Whether served in a salad or added to your green smoothie, leafy greens are a nutritious part of a healthy diet, and pechay, better known as Chinese cabbage or bok choy, is no exception. As with other leafy green vegetables, Chinese cabbage is very low in calories and contains vitamins, minerals and other beneficial plant compounds that help keep you healthy.
High in Folic Acid
Just two cups of Chinese cabbage supplies almost a third of your daily folate requirement, about 120 micrograms. The daily recommended intake for folate is 400 micrograms for adults.
Folate is a B vitamin that helps your body convert carbohydrates from food into energy your cells can use for fuel. It's also necessary for your body to produce DNA, the molecular structure found in all of your cells.
Folate's role in fetal development makes it especially important for pregnant women, who should aim to get 400 to 800 micrograms of folate per day.
Rich in Vitamin K
Chinese cabbage is particularly rich in vitamin K, a family of fat-soluble vitamins that play a crucial role in blood clotting. Low levels of vitamin K increase the risk of uncontrolled bleeding. Thankfully, deficiencies are rare in adults. Leafy greens are rich in vitamin K and good amounts are found in other foods.
Digestive conditions that impact your ability to absorb fat-soluble vitamins, such as ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, increase the risk of vitamin K deficiency. Adequate intakes of vitamin K are set at 90 micrograms per day for women and 120 micrograms for men. A 2-cup serving of Chinese cabbage contains 64 micrograms of vitamin K.
Good Calcium Source
You need enough calcium in your diet to keep your bones strong. Along with vitamin D, calcium helps the body produce and maintain new bone and regulate the breakdown of old bone. If your body breaks down bone faster than it produces it, your bones are at risk of fracture.
It's recommended that you get 1,000 milligrams of calcium per day if you're under age 50 and 1,200 milligrams for women 50 and older. You need more calcium after 50 to compensate for declining estrogen levels, because estrogen helps protect hone health. A 2-cup serving of cabbage provides about 10 percent of the recommended intake of calcium.
Plant foods like Chinese cabbage provide fiber, a nutrient that Americans fail to get enough of. The recommended daily intake of fiber is 25 to 30 grams, but most people only manage to get half of that. Getting enough vegetables and fruits in your diet is an excellent way to meet your fiber requirements.
Fiber keeps your digestive system healthy, promotes healthy blood sugar and cholesterol and helps keep your blood pressure on an even keel. Eating Chinese cabbage helps contribute to your daily fiber intake, with a 2-cup serving contributing about 2 grams of fiber. Enjoying pechay also helps you get the recommended 5 to 9 servings per day of fruits and veggies.