What Doesn’t Kill You…Might Actually Make You Healthier (Especially if You Eat It)
We’ve all heard the line: “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” It’s usually muttered after a tough workout, a rough breakup, or 45 minutes on hold with the cable company. While we recite that phrase without much thought, there’s deep biological wisdom in it.
Challenge and healthy stress (eustress) leads to growth and peak performance. And this applies not just to your emotional resilience and your biceps—but to your food.
The latest research paints a pretty compelling picture that the more a plant has to struggle, the more nutritional firepower it develops. The tougher the life of a plant, the more polyphenols, antioxidants and micronutrients it tends to have. And, the gritty, no-frills parts of plants—like the leaves, bark, roots—are the exact parts of plants that are packed with the most protective compounds.
Plants don’t have legs, so when bugs attack them or the sun tries to roast them, they can’t run—all they can do is fight back by producing chemical defenses. These bitter compounds (like glucosinolates in broccoli or catechins in green tea) are the exact things that support our health. They fight inflammation, support our gut bacteria, and help our metabolism.
Organically grown plants—with no pesticides to act as a buffer—have to work harder too. They survive in the world of bugs, drought, and disease without manmade defenses. And we benefit from their struggle as well.
But wait, there’s more.
It’s not just about the plant’s struggle. It’s about ours too. The foods that make us work—chew more, digest slower, ferment in the gut—deliver more health benefit.
Fiber, for example, isn’t “just good for digestion.” It literally fuels your gut microbiome, slows blood sugar spikes, supports immune function, and keeps your metabolism humming. All because your body has to do something to get to the good stuff.
Compare that with ultra-processed foods (UPFs), which are essentially pre-chewed, reassembled foods, engineered for ease. All the struggle and “hard work” has been removed for us. We’re left with tasty treats that are soft, highly palatable and easily absorbed, but that lack a lot of the key nutritional value. And that’s the problem. They spike blood sugar, confuse hunger cues, mess with the gut, and increase risk for chronic diseases. And somehow, no matter how much we eat, they seem to leave us weirdly still hungry.
So yes—just like with muscles, when it comes to food: Challenge = Strength.
I’m one to root for the underdog, so this week I challenge you to find scrappy foods that have defied the odds to make you stronger.
- Choose plants with character (leafy, colorful, rooty, bitter, weird-looking—just make sure you buy it at the grocery and don’t pick it from your neighbor’s yard!)
- Eat whole foods with fiber intact
- Don’t automatically toss out the skins, peels, and stems—research if they’re edible. When in doubt, ask!
- Chew slowly, digest and let your body work a little
You’ll get more bang for your metabolic buck.
Next week, I’ll follow up with a spotlight on one of my favorite scrappy and overachieving plants: matcha—a finely ground green tea that seems to be popping up everywhere.
Carolyn Kontos, MS, ACC, offers Wellness & Nutrition Coaching at the JCC through her Eat Well Programs. For more information, contact Carolyn at [email protected]
