.Arbour, Gilles essay http://www.gillesarbour.com/buckwheat_assets/Buckwheat%20Greens.pdf Arbour Gilles Are buckwheat greens toxic? Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients Find Articles December 2004 http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0ISW/is_257/ai_n7638045 2007-02-04 Footnotes