Rarest and Exotic fruits of the world have been so categorized as they generally grown in specific country or region and not known to the common man around the world. A list of such fruits have been presented along with their health benefits.
The rambutan is a medium-sized tropical tree in the family Sapindaceae. The fruit produced by the tree is also known as rambutan. According to popular belief and the origin of its name, rambutan is native to Indonesia and Malaysia. The earliest record of rambutan trees show that they were cultivated by the Malayan jungle tribes around their temporary settlements, a practice followed to date. Rambutan trees grow naturally in Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, and elsewhere in Southeast Asia, although its precise natural distribution is unknown. It is closely related to several other edible tropical fruits including the lychee, longan, and mamoncillo. It is native to the Indonesian Archipelago, from where it spread westwards to Thailand, Burma, Sri Lanka and India; northwards to Vietnam, and the Philippines.
A species regularly sold in Costa Rican markets may be known as “wild” rambutan. Yellow in color, it is smaller than the usual red variety. The flesh exposed when the outer skin is peeled off is sweet and sour, slightly grape-like and gummy to the taste. In Panama and Costa Rican Spanish, it is known as mamon chino (“Chinese Sucker”) due to its Asian origin and the likeness of the edible part with Melicoccus bijugatus. The fruit has been successfully transplanted by grafting in Puerto Rico.
Rambutans are a non-climacteric fruit-that is, they ripen only on the tree.
The name rambutan is derived from the Malay/Indonesian word rambutan, meaning “hairy” rambut the word for “hair” in both languages, a reference to the numerous hairy protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. In Vietnam, it is called chom chom (meaning “messy hair”) due to the spines covering the fruit’s skin.
The fruit are usually sold fresh, used in making jams and jellies, or canned. Evergreen rambutan trees with their abundant coloured fruit make beautiful landscape specimens.
In India, Rambutan is imported from Thailand as well as grown in Pathanamthitta district of the southern state of Kerala.
Rambutans are small red colour fruits with spiky hair on the skin. It has a sweet, juicy flesh which is slightly acidic and small brown coloured seeds whose oil is used in a number of industries. Rambutans are available in two colours, red and yellow.
Health Benefits of Rambutan
Rambutan is a healthy food and is a great substitute for processed snack foods. Rambutan health benefits are not just limited to the fruit but are derived from other elements as well, like fruit, rind, bark and leaves.
- This fruit is a traditional medicine in Malaysia and Indonesia that is being used for hundreds of years. It is used in a number of treatments which includes diabetes, hypertension and various other ailments.
- The carbohydrates and protein content of rambutan help to increase energy and prevent bloating. Rambutan is also rich in water which helps to get back the lost energy and quenches thirst.
- Vitamin C in Rambutan helps in the absorption of minerals, iron and copper. It also protects the body from getting damaged from free radicals.
- One of the main compounds of rambutan is Gallic acid. This compound behaves like a free radical scavenger that protects our body from oxidative damage and is particularly helpful to fight cancer.
- This fruit contains moderate amounts of copper which is necessary for the creation of white and red blood cells. It also contains manganese which our body needs to produce and activate enzymes.
- Phosphorus in rambutan helps to remove the waste in kidneys and is essential for the development, repair, and maintenance of tissues and body cells. Rambutan also contains significant amounts of Calcium which works together with phosphorus to fortify the teeth and strengthens bones.
- Rambutans are an excellent source of iron which helps to correct the amount of oxygen in the body which controls dizziness and fatigue due to anaemia, an illness caused by iron deficiency.
- Rambutan has good fiber content and is low in calories. The fruit keeps us full for a long time due to its high fiber and water content and controls irregular hunger pangs. This also aids in weight reduction.
- Rambutan is also good for treating common illnesses like headache, thrush and dysentery. For headache, the leaves are used as a poultice on the temples. This calms the nerves and reduces headache. A decoction of the bark is applied on the tongue to treat thrush. A decoction of roots is used to lower fever.
- The other health benefits of Rambutan is in its antiseptic qualities. It helps to fight the body infection which invades our body.
- Besides nutritional benefits, rambutan also offers therapeutic functions. Consuming the fruit can help to kill intestinal parasites and helps to relieve symptoms of diarrhoea and fever.
- Rambutan makes your skin soft and supple. Its high water content hydrates your skin, thus leaving it soft, smooth and supple. Due to its ability to scavenge free radicals, Rambutan protects your body from oxidative damages. Powerful antioxidants present in Rambutan battles cancer in an effective manner.
- Rambutan plays a significant part in improving the health of your hair. Rambutan leaf paste nourishes your hair from deep inside. Take some Rambutan leaf and mash them until it becomes smooth. Add some water and squeeze the extract. Apply the mixture onto your hair and scalp. Apply regularly for best results.
