Arugula, raw
Checked by us One serving: 85 g · 21 kcal
Lots of vitamin K1 and folate.
Go easy: cadmium can add up. Rinse it under running water: raw leafy greens can carry E. coli and Salmonella.
On warfarin? Keep your vitamin K steady.
Good for
How we counted this
What one serving (85 g) gives you.
Your body needs enough of each of these. Past enough, more doesn’t help. Amounts are what the food databases list, not what your body absorbs, unless a row says it was measured.
The words: “A lot” means one serving gives 20% or more of Health Canada’s daily amount, “Some” 10% to 19%, “A little” 2% to 9%, “Almost none” under 2%. Strongest word first; within a word, protein and fibre lead, then the biggest share. ?
A milligram (mg) is a thousandth of a gram, and a microgram (µg) a thousandth of a milligram: 1,000 µg make 1 mg.
- A lot
Vitamin K1
Your blood needs it to clot.
Learn more
92.3 µg in one serving: 77% of the 120 µg a day men need, 103% of the 90 µg women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, vitamin K fact sheet for health professionals
- A lot
Folate
Your body needs it to make DNA and to divide new cells.
Learn more
82.5 µg in one serving: 21% of the 400 µg a day.
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, folate fact sheet for health professionals
20 more nutrients below “a lot”
- Some
Vitamin C
Your body makes collagen with it, which wounds need to heal. It also helps you absorb iron from plants.
Learn more
12.8 mg in one serving: 14% of the 90 mg a day men need, 17% of the 75 mg women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, vitamin C fact sheet for health professionals
- Some
Calcium
Builds your bones and teeth.
Learn more
136 mg in one serving: 14% of the 1,000 mg a day.
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, calcium fact sheet for health professionals
- Some
Vitamin A
Your eyes need it to see in dim light.
Learn more
Getting enough matters; more than enough doesn’t sharpen your sight.
101 µg in one serving: 11% of the 900 µg a day men need, 14% of the 700 µg women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, vitamin A fact sheet for health professionals
- Some
Magnesium
Your muscles and nerves need it to work.
Learn more
40 mg in one serving: 10% of the 400 mg a day men need, 13% of the 310 mg women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, magnesium fact sheet for health professionals
- A little
Potassium
Your nerves, muscles and kidneys need it to work.
Learn more
314 mg in one serving: 9% of the 3,400 mg a day men need, 12% of the 2,600 mg women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, potassium fact sheet for health professionals
- A little
Omega-3: ALA
The one omega-3 your body can’t make: it must come from food. Your cells build it into their membranes and burn it for energy.
Learn more
145 mg in one serving: 9% of the 1,600 mg a day men need, 13% of the 1,100 mg women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, omega-3 fatty acids fact sheet for health professionals
- A little
Iron
Carries oxygen in your blood.
Learn more
1.24 mg in one serving: 16% of the 8 mg a day men need, 7% of the 18 mg women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, iron fact sheet for health professionals
- A little
Riboflavin (B2)
Your cells use it to make energy and handle fats. It also helps turn tryptophan into niacin and activate vitamin B6.
Learn more
0.07 mg in one serving: 5% of the 1.3 mg a day men need, 6% of the 1.1 mg women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, riboflavin fact sheet for health professionals
- A little
Vitamin B6
Helps you use protein, and your brain needs it to make its chemical messengers.
Learn more
0.06 mg in one serving: 5% of the 1.3 mg a day.
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, vitamin B6 fact sheet for health professionals
- A little
Niacin (B3, niacin equivalents)
More than 400 of your enzymes need it to work.
Learn more
0.66 mg in one serving: 4% of the 16 mg a day men need, 5% of the 14 mg women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, niacin fact sheet for health professionals
- A little
Protein
Your muscles, and every other tissue, are built and repaired from it.
Learn more
2.19 g in one serving: 4% of the 56 g a day men need, 5% of the 46 g women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. Institute of Medicine 2005, Dietary Reference Intakes for Energy, Carbohydrate, Fiber, Fat, Fatty Acids, Cholesterol, Protein, and Amino Acids
- A little
Zinc
Your immune system and healing wounds depend on it.
