Bok Choy: Nutritional Facts, Health Benefits and Much More

Bok Choy also known as Pok Choi, pak choi, or pichay is a kind of Chinese cabbage.  Bok choy is mostly consumed as a fresh leafy vegetable in dishes such as salads & the popular Korean kimchi dish. In addition, it is used as a proper cooked vegetable in several dishes as well.

Preparation of bok choy is 5 minutes job; all you need to do is cut the bok choy in half, then rinse it under the faucet. If you have a regular size bok choy in your hands, you can cut a small portion from the base and then pick the individual leaves. Baby bok choy can be cooked as halves, but we recommend taking individual leaves, rinse, and then cooking the same like Indian cabbage. You can also use the raw bok choy leaves to prepare salad and soup. 

Nutritional facts of bok choy per 100 grams 

Calories: 13 

Total Fat: 0.3 grams 

Cholesterol: 0% 

Sodium: 65 mg or 2% 

Potassium: 252 mg or 7% 

Total Carbohydrate: 2.2 grams 

Dietary fibre: 1 gram 

Sugar: 1.2 grams 

Protein: 1.5 grams 

Vitamin A: 89% 

Calcium: 10% 

Vitamin C: 75% 

Iron: 4% 

Vitamin B-6: 10% 

You can say it’s a power pack of vitamins, calcium, potassium, and sodium. 

Benefits of Bok Choy 

Reduce the risk of Heart Disease

Bok Choy contains folate and vitamin B6. These nutrients help to remove homocysteine from your blood. Excess homocysteine can damage the blood vessels and increases the risk of heart problems. Studies show that from leafy green vegetables, you will get high nutrients from leafy green vegetables, including cruciferous vegetables, that lower the risk of heart disease.  

Helps in prevention of Cancer 

Bok choy has full of cancer-fighting compounds such as Vitamin C and E, beta carotene, folate, and selenium. Vitamins and beta-carotene are potent antioxidants that can help prevent cell damage from free radicals, which may lower cancer risk. Selenium helps to slow down the growth of tumors. Bok choy is an excellent source of fibre, which keeps your digestive system healthy and may help to avert colon cancer. 

Fights Inflammation 

Like Indian dark, leafy green vegetables, bok choy is a magnificent source of flavonoid quercetin. Quercetin can reduce inflammation in the body, which reduces the risk of several chronic health issues such as heart disease, diabetes, and Cancer. 

Keeps Skin Healthy 

Bok choy contains vitamin C, which is the best antioxidant known for fighting free radicals. It may reduce the risk of damage to your skin from the sun, pollution, and smoke. Vitamin C produces natural collagen and helps fight signs of aging, such as fine lines and wrinkles. 

Boost Immunity 

The selenium in Bok choy helps to boost the immune system of a body. It helps to develop and fight effectively with harmful bacteria and viruses. 

Ensures healthy pregnancy 

During pregnancy, the requirement of folate gets doubled. Insufficient folate in the body can lead to complications like spina bifida and anencephaly. Adding bok choy leaves to your diet helps to satisfy the folate needs in pregnant women. 

If you want to add bok choy to your diet, you have to buy the same from the supermarket as it is not available in Indian local vegetable markets.  

If we compare spinach and bok choy, we can find that bok choy contains more vitamin C, vitamin A, and some other nutrients than spinach and the almost exact amount of calcium. However, spinach consists higher amount of other nutrients, including vitamin K, than bok choy.