Rambutan benefits are due to the fact that the fruits have rich amounts of proteins, carbohydrates, fats, iron, phosphorus, calcium and Vitamin C. The stem of rambutan contains saponin, tannin, iron, pectin substances and flavonoids. The seeds of the fruit contain polyphenol and fat.
Physalis
Physalis is a genus of plants in the nightshade family (Solanaceae), native to warm temperate and subtropical regions of the world. All but one species are native to the New World, and most species occur in Mexico in particular. At least 46 species are endemic to the country. The genus is characterised by the small orange fruit similar in size, shape and structure to a small tomato, but partly or fully enclosed in a large papery husk derived from the calyx. Many Physalis species are called groundcherries. One name for Physalis peruviana is Cape gooseberry, not to be confused with the true gooseberries, which are of the genus Ribes in the family Grossulariaceae.
They are herbaceous plants growing to 0.4 to 3 m tall, similar to the common tomato, a plant of the same family, but usually with a stiffer, more upright stem. They can be either annual or perennial. Most require full sun and fairly warm to hot temperatures. Some species are sensitive to frost, but others, such as the Chinese lantern tolerate severe cold when dormant in winter.
Not all Physalis species bear edible fruit. Select species are cultivated for their edible fruit, however; the typical Physalis fruit is similar to a firm tomato in texture, and like strawberries or pineapple in flavor, with a mild acidity. Some species, such as the Cape gooseberry and tomatillo have been bred into many cultivars with varying flavors, from tart to sweet to savory. Physalis fruit are rich in cryptoxanthin.
The fruit can be used like the tomato. Once extracted from its husk, it can be eaten raw and used in salads. Some varieties are added to desserts, used as flavoring, made into fruit preserves, or dried and used like raisins. They contain pectin and can be used in pie filling.
The Cape gooseberry is native to the Americas, but is commonly in many subtropical areas. Its use in South Africa near the Cape of Good Hope inspired its common name. Other species of commercial importance include the tomatillo. Some nations, such as Colombia, have a significant economic trade in Physalis fruit. Some species are grown as ornamental plants. For example, the hardy Physalis alkekengi is popular for its large, bright orange to red husks.
In Chinese medicine, Physalis species are used as remedies for such conditions as abscesses, coughs, fevers, and sore throat. Smooth groundcherry is classified as a hallucinogenic plant, and its cultivation for other than ornamental purposes is outlawed in the US state of Louisiana under State Act 159.
Health Benefits of Physalis
Physalis is a kind of drug nourishing crops. The fruit consists of two times the quantity of Vitamin C as that in lemons and appears just like a blonde-red cherry tomato with a more gratifying flavor compared to the tomatillo. Apart from leaves, fruits, stems and also roots also provide recovery power. This particular plant is definitely a 12-monthly shrub vegetation, that is regarded as weeds.
1. Influenza and Laryngitis
Physalis Plant (all parts) which has been cut into bits about the size of 3-4 cm, dried, after that wrapped to help keep damp longer. Then take about 9-15 grams of boiling water, the water was drunk. Do just as much as 3 times every day, or even as required and / or recipe instructions.
2. Diabetes mellitus (diabetes)
Just like number one. Yet in the boil, boil along with 2 cups of water, till leftover 1 glass. Right after chilling filtered, drinks at once each morning. The waste could be boiled once more, to be drunk within the afternoon.
3. Lung disease
Comparable to number one. Whenever boiling, utilize 3-5 cups of water. After boiling, let cool and also strain it, drink water 3 times daily.
4. Weight loss properties
One 100 gram (3.5 ounce) serving of ground cherries gives us just 53 calories along with a single gram of fat. For that reason, you are able to readily add as numerous of these cherries in your diet without having to worry regarding weight gain. Also, like several fruits, they will include respectable amounts of fiber that makes you really feel fuller and much less willing to overindulge.
5. Rich in vitamin A
100 grams of ground cherries consist of 720 international units of vitamin A, that is 14 % of the adult’s suggested every day consumption. Vitamin A is required for sustaining good eyesight and also skin health, improving immune function, and also gene transcription. Additionally it is an anti-oxidant, which means that it may neutralize the harmful outcomes of free-radicals, therefore shielding us from cancer and also degenerative diseases just like macular degeneration, rheumatoid arthritis, as well as cystic fibrosis.
6. Good source of vitamin C
100 grams of ground cherries impart us with 11 milligrams of vitamin C, that is 18 % of the RDI. Vitamin C is really a water-soluble nutrient that is required for collagen manufacturing (that, in return, accelerates the body’s capability to restore wounds), reducing blood pressure level, making certain the appropriate dilation of bloodstream (therefore safeguarding us from diseases just like atherosclerosis as well as congestive heart failure), battling cataracts, and also improving the defense mechanisms. Just like vitamin A, vitamin C can also be an anti-oxidant which safeguards us from free radical injury.