Learn more
0.4 mg in one serving: 4% of the 11 mg a day men need, 5% of the 8 mg women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, zinc fact sheet for health professionals
- A little
Fibre
Keeps your gut moving.
Learn more
1.36 g in one serving: 4% of the 38 g a day men need, 5% of the 25 g women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. Institute of Medicine 2005, Dietary Reference Intakes for Energy, Carbohydrate, Fiber, Fat, Fatty Acids, Cholesterol, Protein, and Amino Acids
- A little
Thiamin (B1)
Your cells use it to get energy from food, and so to grow and work.
Learn more
0.04 mg in one serving: 3% of the 1.2 mg a day men need, 4% of the 1.1 mg women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, thiamin fact sheet for health professionals
- A little
Vitamin E
Shields the fats in your cells from damage; your immune system uses it too.
Learn more
0.37 mg in one serving: 2% of the 15 mg a day.
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, vitamin E fact sheet for health professionals
- A little
Choline
Your cells need it for their membranes, and to make acetylcholine, a messenger for memory, mood and muscle control.
Learn more
13 mg in one serving: 2% of the 550 mg a day men need, 3% of the 425 mg women need. The word follows the smaller share, which is the share of the higher amount. ?
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, choline fact sheet for health professionals
- Almost none
Selenium
Your thyroid uses it to make its hormones.
Learn more
0.26 µg in one serving: under 1% of the 55 µg a day.
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, selenium fact sheet for health professionals
- Almost none
Omega-3: EPA + DHA
Long-chain omega-3s, built into your cell membranes. DHA is concentrated in your brain and retinas.
Learn more
0 mg in one serving: under 1% of the 250 mg a day.
Health Canada sets no daily amount for these fats, so the daily figure here is the European Food Safety Authority’s.
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, omega-3 fatty acids fact sheet for health professionals
- Almost none
Vitamin B12
Your body needs it to make red blood cells and keep nerves working.
Learn more
0 µg in one serving: under 1% of the 2.4 µg a day.
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, vitamin B12 fact sheet for health professionals
- Almost none
Vitamin D
Your body needs it to absorb calcium and keep your bones hard.
Learn more
Your skin also makes it in sunlight, so food is only one of its sources.
0 µg in one serving: under 1% of the 15 µg a day.
Source: How much of it gets in hasn’t been measured for this food yet. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, vitamin D fact sheet for health professionals
How to handle it
Rinse leaves under cool running water, with water only; don’t soak them in a sink full of water. Bagged ready-to-eat greens labelled washed don’t need rewashing. Wash the board and tools with warm, soapy water before and after, and keep them apart from raw meat.
Learn more
Source: Health Canada, Food safety tips for leafy green vegetables
How we got this
Flagged for raw leafy greens, which can carry Shiga toxin-producing E. coli and Salmonella. A CFIA survey (2014–2017) of leaf lettuce, spinach and arugula together found E. coli O157 in none of 5,508 samples and a non-O157 VTEC in 1 of 470 (0.2%); Salmonella and Shigella were found in none of 5,038 tested. The counts are for the group, not arugula alone.
CFIA, 2014-2017 Bacterial Pathogens in Fresh Leafy Vegetables (leaf lettuce, spinach, arugula) · grade B
Watch out
How we counted this
How to handle it, just above: Rinse it well
Cadmium
Go easyBuilds up in the kidneys over years.
Learn more
590 g a week takes an average adult to the limit
You’d need about 6.9 servings a week of this food alone to use up what an average adult’s intake leaves under the limit.
“Go easy” here because, for adults who already take in the most from other food, a serving a day can push past the limit.
One serving carries 7.3 µg
How we got this
A serving a day adds 41% to what an average adult already takes in: a share of that intake, not of the limit. With that serving every day, an average adult would be at about 100% of the limit.
An average adult already takes in about 71% of the limit. One serving a day uses up the room left in about 6.9 days of the week.
Counted from zero, with no allowance for what adults already take in from other food, 2,000 g a week would reach the limit.
Why this rating: Eating it daily comes to 595 g a week, which is more than the 590 g of room left before the limit.
The dataset’s rating: Go easy: can push past the limit
The dataset’s original note, counted from zero and kept as written: A daily serving adds 41% to an average adult's cadmium intake (EFSA 2012 adult median, 1.77 µg/kg body weight/week; Canadian adults in 2007: 1.2-1.75), far from doubling it, so no cap.
