# Collard Greens Are Goitrogenic Food/Oxalates



## SomethingTegu (Nov 27, 2012)

I have been feeding my tegu collard greens for awhile now on a regular basis, for calcium and vitamin k mostly. I was reading some information on WHfoods.com (Worlds Healthiest Foods) and here is some information I found a bit concering. Your thoughts?

"Collard Greens and Oxalates

Collard greens are among a small number of foods that contain measurable amounts of oxalates, naturally occurring substances found in plants, animals, and human beings. When oxalates become too concentrated in body fluids, they can crystallize and cause health problems. For this reason, individuals with already existing and untreated kidney or gallbladder problems may want to avoid eating collard greens. Laboratory studies have shown that oxalates may also interfere with absorption of calcium from the body. Yet, in every peer-reviewed research study we've seen, the ability of oxalates to lower calcium absorption is relatively small and definitely does not outweigh the ability of oxalate-containing foods to contribute calcium to the meal plan. If your digestive tract is healthy, and you do a good job of chewing and relaxing while you enjoy your meals, you will get significant benefits—including absorption of calcium—from calcium-rich foods plant foods that also contain oxalic acid. Ordinarily, a healthcare practitioner would not discourage a person focused on ensuring that they are meeting their calcium requirements from eating these nutrient-rich foods because of their oxalate content. For more on this subject, please see Can you tell me what oxalates are and in which foods they can be found? 
Collard Greens as a "Goitrogenic" Food

Collard greens are sometimes referred to as a "goitrogenic" food. Yet, contrary to popular belief, according to the latest studies, foods themselves—collard greens included—are not "goitrogenic" in the sense of causing goiter whenever they are consumed, or even when they are consumed in excess. In fact, most foods that are commonly called "goitrogenic"—such as the cruciferous vegetables (including cabbage, broccoli, kale, and cauliflower) and soyfoods—do not interfere with thyroid function in healthy persons even when they are consumed on a daily basis. Nor is it scientifically correct to say that foods "contain goitrogens," at least not if you are thinking about goitrogens as a category of substances like proteins, carbohydrates, or vitamins. With respect to the health of our thyroid gland, all that can be contained in a food are nutrients that provide us with a variety of health benefits but which, under certain circumstances, can also interfere with thyroid function. The term "goitrogenic food" makes it sound as if something is wrong with the food, but that is simply not the case. What causes problems for certain individuals is not the food itself but the mismatched nature of certain substances within the food to their unique health circumstances. For more, see an An Up-to-Date Look at Goitrogenic Substances in Food."


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## dragonmetalhead (Nov 28, 2012)

I've been giving collard greens to beardies and uros for years and have never had any problems.


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## Deac77 (Nov 28, 2012)

Same my sullys beardies iguana all get collard greens on a near daily basis and have never seen a problem


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## jaydsr2887 (Nov 25, 2013)

Deac77 said:


> Same my sullys beardies iguana all get collard greens on a near daily basis and have never seen a problem


I have a 3 1/2 ft long I think probably 2 yr old iguana and she eats a diet of collard greens dandelion grees arugala and mustard greens with butternut squash and bell peppers almost everyday with the occasional few slices of mangos and black berries and the staples are the collard greens and dande lion greens........ and we never had a problem with her so far..... so I think that is some bull because from what ive read the is the staple a lot of zoos and rescues use to feed them..... so ill stick to the diet that is working right now


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## bfb345 (Nov 25, 2013)

Collard greens have a very low level of those substances unless you are only feeding those and nothing else then that's the only time you will have a problem other than that you should be okay just vary it with other foods and you'll be fine.


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