7. B-vitamin complex
100 grams of ground cherries consist of different quantities of particular B-vitamins, which includes thiamine (0.110 milligrams, or 7.3 percent of the RDI), riboflavin (0.040 milligrams, or even 2 % of the RDI), and niacin (2.800 milligrams, or 14 % of our RDI). Even though the B-vitamins act as a group, they do have got particular reasons: Thiamine is required to keep a healthy central nervous system (and is also therefore nicknamed the ‘anti-stress’ vitamin), riboflavin is required to facilitate cell growth and also repair, and niacin is required for DNA repair and maintaining levels of energy.
Jabuticaba
The Jabuticaba is a fruit-bearing tree in the family Myrtaceae native to Minas Gerais and Sao Paulo states in southeastern Brazil. Related species in the genus Myrciaria, often referred to by the same common name, are native to Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Bolivia. The tree is grown for its purplish-black, white-pulped fruits; they can be eaten raw or be used to make jellies and drinks (plain juice or wine). Other common names include Brazilian Grape Tree, Jaboticaba, Jabotica, Jabuticabeira, Guaperu, Guapuru, Hivapuru, Sabara and Ybapuru (Guarani).
Common in Brazilian markets, jabuticabas are largely eaten fresh; their popularity has been likened to that of grapes in the United States. Fresh fruit may begin to ferment 3 to 4 days after harvest, so they are often used to make jams, tarts, strong wines, and liqueurs. Due to the extremely short shelf-life, fresh jabuticaba fruit is very rare in markets outside of areas of cultivation. Traditionally, an astringent decoction of the sun-dried skins has been used as a treatment for hemoptysis, asthma, diarrhoea, and gargled for chronic inflammation of the tonsils.
Several potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory anti-cancer compounds have been isolated from the fruit. One that is unique to the fruit is jaboticabin.
The name jabuticaba, derived from the Tupi word Jabuti (tortoise) + Caba (place), meaning the place where you find tortoises. The Guarani name is “Yvapuru”, where yva means fruit, and the onomatopoeic word puru for the crunching sound the fruit produces when bitten. A traditional song from the eastern region of Bolivia refers to a young woman as having “eyes like the guapuru” (because of their soft blackness) and a mouth “as sweet as the achachairu.”
The jabuticaba tree, which appears as a charge on the coat of arms of Contagem, Minas Gerais, Brazil, has become a widely used species in the art of bonsai, particularly in Taiwan and parts of the Caribbean. In Brazil, it is common to refer to something allegedly unique to the country as a “jabuticaba” since the tree supposedly only grows in Brazil. It is usually a pejorative expression.
Health Benefits of Jabuticaba
Jabuticaba is used for the treatment for hemoptysis, asthma, diarrhea and dysentery also as a gargle for chronic inflammation of the tonsils are by the caustic decoction of the sun-dry skins is agreed in Brazil. Such use of fruit also may lead to excessive consumption of tannin. The fruit of Jaboticaba contain compounds similar to known to have positive biological effects in cranberries, grapes and other related species, including anti-ageing, anti-inflammatory and the antioxidant qualities.
1. Jabuticaba Fruit can be stimulating, opens up bronchial airways, which is good for asthma, and slightly astringent making it great for diarrhea, and also healing those suffering from tonsillitis.
2. Jabuticaba Fruit is anti-inflammatory, and full of great antioxidants.
3. Jabuticaba Fruit an anti-aging fruit with similar health benefits like cranberries.
4. Jabuticaba Fruit contains lots of protein, low in carbs, and high in calcium, iron, phosphorus, and very high in Vitamin C and has some B vitamins, and very low in calories.
5. New studies are being done on the effectiveness of Jabuticaba for fighting cancer… because it contains many anticancer compounds.
6. Jabuticaba Fruit soothes the GI tract, helps with arthritis, and also prevents many skin diseases and even hair loss
7. Jabuticaba Fruit is also a great detoxing agent.
8. Jabuticaba Fruit is rich in phenolic compounds, among which we can highlight the anthocyanins. Anthocyanins are the most abundant type of flavonoid and they are responsible for the blue or purple colour. Anthocyanins are the only fatty acid that is believed to play an important role in the health benefits exerted by this fruit, apart from the polyphenolic content found on it and more specifically punicalagins, punicalins, gallagic acid, and ellagic acid that act as powerful antioxidants.
9. In Jabuticaba Fruit there is another active constituent present on this fruit, a depside known as jaboticabin, which may also play an even more important role on the health benefits of this fruit, because depsides exert antibiotic, anti-HIV,antioxidant, and anti-proliferative activity.
Jabuticaba Fruit makes a wonderful jelly and great cheesecakes.