Checked for lead: fine at normal amounts.
Lead
Nothing to watchYou’d need about 33 servings a day, every day, of this food alone to double the lead an average adult already gets. No dose is known to be safe, so doubling is where we flag.
Learn more
A serving a day adds 3.1% to what an average adult already takes in. There is no limit to take a share of.
One serving carries 1.1 µg
How we got this
The dataset’s rating: Nothing to watch: doesn’t double average intake
No cap: no safe level of lead is set, so there is no grams figure; the rating rests on what a serving adds to average intake. An 85 g serving adds 1.10 µg, about 2.7–3.9% of an average adult's 28–41 µg/day (EFSA 2012). The CFIA lower-bound mean is 0.01298 ppm over 56 samples (53 positive, 5.4% non-detects), four annual sets pooled.
For some people
Flag for people on warfarin: keep vitamin K intake consistent; arugula has about 92 µg per 85 g.
Learn more
Eat a steady amount, not none. This line goes on every food whose serving gives 10% or more of the daily vitamin K; a few foods below that carry it too, where a source names them. One serving here has about 92 µg of vitamin K1.
Worth knowing
No limit applies, so none is rated.
Sugar
1.7 g of sugar in a 85 g serving, natural and added together.
Learn more
Shown, not rated. The food tables we read give total sugar, and few give added sugar, so the site can’t yet tell sugar added in making a food from the sugar in fruit or milk.
Also checked (nothing to act on) · 2
Noted for context, or not measured in this food yet.
Shown as context, not rated: EFSA's 2017 acceptable daily intake for nitrate is 3.7 mg/kg body weight/day, 259 mg/day for 70 kg (applying this food-additive figure to vegetable nitrate is the dataset's own convention). Arugula averages 4,677 mg/kg (EFSA, 1,943 samples, upper bound; median 4,800, 95th percentile 7,340), so about 55 g a day would reach it (54 g at the median, 35 g at the 95th percentile). One 85 g serving carries about 398 mg, 1.5 times the limit.
Shown as context, not rated: no limit is applied to pesticide residues here. At least 22 of 34 CFIA samples (65%) carried a residue on the liquid-chromatography screen alone. By analyte, permethrin was found in 5 of 26 samples (all 5 above Canada's limit; maximum 4.59 ppm), cypermethrin in 4 of 26 (3 above; maximum 0.639), famoxadone in 2 of 19 (2 above; maximum 4.53) and mandipropamid in 9 of 26 (none above). A violation means above a Canadian residue limit, not a health finding; washing was not looked up.
Better options
How we counted this
“Better” here always means better at something the row names: more of one nutrient, more nutrients per serving, or the goal you pick. It never means better in every way.
Every amount below is for the same weight, 85 g, the size of one serving of this food, so a swap compares like with like. A serving of another food can be bigger or smaller.
A food is listed only if it gives clearly more: at least a fifth more than this food, and at least 10% of the daily amount more.
More of what it’s good for
More vitamin K1
Kale, cooked355 µg in 85 g (this food: 92.3 µg)
Turnip greens, cooked312 µg in 85 g (this food: 92.3 µg)
More folate
Asparagus, cooked127 µg in 85 g (this food: 82.5 µg) · but less vitamin K1
Amounts as listed, not adjusted for how much gets in.
More nutrients per serving, counted together
The other vegetables we’ve checked with more nutrients per serving than this one, counting at most 100 kcal. One score ranks them all, so the same few often lead.
- Turnip greens, cooked
- More vitamin K1 (312 µg vs 92.3 µg)
- More vitamin A (324 µg vs 101 µg)
- More vitamin C (23.3 mg vs 12.8 mg)
- Kale, cookedMore vitamin K1 (355 µg vs 92.3 µg)
Brussels sprouts, cooked- More vitamin C (52.7 mg vs 12.8 mg)
- More vitamin K1 (119 µg vs 92.3 µg)
- Less calcium (30.6 mg vs 136 mg)
Where the calcium card measured that less calcium gets in than from milk, calcium counts for less; everything else is as listed.
