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Summer squash vs Okra - Health impact and Nutrition Comparison

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Summer squash
vs
Okra

Nutritional Content Comparison

If viewing every nutrient separately Okra is richer in almost all nutrients. The few wins of squash are Vitamin B2, B6 and polyunsaturated fats. On the other hand the nutritional structure of both foods is very similar (please have a look at the circle vitamin/mineral coverage charts below in order to better understand the idea of similar nutritional structure), and the difference in the amounts is not big for the most of the nutrients. There are however few relatively big differences: Okra contains 5 times more Calcium and 3 times more magnesium. Explore the charts below for more details.

Health Impact

The impact on health is similar for both foods because of similar nutritional structure. There is one medical study performed on Okra which showed that Okra extract can suppress the oxidative stress and insulin resistance, thus improving blood glucose level. Both foods are very healthy because of their antioxidant properties, B-complex vitamins, carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin content.

SUMMARY

The foods are not radically different, having similar price, equal glycemic index and mineral content, but spinach contains 3 times more of vitamins A, E and K which makes it a better choice in terms of nutrition.

Article author photo David Alanakyan
Profession: Foodstruct Founder
Last updated: November 29, 2020

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Summer squash vs Okra infographic
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Mineral Comparison

Mineral comparison score is based on the number of minerals by which one or the other food is richer. The "coverage" chart below show how much of the daily needs can be covered by 300 grams of the food
Summer squash
Summer squash
1
:
7
Okra
Okra
Contains less Sodium -71.4%
Contains more Iron +77.1%
Contains more Calcium +446.7%
Contains more Potassium +14.1%
Contains more Magnesium +235.3%
Contains more Copper +113.7%
Contains more Zinc +100%
Contains more Phosphorus +60.5%
Summer squash
Iron Calcium Potassium Magnesium Copper Zinc Phosphorus Sodium 14% 5% 24% 13% 17% 8% 17% 1%
Okra
Iron Calcium Potassium Magnesium Copper Zinc Phosphorus Sodium 24% 25% 27% 41% 37% 16% 27% 1%
Contains less Sodium -71.4%
Contains more Iron +77.1%
Contains more Calcium +446.7%
Contains more Potassium +14.1%
Contains more Magnesium +235.3%
Contains more Copper +113.7%
Contains more Zinc +100%
Contains more Phosphorus +60.5%

Vitamin Comparison

Vitamin comparison score is based on the number of vitamins by which one or the other food is richer. The "coverage" chart below show how much of the daily needs can be covered by 300 grams of the food
Summer squash
Summer squash
2
:
8
Okra
Okra
Contains more Vitamin B2 +136.7%
Contains more Vitamin C +35.3%
Contains more Vitamin A +258%
Contains more Vitamin E +125%
Contains more Vitamin B1 +316.7%
Contains more Vitamin B3 +105.3%
Contains more Vitamin B5 +58.1%
Contains more Vitamin K +943.3%
Contains more Folate +106.9%
Equal in Vitamin B6 - 0.215
Summer squash
Vitamin C Vitamin A Vitamin E Vitamin D Vitamin B1 Vitamin B2 Vitamin B3 Vitamin B5 Vitamin B6 Vitamin B12 Vitamin K Folate 57% 12% 3% 0% 12% 33% 10% 10% 51% 0% 8% 22%
Okra
Vitamin C Vitamin A Vitamin E Vitamin D Vitamin B1 Vitamin B2 Vitamin B3 Vitamin B5 Vitamin B6 Vitamin B12 Vitamin K Folate 77% 43% 6% 0% 50% 14% 19% 15% 50% 0% 79% 45%
Contains more Vitamin B2 +136.7%
Contains more Vitamin C +35.3%
Contains more Vitamin A +258%
Contains more Vitamin E +125%
Contains more Vitamin B1 +316.7%
Contains more Vitamin B3 +105.3%
Contains more Vitamin B5 +58.1%
Contains more Vitamin K +943.3%
Contains more Folate +106.9%
Equal in Vitamin B6 - 0.215

Vitamin and Mineral Summary Scores

Summary score is calculated by summing up the daily values contained in 300 grams of the product. Obviously the more the food fulfils human daily needs, the more the summary score is
Vitamin Summary Score
18
Summer squash
33
Okra
Mineral Summary Score
12
Summer squash
24
Okra