Spanish lime or Limoncillo
Melicoccus bijugatus, commonly called Spanish lime, genip, guinep, genipe, ginepa, quenepa, canepa, mamon, limoncillo or mamoncillo, is a fruit-bearing tree in the soapberry family Sapindaceae, native or naturalised over a wide area of the tropics including South and Central America, Mexico, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and other parts of the Caribbean, and parts of Africa and the Pacific.
Melicoccus bijugatus is native to northern South America and naturalised in coastal and dry forest in Central America, the Caribbean and parts of the Old World tropics. It is believed to have been introduced into the Caribbean in pre-Columbian times. This fruit, known as quenepa in Puerto Rico, grows particularly abundant in the municipality of Ponce, and there is a yearly celebration in that municipality known as Festival Nacional de la Quenepa (National Genip Fruit Festival).
Health Benefits of Spanish lime or Limoncillo or Quenepa
This small round fruit is about the size of an olive with a hard skin. Inside you’ll find a very sweet luscious fruit with a jelly like consistency, most people eat them fresh… but they can also be made into sauces, desserts, and juice.
1. Quenepa Fruit is full of fiber for lowering cholesterol and preventing constipation, also Vitamin A that boosts your immune system and prevents formation of urinary stones; Vitamin C which is very important as a great antioxidant; calcium which keeps your teeth and bones strong and helps prevent cancer; phosphorus which is important for digestion and regulating hormones.
2. Quenepa also contains a large amount of tryptophan which is important for good sleep… and lysine which is important for proper growth and for preventing herpes.
3. Quenepa Fruit lowers blood pressure and helps with asthma, and because Quenepa is full of antioxidants (Phenolic Compounds) they also work to prevent cardiovascular disease, boost your immune system and prevent strokes.
4. Studies are being done on Quenepa as a anti-diabetic food because particular proteins in Quenepa lower blood sugar levels.
5. Quenepa Fruit is low in fat, calories, and cholesterol free! Some people say if you want to lose weight just keep eating Quenepa all day long… it will keep you busy.
6. The leaves of the Quenepa tree can be boiled and made into a tea which is great for intestinal problems.
7. The large seed of the Quenepa Fruit is also edible and can be cooked… and once cooked they taste great. Roasted, crushed, and mixed with honey Quenepa seeds soothing away diarrhea, and in South America roast Quenepa Seeds are used as a substitute for cassava flour for baking. In Colombia Quenepa juice is a staple and can be bought in stores, it’s sweet and wonderful tasting.
Kiwano or African horned cucumber
Cucumis metuliferus, horned melon or kiwano, also called African horned cucumber or melon, jelly melon, hedged gourd, or melano, is an annual vine in the cucumber and melon family. Often known by its nickname in the southeastern United States, blowfish fruit, it is grown for its fruit, which look like oval melons with horn-like spines. The fruit of this plant is edible, but it is used as often for decoration as for food. When ripe, it has a yellow-orange skin and a lime green, jelly-like flesh with a tart taste, and texture similar to a cucumber. The horned melon is native to Africa, and it is now grown in California, Mississippi, Chile, Australia, and New Zealand, as well.
In Zimbabwe, this cucumber is called gaka or gakachika, and it is primarily used as a fruit-snack, salad, and, rarely, for decoration. It is eaten young, mature green, or when ripe, bright yellow/orange (i.e., at any stage of its development). It grows naturally in the fields and also in the bush. However, some people leave some to rot in the fields for the next summer’s seeds/plants. Its taste has been compared to a combination of cucumber and zucchini or a combination of banana, cucumber and lemon.
Some eat the peel, as well. The fibrous structure and protein composition of the peel provides for a taste and texture similar to the plantain family. One variety does not have horns, but looks and tastes similar. The seeds are covered in a gel-like substance. The skin is very rich in vitamin C and fiber. A small amount of salt or sugar can increase the flavor. The fruit can be used in cooking, but when eaten raw, most suck out the pulp and spit out the seeds.
A traditional food plant in Africa, this fruit has potential to improve nutrition, boost food security, foster rural development and support sustainable landcare. Along with the Gemsbok cucumber, it is the only source of water during the dry season in the Kalahari desert. Despite the fruit’s colorful appearance, it has not found any significant uses in Western cuisine, and has been called “astringent”, and the prices “exorbitant”.
In terms of chemical makeup it is similar to others in the family Cucurbitaceae. Similar to very watered-down guanabana, because the tartness is very mild.
Health Benefits of Kiwano or African horned cucumber
The health benefits of the kiwano are in the nutrients it contains. These nutrients are made up of good levels of vitamin C, iron and potassium. It also has smaller amounts of phosphorus, magnesium, zinc, calcium, copper and sodium. The seeds contain linoleic and oleic acid. Linoleic is an omega fatty acid which is required for human health while oleic acid is thought to help with the lowering of blood pressure.