Your goal
Your goal changes only this list, not what the food gives you or what to watch.
Losing weight: fewer calories, and more nutrients, protein and fibre for each calorie.
Spinach, cooked would lead this list, but it’s left out (lots of oxalate, more than its own calcium can bind).
Building muscle: more protein and more calories, per 100 g. In a typical diet most protein comes from other foods; among vegetables, these help most.
Green peas, cooked5.2 g protein · 78 kcal per 100 g
Broccoli, cooked3.1 g protein · 28 kcal per 100 g
2 foods out of the 23 other vegetables we’ve checked and could compare give clearly more protein, and more calories, per 100 g.
Why some foods aren’t suggested
Left out: Mustard greens, cooked (not tested for contaminants yet).
Left out: Edamame, cooked (not tested for contaminants yet).
Left out: Spinach, cooked (lots of oxalate, more than its own calcium can bind).
Bring a tracker export or describe your usual week. The same rules check all of it.
The numbers
Open every value
Name in the database: Arugula, raw (rocket)
How the serving was set: 85 g (Health Canada TRA V.1, vegetables without sauce, fresh or frozen; arugula is not named separately, so the lettuce/leafy-greens line is assumed; copied from the sibling rows kale and lettuce, the TRA page not re-opened this session). EFSA's own rucola scenario portion is 44 g.
Listed nutrients, per 100 g
For each nutrient, the value this page uses is marked “used”. A row marked “second database” is another database’s figure for a matching food, kept so you can see how far databases disagree (they can differ in the samples analysed, lab methods and rounding). Its own cells are worked out from it, but none of the page’s words or scores are.
| Nutrient | Per serving | Per 100 calories | How | Source | Grade | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Omega-3: ALA | 0.17 g | 0.14 g | 0.68 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Calcium | 160 mg | 136 mg | 640 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| 160 mg | 136 mg | 640 mg | copy of USDA · not used | Canadian Nutrient File 2026 #2352 | C | |
| Carbohydrate | 3.65 g | 3.1 g | 14.6 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Choline | 15.3 mg | 13.01 mg | 61.2 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Energy | 25 kcal | 21.25 kcal | – | FDC Energy (kcal) used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) | – |
| Omega-3: EPA + DHA | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Fat | 0.66 g | 0.56 g | 2.64 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Cholesterol | 0 mg | 0 mg | 0 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Fatty acids, total saturated | 0.086 g | 0.07 g | 0.34 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Fibre | 1.6 g | 1.36 g | 6.4 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Folate | 97 µg | 82.45 µg | 388 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Iron | 1.46 mg | 1.24 mg | 5.84 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Magnesium | 47 mg | 39.95 mg | 188 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Niacin (B3, niacin equivalents) | 0.778 mg | 0.66 mg | 3.11 mg | listed used | Canadian Nutrient File 2026 #2352 | C |
| Phosphorus | 52 mg | 44.2 mg | 208 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Potassium | 369 mg | 313.65 mg | 1,476 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Protein | 2.58 g | 2.19 g | 10.32 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Riboflavin (B2) | 0.086 mg | 0.07 mg | 0.34 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Selenium | 0.3 µg | 0.26 µg | 1.2 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Sodium | 27 mg | 22.95 mg | 108 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Sugars | 2.05 g | 1.74 g | 8.2 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Thiamin (B1) | 0.044 mg | 0.04 mg | 0.18 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Vitamin A | 119 µg | 101.15 µg | 476 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Vitamin B12 | 0 µg | 0 µg | 0 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.073 mg | 0.06 mg | 0.29 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Vitamin C | 15 mg | 12.75 mg | 60 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Vitamin D | 0 µg | 0 µg | 0 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Vitamin E | 0.43 mg | 0.37 mg | 1.72 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Vitamin K1 | 108.6 µg | 92.31 µg | 434.4 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Water | 91.71 g | 77.95 g | 366.84 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Zinc | 0.47 mg | 0.4 mg | 1.88 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Nutrient | Per 100 g | Per serving | Per 100 calories | How | Source | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beta-carotene | 1,424 µg | 1,210.4 µg | 5,696 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Copper | 0.076 mg | 0.06 mg | 0.3 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Ash | 1.4 g | 1.19 g | 5.6 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Alcohol, ethyl | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Caffeine | 0 mg | 0 mg | 0 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Theobromine | 0 mg | 0 mg | 0 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Energy | 105 kj | 89.25 kj | 420 kj | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Vitamin A, IU | 2,373 iu | 2,017.05 iu | 9,492 iu | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Carotene, alpha | 0 µg | 0 µg | 0 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Vitamin D (D2 + D3), International Units | 0 iu | 0 iu | 0 iu | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Cryptoxanthin, beta | 0 µg | 0 µg | 0 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Lycopene | 0 µg | 0 µg | 0 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Folic acid | 0 µg | 0 µg | 0 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Folate, food | 97 µg | 82.45 µg | 388 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Folate, DFE | 97 µg | 82.45 µg | 388 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Betaine | 0.1 mg | 0.09 mg | 0.4 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Vitamin E, added | 0 mg | 0 mg | 0 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Vitamin B-12, added | 0 µg | 0 µg | 0 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Fatty acids, total trans | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| SFA 4:0 | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| SFA 6:0 | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| SFA 8:0 | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| SFA 10:0 | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| SFA 12:0 | 0.003 g | 0 g | 0.01 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| SFA 14:0 | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| SFA 16:0 | 0.072 g | 0.06 g | 0.29 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| SFA 18:0 | 0.004 g | 0 g | 0.02 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| MUFA 18:1 | 0.046 g | 0.04 g | 0.18 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| PUFA 18:2 | 0.13 g | 0.11 g | 0.52 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| PUFA 18:3 | 0.17 g | 0.14 g | 0.68 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| PUFA 20:4 | 0.002 g | 0 g | 0.01 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| PUFA 22:6 n-3 (DHA) | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| MUFA 16:1 | 0.001 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| PUFA 18:4 | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| MUFA 20:1 | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| PUFA 20:5 n-3 (EPA) | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| MUFA 22:1 | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| PUFA 22:5 n-3 (DPA) | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Fatty acids, total monounsaturated | 0.049 g | 0.04 g | 0.2 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Fatty acids, total polyunsaturated | 0.319 g | 0.27 g | 1.28 g | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Lutein + zeaxanthin | 3,555 µg | 3,021.75 µg | 14,220 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Manganese | 0.321 mg | 0.27 mg | 1.28 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Niacin (B3, preformed) | 0.305 mg | 0.26 mg | 1.22 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Pantothenic acid (B5) | 0.437 mg | 0.37 mg | 1.75 mg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
| Retinol | 0 µg | 0 µg | 0 µg | listed used | US food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169387 | C |
Change the amount to rescale the first column. Nutrients a database doesn't list are missing, not zero.
Hazard rows as the dataset rates them
- Cadmium · Go easy: can push past the limit · A daily serving adds 41% to an average adult's cadmium intake (EFSA 2012 adult median, 1.77 µg/kg body weight/week; Canadian adults in 2007: 1.2-1.75), far from doubling it, so no cap. · CFIA chemical residue monitoring (2022–2023) · A
- E. coli (STEC) on raw produce · Worth knowing · Flagged for raw leafy greens, which can carry Shiga toxin-producing E. coli and Salmonella. A CFIA survey (2014–2017) of leaf lettuce, spinach and arugula together found E. coli O157 in none of 5,508 samples and a non-O157 VTEC in 1 of 470 (0.2%); Salmonella and Shigella were found in none of 5,038 tested. The counts are for the group, not arugula alone. · CFIA 2014 · B