Macronutrients Comparison

Macronutrient comparison charts compare the amount of protein, total fats and total carbohydrates in 300 grams of the food. The displayed values show how much of the daily needs can be covered by 300 grams of the food
Protein
7%
Summer squash
12%
Okra
Carbohydrates
3%
Summer squash
7%
Okra
Fats
1%
Summer squash
1%
Okra

Comparison summary table

Pay attention at the most right column. It shows the amounts side by side, making it easier to realize the amount of difference.
Summer squash Okra
Lower in Sodium ok
Lower in glycemic index ok
Lower in price ok
Lower in Sugars ok
Lower in Saturated Fat ok
Rich in minerals ok
Rich in vitamins ok
Lower in Cholesterol Equal

Which food is preferable in case of diets?

ok
ok
is better in case of low diet
Summer squash Okra
Low Calories diet ok
Low Fats diet ok
Low Carbs diet ok
Low glycemic index diet ok

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Comparison summary

Which food contains less Sodium?
Summer squash
Summer squash contains less Sodium (difference - 5mg)
Which food is lower in glycemic index?
Summer squash
Summer squash is lower in glycemic index (difference - 13)
Which food is cheaper?
Summer squash
Summer squash is cheaper (difference - $1)
Which food contains less Sugars?
Okra
Okra contains less Sugars (difference - 0.72g)
Which food is lower in Saturated Fat?
Okra
Okra is lower in Saturated Fat (difference - 0.018g)
Which food is richer in minerals?
Okra
Okra is relatively richer in minerals
Which food is richer in vitamins?
Okra
Okra is relatively richer in vitamins
Which food contains less Cholesterol?
?
The foods are relatively equal in Cholesterol (0 mg)

All nutrients comparison - raw data values

In the column "Opinion" we made some assumptions which could be controversial. For instance we are assuming that less saturated fats is good for you. Please ignore this column if you have your own opinion.We marked the nutrients, comparison of which we considered as not meaningful, as "N/A"
Nutrient Summer squash Okra Opinion
Calories 16 33 Okra
Protein 1.21 1.93 Okra
Fats 0.18 0.19 Okra
Vitamin C 17 23 Okra
Carbs 3.35 7.45 Okra
Cholesterol 0 0
Vitamin D 0 0
Iron 0.35 0.62 Okra
Calcium 15 82 Okra
Potassium 262 299 Okra
Magnesium 17 57 Okra
Sugars 2.2 1.48 Okra
Fiber 1.1 3.2 Okra
Copper 0.051 0.109 Okra
Zinc 0.29 0.58 Okra
Starch 0.34 Okra
Phosphorus 38 61 Okra
Sodium 2 7 Summer squash
Vitamin A 200 716 Okra
Vitamin E 0.12 0.27 Okra
Vitamin D 0 0
Vitamin B1 0.048 0.2 Okra
Vitamin B2 0.142 0.06 Summer squash
Vitamin B3 0.487 1 Okra
Vitamin B5 0.155 0.245 Okra
Vitamin B6 0.218 0.215 Summer squash
Vitamin B12 0 0
Vitamin K 3 31.3 Okra
Folate 29 60 Okra
Trans Fat 0 0
Saturated Fat 0.044 0.026 Okra
Monounsaturated Fat 0.016 0.017 Okra
Polyunsaturated fat 0.089 0.027 Summer squash
Tryptophan 0.011 0.017 Okra
Threonine 0.028 0.065 Okra
Isoleucine 0.042 0.069 Okra
Leucine 0.069 0.105 Okra
Lysine 0.065 0.081 Okra
Methionine 0.017 0.021 Okra
Phenylalanine 0.041 0.065 Okra
Valine 0.053 0.091 Okra
Histidine 0.025 0.031 Okra
Fructose 0.95 0.57 Summer squash

References

The source of all the nutrient values on the page (excluding the main article the sources for which are presented seperately if present) is the USDA's FoodCentral. The exact links of the foods presented on this page can be found below.

  1. Summer squash - https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/170487/nutrients
  2. Okra - https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/169260/nutrients

All the Daily Values are presented for males aged 31-50, for 2000 calorie diets.

Data provided by FoodStruct.com should be considered and used as information only. Please consult your physician before beginning any diet.