There are two antioxidants which have been identified in the melon seeds and these are y-tocopherol and a- tocopherol. Both are organic types of vitamin E which have many health benefits. These types of health benefits of the kiwano means that many parts of the body benefit from, such as the red bloods cells, skin, muscles, nerves and heart. Vitamin E works in the body by helping to neutralize the damage from free radicals which can cause cancer and cardiovascular disease. It has been suggested that Vitamin E may be helpful in reducing the risk of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.
Other health benefits of the kiwano are in the beta carotene or vitamin A contained in the pulp. Beta carotene is of importance to the immune system in helping to strengthen it. Vitamin A is also very good for the eyes and is important for night vision or being able to see in dim light, and it is important for skin health as well. Diets that are rich in beta carotene, lutein and lycoprene are said to help slow aging and may also protect and repair DNA.
1. Contains numerous Antioxidants
A couple of the anti-oxidants recognized in horned melon seeds usually are a-tocopherol as well as y-tocopherol. Both of them are organic types of vitamin E. Vitamin E has several health advantages which includes healthy skin, heart, muscles, nerves, and red blood cells. Vitamin E likewise helps counteract harmful free-radicals that can induce long-term illnesses just like heart problems as well as cancer. Additionally there is several proof to point out that vitamin E may help decrease our chance of Alzheimer’s as well as Parkinson’s disease.
The yellowish-green colored pigment perfectly located at the seeds and also pulp of horned melon include the carotenoid, beta carotene, popularly known as vitamin A. Beta carotene assists strengthen the body’s defense mechanisms and sustain eye and skin health. It may also help cancer prevention simply by suppressing the grow of free-radicals. A diet abundant with vegetables and fruit which contain carotenoids just like beta carotone, lycopene and lutein may also assist repair as well as safeguard DNA, therefore decreasing the ageing procedure.
2. Beneficial for eye
A kiwano consists of 307 IU of vitamin A, or even 6 % of the 5,000 IU suggested every day. Vitamin A is a vital nutrient for the assistance of the retina function within the eye which retains eyesight. Vitamin A additionally fortifies the strength of the mucosal lining, the very first line of protection from infection within the nasal passages, throat and also intestinal tract.
3. Good food for metabolism
A kiwano offers 1 mg of zinc, or 7 % of the 15 mg required every day. On average, most Americans usually do not eat the minimal every day requirement of zinc, in accordance with Ohio State University. Which includes zinc sources within the diet is essential mainly because it plays a role in the development of protein, that repairs wounds and also produces blood cells. Zinc additionally takes part in the function along with discharge of insulin essential for normal carbohydrate metabolism.
4. Stops premature aging
A kiwano offers 11 mg of vitamin C, or 18 % of the FDA suggested Daily Value of 60 mg. Including concentrated sources of vitamin C within the diet is essential because the nutrient is required for the function of numerous body systems. Vitamin C is essential for the generation of collagen, an element of skin tissue utilized for making as well as repairing epidermal as well as organ tissues. Additionally, it safeguards cells from injury brought on by free-radicals and harmful toxins, waste by-products of metabolism, that may result in the growth and development of disease and result in untimely aging.
5. Multiple benefits
These types of fruits are lower in calories, loaded with dietary fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium as well as iron.
This fruit could be kept in room temperature for a minimum of 2 months. This is often a primary reason for utilizing these unusual looking fruits for ornamental purposes. Horned Melons have little horns growing out from bright yellow skin along with some orange on it . They’re about Three to five inches lengthy (7.5 to 13 cm) and average 2 inches wide (5 cm.) They’ll weigh between 1 to 2 pounds (1/2 a kilo to a kilo.)
Inside, the flesh appears like lime-green jelly, and it has a rather grassy smell into it.This can be a challenging melon. Unless there’s two types floating around, then it seems that in consuming this melon two genetically various taste bud genes are rising in humans.
Several food writers state the seeds are delicious, and that the fantastic sweet and also sour taste is actually a complicated mixture of banana, cucumber, lime, mango pineapple and watermelon tastes. To others, the seeds are formally delicious, however they are as appealing since the tough, bitter as well as stringy seeds present in a cucumber which is past it.
Durian
Cucumis metuliferus, horned melon or kiwano, also called African horned cucumber or melon, jelly melon, hedged gourd, or melano, is an annual vine in the cucumber and melon family. Often known by its nickname in the southeastern United States, blowfish fruit, it is grown for its fruit, which look like oval melons with horn-like spines. The fruit of this plant is edible, but it is used as often for decoration as for food. When ripe, it has a yellow-orange skin and a lime green, jelly-like flesh with a tart taste, and texture similar to a cucumber. The horned melon is native to Africa, and it is now grown in California, Mississippi, Chile, Australia, and New Zealand, as well.
