--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Lettuce, greens and celery, though much…" description: "\"Lettuce, greens and celery, though much eaten, are worse than cabbage, being equally indigestible without the addition of condiments. Besides, the lett..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb2/william-alcott-64815_bed_lettuce-greens-and-celery-though-much-ea_2864134.jpg" --- # Lettuce, greens and celery, though much eaten, are worse… ![“Lettuce, greens and celery, though much eaten, are worse than cabbage, being equally indigestible without the addition of condiments. Besides, the lettuce contains narcotic properties. It is said of Galen, that he used to obtain from a head of it, eaten on going to bed, all the good effects of a…” quote by William Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb2/william-alcott-64815_bed_lettuce-greens-and-celery-though-much-ea_2864134.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb2/william-alcott-64815_bed_lettuce-greens-and-celery-though-much-ea_2864134.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb2/william-alcott-64815_bed_lettuce-greens-and-celery-though-much-ea_2864134.jpg) > “Lettuce, greens and celery, though much eaten, are worse than cabbage, being equally indigestible without the addition of condiments. Besides, the lettuce contains narcotic properties. It is said of Galen, that he used to obtain from a head of it, eaten on going to bed, all the good effects of a dose of opium.” [William Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-alcott/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Lettuce and similar greens are hard to digest unless flavored, and lettuce was once thought to have opium‑like effects. **In simple terms:** Greens need seasoning; lettuce once believed narcotic. Key Takeaway Add condiments for better digestion. Themes nutrition digestion historical beliefs Mood informative reflective Type educational historical When to use this quote - cooking - diet planning - historical research Key Concepts gastroenterology pharmacology Questions to Reflect On - Do you season your vegetables? - How have beliefs about food changed? A Different Perspective Modern nutrition shows lettuce is not narcotic. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bed/) [Being equal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-equal/) [Cabbage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cabbage/) [Celery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/celery/) [Condiments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/condiments/) [Condiments Lettuce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/condiments-lettuce-3882547/) [Dose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dose/) [Effects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effects/) [Food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food/) [Galen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/galen/) [Indigestible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indigestible-1021220/) [Lettuce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lettuce/) [Lettuce Contains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lettuce-contains-1663795/) [Lettuce Greens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lettuce-greens-3882548/) [Narcotics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/narcotics/) [Opium](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opium/) [Property](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/property/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Used](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/used/) ## Related quotes > [...A one-pound box of prewashed lettuce contains 80 calories of food energy. According to Cornell ecologist David Pimentel, growing, chilling, washing, packaging, and transporting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/a-one-pound-box-of-prewashed-lettuce-contains-80-calories-of-food-2/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“A one-pound box of prewashed lettuce contains 80 calories of food energy. According to Cornell ecologist David Pimentel, growing, chilling, washing, packaging, and transporting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/a-one-pound-box-of-prewashed-lettuce-contains-80-calories-of-food/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [Strange that mankind should ever have used the mushroom. All the various species of this substance are of a leathery consistence, and contain but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-alcott/strange-that-mankind-should-ever-have-used-the-mushroom-all-the/) [William Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-alcott/) > [“Desire, like the dead or an unpleasant meal, would keep returning--it was ultimately indigestible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hanif-kureishi/desire-like-the-dead-or-an-unpleasant-meal-would-keep-returning-it/) [Hanif Kureishi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hanif-kureishi/) > [Vegetables when not sufficiently cooked are know to be so exceedingly unwholesome and indigestible, that the custom of serving them 'crisp' should be altogether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliza-acton/vegetables-when-not-sufficiently-cooked-are-know-to-be-so-exceedingly/) [Eliza Acton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliza-acton/) > [I thank you for calling them off, young ser. I promise you, they would have found me indigestible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-thank-you-for-calling-them-off-young-ser-i-promise-you-they-would/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Kindness is very indigestible. It disagrees with very proud stomachs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/kindness-is-very-indigestible-it-disagrees-with-very-proud-stomachs/) [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) > [Such a man as instinctively feeds on pure ambrosia and leaves alone the indigestible in things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/such-a-man-as-instinctively-feeds-on-pure-ambrosia-and-leaves-alone/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Kindness is very indigestible. It disagrees with proud stomachs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/kindness-is-very-indigestible-it-disagrees-with-proud-stomachs/) [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) > [There is a water soluble sugar that is in beans called oligosaccharides, and they are indigestible by human beings. They ferment during the digestion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crescent-dragonwagon/there-is-a-water-soluble-sugar-that-is-in-beans-called/) [Crescent Dragonwagon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crescent-dragonwagon/) > [“I am persuaded that the knots would have proved indigestible, whatever you may urge to the contrary.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beatrix-potter/i-am-persuaded-that-the-knots-would-have-proved-indigestible-whatever/) [Beatrix Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beatrix-potter/) > [In life, as in restaurants, we swallow a lot of indigestible stuff just because it comes with the dinner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mignon-mclaughlin/in-life-as-in-restaurants-we-swallow-a-lot-of-indigestible-stuff-just/) [Mignon McLaughlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mignon-mclaughlin/) > [Emerson is a person who lives instinctively on ambrosia - and leaves everything indigestible on his plate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/emerson-is-a-person-who-lives-instinctively-on-ambrosia-and-leaves/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [There ought t'be some way t'eat celery so it wouldn't sound like you wuz steppin' on a basket.