Ever wonder how your favorite foods stack up against each other in terms of nutrition?
We compared the nutritional contents of
cucumber
versus
spinach
(100g each)
below using 2020 USDA and NIH data[1].
For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in cucumber and spinach:
Cucumber and spinach contain similar amounts of calories - cucumber has 15 calories per 100 grams and spinach has 23 calories.
Cucumber | Spinach | |
---|---|---|
Protein | 15% | 40% |
Carbohydrates | 80% | 49% |
Fat | 5% | 10% |
Alcohol | ~ | ~ |
Both cucumber and spinach are low in carbohydrates - cucumber has 3.6g of total carbs per 100 grams and spinach has 3.6g of carbohydrates.
Spinach is a great source of dietary fiber and it has 340% more dietary fiber than cucumber - cucumber has 0.5g of dietary fiber per 100 grams and spinach has 2.2g of dietary fiber.
Cucumber and spinach contain similar amounts of sugar - cucumber has 1.7g of sugar per 100 grams and spinach has 0.42g of sugar.
Spinach has 340% more protein than cucumber - cucumber has 0.65g of protein per 100 grams and spinach has 2.9g of protein.
Both cucumber and spinach are low in saturated fat - cucumber has 0.04g of saturated fat per 100 grams and spinach has 0.06g of saturated fat.
Spinach is an excellent source of Vitamin C and it has 904% more Vitamin C than cucumber - cucumber has 2.8mg of Vitamin C per 100 grams and spinach has 28.1mg of Vitamin C.
Spinach is an excellent source of Vitamin A and it has 92 times more Vitamin A than cucumber - cucumber has 5ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and spinach has 469ug of Vitamin A.
Spinach has 66 times more Vitamin E than cucumber - cucumber has 0.03mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and spinach has 2mg of Vitamin E.
Spinach is an excellent source of Vitamin K and it has 28 times more Vitamin K than cucumber - cucumber has 16.4ug of Vitamin K per 100 grams and spinach has 482.9ug of Vitamin K.
Spinach has more thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, Vitamin B6 and folate, however, cucumber contains more pantothenic acid.
Cucumber | Spinach | |
---|---|---|
Thiamin | 0.027 MG | 0.078 MG |
Riboflavin | 0.033 MG | 0.189 MG |
Niacin | 0.098 MG | 0.724 MG |
Pantothenic acid | 0.259 MG | 0.065 MG |
Vitamin B6 | 0.04 MG | 0.195 MG |
Folate | 7 UG | 194 UG |
Spinach is an excellent source of calcium and it has 519% more calcium than cucumber - cucumber has 16mg of calcium per 100 grams and spinach has 99mg of calcium.
Spinach is a great source of iron and it has 868% more iron than cucumber - cucumber has 0.28mg of iron per 100 grams and spinach has 2.7mg of iron.
Spinach is an excellent source of potassium and it has 280% more potassium than cucumber - cucumber has 147mg of potassium per 100 grams and spinach has 558mg of potassium.
Naturally occuring in fruits and vegetables, flavonoids are associated with many health benefits and used in a variety of medicinal and pharmaceutical applications. [2][3]
For specific flavonoid compounds,
Cucumber | Spinach | |
---|---|---|
kaempferol | 0.13 mg | 6.38 mg |
Quercetin | 0.04 mg | 3.97 mg |
luteolin | ~ | 0.74 mg |
myricetin | ~ | 0.35 mg |
Carotenoids are micronutrients commonly found in plants and some animal products. An example is beta-carotene, the notable carotenoid which is a popular source of Vitamin A.[4][5]
For specific types of carotenoids,
Cucumber | Spinach | |
---|---|---|
beta-carotene | 45 UG | 5626 UG |
alpha-carotene | 11 UG | ~ |
lutein + zeaxanthin | 23 UG | 12198 UG |
For omega-3 fatty acids, spinach has more alpha linoleic acid (ALA) than cucumber per 100 grams.
Cucumber | Spinach | |
---|---|---|
alpha linoleic acid | 0.005 G | 0.138 G |
Total | 0.005 G | 0.138 G |
Comparing omega-6 fatty acids, both cucumber and spinach contain small amounts of linoleic acid.
Cucumber | Spinach | |
---|---|---|
linoleic acid | 0.028 G | 0.026 G |
Total | 0.028 G | 0.026 G |
The comparison below is by common portions, e.g. cups, packages. You can also see a more concrete comparison by weight at equal weight (by grams) comparison.
Cucumber g
()
|
Daily Values (%) |
Spinach g
()
|
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
KCAL % |
|
5% | calories | 5% |
|
KCAL % | |
G % |
|
5% | carbohydrates | 5% |
|
G % | |
G % |
|
5% | dietary fiber | 5% |
|
G % | |
G | 5% | sugar | 5% | G | |||
G % |
|
5% | total fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
G % |
|
5% | saturated fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
G | 5% | monounsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | polyunsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | trans fat | 5% | G | |||
MG | 5% | cholesterol | 5% | MG | |||
MG % |
|
5% | sodium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
5% | Vitamins and Minerals | 5% | |||||
UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin A | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin C | 5% |
|
MG % | |
IU % |
|
5% | Vitamin D | 5% |
|
IU % | |
MG % |
|
5% | calcium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | iron | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | magnesium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | potassium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | thiamin (Vit B1) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | riboflavin (Vit B2) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | niacin (Vit B3) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B6 | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | pantothenic acid (Vit B5) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | folate (Vit B9) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B12 | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin E | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin K | 5% |
|
UG % | |
G % |
|
5% | protein | 5% |
|
G % | |
UG % |
|
5% | biotin (Vit B7) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | choline | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | chlorine | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | chromium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | copper | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | fluoride | 5% |
|
UG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | iodine | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | manganese | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | molybdenum | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | phosphorus | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | selenium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | zinc | 5% |
|
MG % | |
G | 5% | Water | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | Starch | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | Alcohol | 5% | G | |||