In Zimbabwe, this cucumber is called gaka or gakachika, and it is primarily used as a fruit-snack, salad, and, rarely, for decoration. It is eaten young, mature green, or when ripe, bright yellow/orange (i.e., at any stage of its development). It grows naturally in the fields and also in the bush. However, some people leave some to rot in the fields for the next summer’s seeds/plants. Its taste has been compared to a combination of cucumber and zucchini or a combination of banana, cucumber and lemon.
Some eat the peel, as well. The fibrous structure and protein composition of the peel provides for a taste and texture similar to the plantain family. One variety does not have horns, but looks and tastes similar. The seeds are covered in a gel-like substance. The skin is very rich in vitamin C and fiber. A small amount of salt or sugar can increase the flavor. The fruit can be used in cooking, but when eaten raw, most suck out the pulp and spit out the seeds.
A traditional food plant in Africa, this fruit has potential to improve nutrition, boost food security, foster rural development and support sustainable landcare. Along with the Gemsbok cucumber, it is the only source of water during the dry season in the Kalahari desert. Despite the fruit’s colorful appearance, it has not found any significant uses in Western cuisine, and has been called “astringent”, and the prices “exorbitant”.
In terms of chemical makeup it is similar to others in the family Cucurbitaceae. Similar to very watered-down guanabana, because the tartness is very mild.
Health Benefits of Durian
The health benefits of the kiwano are in the nutrients it contains. These nutrients are made up of good levels of vitamin C, iron and potassium. It also has smaller amounts of phosphorus, magnesium, zinc, calcium, copper and sodium. The seeds contain linoleic and oleic acid. Linoleic is an omega fatty acid which is required for human health while oleic acid is thought to help with the lowering of blood pressure.
There are two antioxidants which have been identified in the melon seeds and these are y-tocopherol and a- tocopherol. Both are organic types of vitamin E which have many health benefits. These types of health benefits of the kiwano means that many parts of the body benefit from, such as the red bloods cells, skin, muscles, nerves and heart. Vitamin E works in the body by helping to neutralize the damage from free radicals which can cause cancer and cardiovascular disease. It has been suggested that Vitamin E may be helpful in reducing the risk of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.
Other health benefits of the kiwano are in the beta carotene or vitamin A contained in the pulp. Beta carotene is of importance to the immune system in helping to strengthen it. Vitamin A is also very good for the eyes and is important for night vision or being able to see in dim light, and it is important for skin health as well. Diets that are rich in beta carotene, lutein and lycoprene are said to help slow aging and may also protect and repair DNA.
1. Contains numerous Antioxidants
A couple of the anti-oxidants recognized in horned melon seeds usually are a-tocopherol as well as y-tocopherol. Both of them are organic types of vitamin E. Vitamin E has several health advantages which includes healthy skin, heart, muscles, nerves, and red blood cells. Vitamin E likewise helps counteract harmful free-radicals that can induce long-term illnesses just like heart problems as well as cancer. Additionally there is several proof to point out that vitamin E may help decrease our chance of Alzheimer’s as well as Parkinson’s disease.
The yellowish-green colored pigment perfectly located at the seeds and also pulp of horned melon include the carotenoid, beta carotene, popularly known as vitamin A. Beta carotene assists strengthen the body’s defense mechanisms and sustain eye and skin health. It may also help cancer prevention simply by suppressing the grow of free-radicals. A diet abundant with vegetables and fruit which contain carotenoids just like beta carotone, lycopene and lutein may also assist repair as well as safeguard DNA, therefore decreasing the ageing procedure.
2. Beneficial for eye
A o consists of 307 IU of vitamin A, or even 6 % of the 5,000 IU suggested every day. Vitamin A is a vital nutrient for the assistance of the retina function within the eye which retains eyesight. Vitamin A additionally fortifies the strength of the mucosal lining, the very first line of protection from infection within the nasal passages, throat and also intestinal tract.
3. Good food for metabolism
A kiwano offers 1 mg of zinc, or 7 % of the 15 mg required every day. On average, most Americans usually do not eat the minimal every day requirement of zinc, in accordance with Ohio State University. Which includes zinc sources within the diet is essential mainly because it plays a role in the development of protein, that repairs wounds and also produces blood cells. Zinc additionally takes part in the function along with discharge of insulin essential for normal carbohydrate metabolism.
4. Stops premature aging
A kiwano offers 11 mg of vitamin C, or 18 % of the FDA suggested Daily Value of 60 mg. Including concentrated sources of vitamin C within the diet is essential because the nutrient is required for the function of numerous body systems. Vitamin C is essential for the generation of collagen, an element of skin tissue utilized for making as well as repairing epidermal as well as organ tissues. Additionally, it safeguards cells from injury brought on by free-radicals and harmful toxins, waste by-products of metabolism, that may result in the growth and development of disease and result in untimely aging.