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kin-hubbard/there-ought-t-be-some-way-t-eat-celery-so-it-wouldn-t-sound-like-you/) [Kin Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kin-hubbard/) > [If you've got a plot the size of a car or a tiny yard in Italy, you're going to be growing tomatoes and basil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-mayes/if-you-ve-got-a-plot-the-size-of-a-car-or-a-tiny-yard-in-italy-you-re/) [Frances Mayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-mayes/) ## More by William Alcott > [Bread is a staple article of diet in theory, rather than in practice. There are few who are truly fond of bread in its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-alcott/bread-is-a-staple-article-of-diet-in-theory-rather-than-in-practice/) [William Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-alcott/) > [Strange that mankind should ever have used the mushroom. All the various species of this substance are of a leathery consistence, and contain but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-alcott/strange-that-mankind-should-ever-have-used-the-mushroom-all-the/) [William Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-alcott/) > [One word, in this place, respecting asparagus. The young shoots of this plant, boiled, are the most unexceptionable form of greens with which I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-alcott/one-word-in-this-place-respecting-asparagus-the-young-shoots-of-this/) [William Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-alcott/) > [Every thing in human character goes to wreck, under the reign of procrastination, while prompt action gives to all things a corresponding and proportional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-alcott/every-thing-in-human-character-goes-to-wreck-under-the-reign-of/) [William Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-alcott/) [Explore all 5 William Alcott quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-alcott/) ## More Bed quotes > [When man of slender visits you / Nothing on earth that one can do / In well he’ll hide, or watery hole / And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-goldstein/when-man-of-slender-visits-you-nothing-on-earth-that-one-can-do-in/) [Jack Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-goldstein/) > [Your idea of fidelity is not having more than one man in bed at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-raphael/your-idea-of-fidelity-is-not-having-more-than-one-man-in-bed-at-the/) [Frederic Raphael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-raphael/) > [The beginning of love is all about the butterflies, but the end of it is when you can't get out of bed in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-swift/the-beginning-of-love-is-all-about-the-butterflies-but-the-end-of-it/) [Taylor Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-swift/) > [Home is behind, the world ahead, And there are many paths to tread Through shadows to the edge of night, Until the stars are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/home-is-behind-the-world-ahead-and-there-are-many-paths-to-tread/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I wish I had as much in bed as I get in the newspapers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-ronstadt/i-wish-i-had-as-much-in-bed-as-i-get-in-the-newspapers/) [Linda Ronstadt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-ronstadt/) > [ Leave a cavity behind the \[wall\] facings, and on the inside build walls two feet thick, made of red dimension stone or burnt brick… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-vitruvius-pollio/leave-a-cavity-behind-the-wall-facings-and-on-the-inside-build-walls/) [Marcus Vitruvius Pollio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-vitruvius-pollio/) > [Why couldn't Jesus command us to obsess over everything, to try to control and manipulate people, to try not to breathe at all, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/why-couldn-t-jesus-command-us-to-obsess-over-everything-to-try-to/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“To all the secret writers, late-night painters, would-be singers, lapsed and scared artists of every stripe, dig out your paintbrush, or your flute, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shauna-niequist/to-all-the-secret-writers-late-night-painters-would-be-singers-lapsed/) [Shauna Niequist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shauna-niequist/) > [“In the parking lot, she drove and parked in a dark area with no other cars around. She reclined her seat, and listened to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tao-lin/in-the-parking-lot-she-drove-and-parked-in-a-dark-area-with-no-other/) [Tao Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tao-lin/) > [It wasn't really touching to be young; it was touching not to be young, because you had less of life left. Touching to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-macaulay/it-wasn-t-really-touching-to-be-young-it-was-touching-not-to-be-young/) [Rose Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-macaulay/) > [I have to meditate before I go to bed, always. I have to let the day go and let the eternal in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bellamy-young/i-have-to-meditate-before-i-go-to-bed-always-i-have-to-let-the-day-go/) [Bellamy Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bellamy-young/) > [Sometimes by a woodland stream he watched the water rush over the pebbled bed, its tiny modulations of bounce and flow. A woman's body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/sometimes-by-a-woodland-stream-he-watched-the-water-rush-over-the/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I think life is full of challenges and problems. I don't believe that anyone is perfect. We all make mistakes. It's not a bed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-mansell/i-think-life-is-full-of-challenges-and-problems-i-don-t-believe-that/) [Nigel Mansell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-mansell/) > [When I saw him I thought I could curl up inside him and go to sleep and never wake up." "Men are no good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/when-i-saw-him-i-thought-i-could-curl-up-inside-him-and-go-to-sleep/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [I always wanted to be a movie star. I thought it meant being famous and having breakfast in bed. I didn't know you had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-allyson/i-always-wanted-to-be-a-movie-star-i-thought-it-meant-being-famous/) [June Allyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-allyson/) [Browse all 4,159 Bed quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bed/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Lettuce, greens and celery, though much eaten, are worse than cabbage, being equally indigestible without the addition of condiments. Besides, the lettuce contains narcotic properties. It is said of Galen, that he used to obtain from a head of it, eaten on going to bed, all the good effects of a dose of opium.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Alcott" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-alcott/lettuce-greens-and-celery-though-much-eaten-are-worse-than-cabbage/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bed" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-alcott/lettuce-greens-and-celery-though-much-eaten-are-worse-than-cabbage/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb2/william-alcott-64815_bed_lettuce-greens-and-celery-though-much-ea_2864134.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb2/william-alcott-64815_bed_lettuce-greens-and-celery-though-much-ea_2864134.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb2/william-alcott-64815_bed_lettuce-greens-and-celery-though-much-ea_2864134.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Lettuce, greens and celery, though much eaten, are worse than cabbage, being equally indigestible without…” — William Alcott", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "William Alcott", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-alcott/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Lettuce, greens and celery, though much...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-alcott/lettuce-greens-and-celery-though-much-eaten-are-worse-than-cabbage/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-alcott/lettuce-greens-and-celery-though-much-eaten-are-worse-than-cabbage/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```