Among plant foods, vegetables have the highest average nutrient density, with cruciferous vegetables, leafy greens, alliums, mushrooms and fresh herbs providing the best nutrient bang for our caloric buck, followed by fruits, legumes, spices, seeds and then nuts. Each of these top five vegetable families has something unique to offer us nutritionally, too. Crucifers are rich in isothiocyanates not available in other foods; alliums are rich in thiosulfinates not available in other foods; mushrooms are the dominant food source of ergothioneine and also contain some unique fiber types not available in other foods; fresh herbs are extremely dense sources of polyphenols; and leafy greens are packed with carotenoids.
Grains have the lowest nutrient density among plant foods and are only second to nuts and seeds in terms of caloric density—despite being promoted for years as the foundation of a healthy diet, other starchy foods that could take their place on our plates deliver much more nutrition on average (like legumes, root vegetables or winter squash).

Even when viewed simply as a concentrated source of dietary fiber, legumes offer much more fiber per calorie and have 2.5X the Nutrivore Score on average. Root vegetables, winter squash, and fresh fruit are also great sources of fiber and typically have 3X to 5X higher Nutrivore Scores than most whole grains. This isn’t to say that grains are bad, but rather that a grain-based diet doesn’t have the same opportunity for nutrient density as one that embraces a diversity of starchy plant foods.

Among animal foods, offal (aka organ meat) and shellfish are the most nutrient-dense options, followed by fish, broth, eggs, and leaner cuts of red meat and poultry. Dairy products, especially cheeses, have the lowest nutrient density among animal foods while also having the highest caloric density, with fatty cuts of meats only fairing only slightly better, on average. Dairy products remain one of the best sources of calcium, fermented dairy offers beneficial probiotics, and grass-fed dairy is a great source of conjugated linoleic acid—so, there is still a role for dairy products in a health-promoting diet.

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