5. Multiple benefits
These types of fruits are lower in calories, loaded with dietary fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium as well as iron.
This fruit could be kept in room temperature for a minimum of 2 months. This is often a primary reason for utilizing these unusual looking fruits for ornamental purposes. Horned Melons have little horns growing out from bright yellow skin along with some orange on it . They’re about Three to five inches lengthy (7.5 to 13 cm) and average 2 inches wide (5 cm.) They’ll weigh between 1 to 2 pounds (1/2 a kilo to a kilo.)
Inside, the flesh appears like lime-green jelly, and it has a rather grassy smell into it.This can be a challenging melon. Unless there’s two types floating around, then it seems that in consuming this melon two genetically various taste bud genes are rising in humans.
Several food writers state the seeds are delicious, and that the fantastic sweet and also sour taste is actually a complicated mixture of banana, cucumber, lime, mango pineapple and watermelon tastes. To others, the seeds are formally delicious, however they are as appealing since the tough, bitter as well as stringy seeds present in a cucumber which is past it.
Miracle fruit
Synsepalum dulcificum, also known as the miracle fruit, is a plant with a berry that, when eaten, causes sour foods (such as lemons and limes) subsequently consumed to taste sweet. This effect is due to miraculin, which is used commercially as a sugar substitute. Common names for this species and its berry include miracle fruit, miracle berry, miraculous berry, sweet berry, and in West Africa, where the species originates, agbayun, taami, asaa, and ledidi.
The berry itself has a low sugar content and a mildly sweet tang. It contains a glycoprotein molecule, with some trailing carbohydrate chains, called miraculin. When the fleshy part of the fruit is eaten, this molecule binds to the tongue’s taste buds, causing sour foods to taste sweet. At neutral pH, miraculin binds and blocks the receptors, but at low pH (resulting from ingestion of sour foods) miraculin binds protons and becomes able to activate the sweet receptors, resulting in the perception of sweet taste. This effect lasts until the protein is washed away by saliva (up to about 60 minutes).
The names miracle fruit and miracle berry are shared by Gymnema sylvestre and Thaumatococcus daniellii, which are two other species of plant used to alter the perceived sweetness of foods.
In tropical West Africa, where this species originates, the fruit pulp is used to sweeten palm wine. Historically, it was also used to improve the flavor of maize bread gone sour.
Attempts have been made to create a commercial sweetener from the fruit, with an idea of developing this for patients with diabetes. Fruit cultivators also report a small demand from cancer patients, because the fruit allegedly counteracts a metallic taste in the mouth that may be one of the many side effects of chemotherapy. This claim has not been researched scientifically, though in late 2008, an oncologist at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami, Florida, began a study, and by March 2009, had filed an investigational new drug application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
In Japan, miracle fruit is popular among patients with diabetes and dieters.The shelf life of the fresh fruit is only 2-3 days. Because miraculin is denatured by heating, the pulp must be preserved without heating for commercial use. Freeze-dried pulp is available in granules or in tablets, and has a shelf life of 10 to 18 months.
Health Benefits of Miracle fruit
1) Miracle Fruit is a natural, healthy and totally harmless alternative to sugar and sweeteners.
2) The Miracle Fruit contains a natural protein called miraculin that binds to the tongue’s taste buds causing bitter and sour foods to taste sweet. Miracle Fruit is all natural and no adverse or side effects have never been found by eating this completely healthy and natural berry.
3) Beneficial for diabetics: For people trying to lose weight or just cut back on their sugar intake. For people who need to avoid sugar like diabetics.
4) Beneficial for cancer patients: For people under chemotherapy that are feeling that metallic taste when eating, using Miracle Fruit they will regain the flavor of foods and the metallic taste will not be present.
5) Beneficial for Dieters: Miracle Fruit is a natural dieting supplement as it contains no calories, but it momentarily alters your taste buds enabling you to taste sweet while eating or drinking.
Mangosteen
Mangosteen also known as Queen of Fruits. There is a legend about Queen Victoria offering a reward of 100 pounds sterling to anyone who could deliver to her the fresh fruit. Although this legend can be traced to a 1930 publication by the fruit explorer, David Fairchild, it is not substantiated by any known historical document, yet is probably responsible for the uncommon designation of mangosteen as the “Queen of Fruit”.
The purple mangosteen colloquially known simply as mangosteen, is a tropical evergreen tree believed to have originated in the Sunda Islands and the Moluccas of Indonesia. It grows mainly in Southeast Asia, and also in tropical South American countries such as Colombia, in the state of Kerala in India and in Puerto Rico where the tree has been introduced. The tree grows from 6 to 25 m (20-82 ft) tall.The fruit of the mangosteen is sweet and tangy, juicy, and somewhat fibrous, with an inedible, deep reddish-purple colored rind (exocarp) when ripe. In each fruit, the fragrant edible flesh that surrounds each seed is botanically endocarp, i.e., the inner layer of the ovary.
