Arugula (Rocket): Nutrients, What Research Shows and Safety

Arugula, also called rocket (Eruca vesicaria), is a peppery salad green in the cabbage family (Brassicaceae). The leaves are eaten, usually raw. People eat it for its vitamins, its plant compounds and its link to the "eat more leafy greens" advice. This page keeps the whole food apart from supplements and from hype, and says plainly what the research does and does not show.

Read this first

• Arugula is very rich in vitamin K: 100 g of raw leaves has about 90% of the Daily Value (USDA). [1] If you take warfarin, vitamin K can weaken the medicine, and the advice is to keep your intake steady from day to day, not to guess. Ask your prescriber or pharmacist. [2]
• Raw leafy greens can carry germs such as E. coli and Listeria. Wash loose leaves under running water, and keep packaged leaves cold. [10][11][12]
• A food allergy to any food is possible. For trouble breathing or swelling of the face or throat, call 911. See food allergy basics and emergency signs.
• Honest summary: arugula is a nutritious, low-calorie green. We found no trial showing that arugula itself prevents or treats a disease.

What is in it (USDA values)

Source: USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy item 169387, "Arugula, raw". [1] A half cup is a small handful, so one USDA portion gives modest amounts of most nutrients. A larger salad gives proportionally more. % Daily Value uses the FDA 2016 Daily Values; values vary with variety, ripeness and storage.

Plant compounds: like other cabbage-family plants, arugula contains glucosinolates (sulfur compounds that form isothiocyanates when the leaf is chopped or chewed). A 2026 laboratory study measured glucoerucin and glucoraphanin in cut rocket leaves. [3] The best-known evidence for isothiocyanates comes from lab and animal work; human studies are limited and mixed. [5] USDA also lists carotenoids, mainly lutein and zeaxanthin and beta-carotene. [1] Arugula holds dietary nitrate too; the amount depends on growing conditions such as light. [9]

What research says

Eaten as food versus taken as a supplement or extract: the human findings above come from eating vegetables, or from nitrate given as juice or salt. The retinal-cell result used an extract in a dish, not people. Nothing here shows that a rocket capsule, powder or extract works, and none of the sources read tested one in people.

How much is a normal serving

The USDA household portion in its database is 1/2 cup of raw arugula (10 g). [1] This is information, not a prescription. The WHO says people over 10 years old should eat at least 400 g of fruit and vegetables a day (fact sheet shown as dated 26 January 2026). [13] The NHS counts 80 g of fresh, canned or frozen vegetables as one portion (page last reviewed 9 June 2026). [14] Arugula is light, so 80 g is a large bowlful. We did not find a source we could read on cooking losses for arugula, so we make no claim. Cooking stops the enzyme that makes isothiocyanates, though light steaming keeps some. [5]

Safety, allergy and medicines

• Warfarin and similar vitamin K antagonists: vitamin K can reduce warfarin's effect, and sudden changes in how much you eat matter more than the food itself. Ask the prescriber whether to track your intake. [2] See foods and medicine interactions.
• Food poisoning from raw leafy greens: the FDA lists outbreaks of E. coli O157:H7 linked to romaine lettuce and a 2023 Listeria outbreak linked to leafy greens. [11] In the US, two Listeria outbreaks tied to packaged salads caused 30 illnesses and 4 deaths over about eight years. [12] Listeria can be severe in people with weak immune systems. [12] Arugula was not named in the sources we read, but it is eaten raw in the same way.
• Allergy: Proper evidence not found in the sources we read about arugula allergy. Any food can cause an allergic reaction; see food allergy basics.
• Nitrate: we did not find a source we read that describes harm from the nitrate in vegetables such as arugula, and we make no claim either way. Do not stop a prescribed blood pressure medicine because of a food.
• Kidney disease, oxalate and thyroid: the sources we read did not cover arugula for these, so we make no claim. People with kidney disease can read the kidney, potassium and oxalates page.
• Pregnancy: the sources we read did not give arugula-specific advice. Wash greens carefully and see foods in pregnancy.

Choosing, storing and food safety

• Wash loose greens under running water and dry them with a clean towel; do not use soap or produce wash. Washing lowers germs but does not remove them all. [10]
• "Pre-washed" or "ready-to-eat" bagged leaves can be used as they are. [10]
• Keep greens at 40 F (4 C) or below, and choose pre-cut or bagged leaves that are chilled. [10]
• Use a separate cutting board from raw meat, poultry and seafood. [10]

Related pages

• Dietary nitrate in beets and leafy greens
• Leafy greens
• Cruciferous vegetables
• Sulforaphane and glucosinolates in cruciferous vegetables
• Foods and medicine interactions: vitamin K, grapefruit and others
• Fresh, frozen and canned produce