- Lead · Nothing to watch: doesn’t double average intake · No cap: no safe level of lead is set, so there is no grams figure; the rating rests on what a serving adds to average intake. An 85 g serving adds 1.10 µg, about 2.7–3.9% of an average adult's 28–41 µg/day (EFSA 2012). The CFIA lower-bound mean is 0.01298 ppm over 56 samples (53 positive, 5.4% non-detects), four annual sets pooled. · CFIA chemical residue monitoring (2022–2023) · A
- Nitrate · Context · Shown as context, not rated: EFSA's 2017 acceptable daily intake for nitrate is 3.7 mg/kg body weight/day, 259 mg/day for 70 kg (applying this food-additive figure to vegetable nitrate is the dataset's own convention). Arugula averages 4,677 mg/kg (EFSA, 1,943 samples, upper bound; median 4,800, 95th percentile 7,340), so about 55 g a day would reach it (54 g at the median, 35 g at the 95th percentile). One 85 g serving carries about 398 mg, 1.5 times the limit. · EFSA 2008 · A
- Pesticide residues · Context · Shown as context, not rated: no limit is applied to pesticide residues here. At least 22 of 34 CFIA samples (65%) carried a residue on the liquid-chromatography screen alone. By analyte, permethrin was found in 5 of 26 samples (all 5 above Canada's limit; maximum 4.59 ppm), cypermethrin in 4 of 26 (3 above; maximum 0.639), famoxadone in 2 of 19 (2 above; maximum 4.53) and mandipropamid in 9 of 26 (none above). A violation means above a Canadian residue limit, not a health finding; washing was not looked up. · CFIA chemical residue monitoring (2022–2023) · A
- Vitamin K and warfarin · Worth knowing · Flag for people on warfarin: keep vitamin K intake consistent; arugula has about 92 µg per 85 g. · US food database (USDA SR Legacy) · C
Oxalate, phytate and gut-tolerance measurements
- oxalate total: not detected in raw arugula (n 10) in the primary study relayed by Salgado 2023 (ref 59); the Oxalosis and Hyperoxaluria Foundation list gives 7 mg per 100 g (grade C) mg/100 g · fresh weight · raw · grade B · Salgado 2023
Sources
- CFIA, 2014-2017 Bacterial Pathogens in Fresh Leafy Vegetables (leaf lettuce, spinach, arugula)
cfia-leafy-veg-2014-17· page · Government of Canada terms (Crown copyright) - CFIA, National Chemical Residue Monitoring Program and Chemistry Food Safety Oversight Program Annual Report 2022-2023, Annex B tables B-1 (Canadian) and B-2 (imported)
cfia-ncrmp-2022-23· full text read · Open Government Licence - Canada - Health Canada, Canadian Nutrient File 2026 (14th edition)
cnf-2026· dataset · Open Government Licence – Canada 2.0 - EFSA CONTAM Panel (2008) Nitrate in vegetables. EFSA Journal 689 · doi:10.2903/j.efsa.2008.689
efsa-2008-nitrate· full text read · EFSA Journal: CC BY-ND 4.0 - USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy, 2018-04
fdc-sr-legacy-2018-04· dataset · CC0 1.0 (public domain) - Salgado N et al. Oxalate in foods: extraction conditions, analytical methods, occurrence, and health implications. Foods 2023;12(17):3201. · doi:10.3390/foods12173201
salgado2023-foods· full text read · CC BY 4.0
Body map 2026-10-25.1: each nutrient’s job comes from an agency fact sheet, linked beside it under Good for.
The plain words: “a lot” means one serving (100 g when the food has no serving size) gives at least 20% of the daily amount (the reference intake), “some” at least 10%, “a little” at least 2% (the cut-offs are ours, one set for every page: 20% and 10% are borrowed from the US labelling terms “high” and “good source” and applied to Health Canada’s daily amount, whereas Health Canada’s own shopper rule says 15%; provisional: they may change in a later method version). The daily amount is Health Canada’s Dietary Reference Intake for adults 19–30; where men and women need different amounts we use the higher one (protein: 56 g for men, 46 g for women). The percentage printed under each nutrient is the printed amount as a share of that daily amount, rounded to the nearest whole number, and the word is read from that percentage, so the amount, the percentage and the word always agree. Calcium with a measured absorption is scaled by how well it gets in compared with milk.
The scale: “Nothing to watch” means a serving a day stays under the limit at ordinary amounts; “Go easy” means a serving a day can push past the limit for adults who already take in the most, or fewer than 2 servings reach it; “Limit it” means once a week or less. The dataset’s own rating is under “How we got this”. Provisional: the scale may change in a later method version.
Measured absorption under Good for: grade-A studies in adults that tested this preparation of this food, as a share of the listed amount (the share digested, for protein), quoted once each source has passed our evidence check; animal studies and other variants stay in the table above. Provisional: this screen may change in a later method version.