The subsurface chemistry of the mangosteen exocarp comprises an array of polyphenols, including xanthones and tannins that assure astringency which discourages infestation by insects, fungi, plant viruses, bacteria and animal predation while the fruit is immature. Colour changes and softening of the exocarp are natural processes of ripening that indicates the fruit can be eaten and the seeds have finished developing.
The edible endocarp of the mangosteen is botanically defined as an aril with the same shape and size as a tangerine 4-6 centimetres in diameter, but is white. The circle of wedge-shaped arils contains 4-8, rarely 9 segments, the larger ones harbouring apomictic seeds that are unpalatable unless roasted.
Often described as a subtle delicacy, the arils bear an exceptionally mild aroma, quantitatively having about 1/400th of the chemical constituents of fragrant fruits, explaining its relative mildness. The main volatile components having caramel, grass and butter notes as part of the mangosteen fragrance are hexyl acetate, hexenol and a-copaene.
On the bottom of the exocarp, raised ridges (remnants of the stigma), arranged like spokes of a wheel, correspond to the number of aril sections. Mangosteens reach fruit-bearing in as little as 5-6 years, but more typically require 8-10 years.
The aril is the white part of the fruit containing a mild flavor that makes the fruit popular for eating. When analyzed specifically for its content of essential nutrients, however, mangosteen nutrition is modest, as all nutrients analyzed are a low percentage of the Dietary Reference Intake.
Mangosteen peel contains xanthonoids, such as mangostin, and other phytochemicals having antioxidant properties in vitro. Some studies demonstrated that juice containing mangosteen peel extracts may reduce blood levels of C-reactive protein, a biomarker of inflammation. Research on the phytochemistry of the plant without human clinical study is inadequate to assure the safety or efficacy of its use as a supplement.
Some mangosteen juice products contain whole fruit puree or polyphenols extracted from the inedible exocarp (rind). The resulting juice has purple colour and astringency derived from exocarp pigments.
Due to restrictions on imports, mangosteen is not readily available in certain countries. Although available in Australia, for example, they are still rare in the produce sections of grocery stores in North America and Europe. Following export from its natural growing regions in Southeast Asia, the fresh fruit may be available seasonally in some local markets like those of Chinatowns.
Mangosteens are available canned and frozen in Western countries. Without fumigation or irradiation to kill the Asian fruit fly fresh mangosteens had been illegal to import into the United States until 2007. Freeze-dried and dehydrated mangosteen arils can also be found. Upon arrival in the US in 2007, fresh mangosteens sold up to $45 per pound in speciality produce stores in New York City, but wider availability and somewhat lower prices have become common in the United States and Canada within two or three years. Fresh mangosteens sell for around $8 a pound in the US. Despite efforts described above to grow mangosteen in the Western Hemisphere, nearly the entire supply is imported from Thailand. Canned mangosteens are also available in the United States for a much lower price, but much of the fruit’s unique flavor is lost in the canning process.
In his publication, “Hortus Veitchii”, James Herbert Veitch says he visited Java in 1892, “to eat the Mangosteen. It is necessary to eat the Mangosteen grown within three or four degrees of latitude of the equator to realize at all the attractive and curious properties of this fruit.” The journalist and gourmand R. W. Apple, Jr. once said of the fruit, “No other fruit, for me, is so thrillingly, intoxicatingly luscious…I’d rather eat one than a hot fudge sundae, which for a big Ohio boy is saying a lot.” Since 2006, private small volume orders for fruits grown in Puerto Rico were sold to American gourmet restaurants who serve the aril pieces as a delicacy dessert.
Various parts of the plant have a history of use in traditional medicine, mostly in Southeast Asia; it may have been uses to treat skin infections, wounds, dysentery, and urinary tract infections. According to the American Cancer Society, “there is no reliable evidence that mangosteen juice, puree, or bark is effective as a treatment for cancer in humans”.
Mangosteen twigs have been used as chew sticks in Ghana, and the wood has been used to make spears and carpentry in Thailand. The rind of the mangosteen fruit has also been used to tan leather in China.
Health Benefits of Mangosteen
1. Most fruits contain varying amounts of antioxidants, but mangosteen seems to specialize in them. Some of the antioxidants found in it include catechins (considered by researchers to be five times more effective at scavenging free radicals than vitamin C), stilbenes (which possess excellent anti-fungal properties, even after digestion), quinones (potent anti-bacterials), and a large number of polyphenols, which are even stronger antioxidants than vitamin E. Furthermore, mangosteens contain 40 out of the 200 xanthones known to science. Xanthones, which are extremely powerful antioxidants, are only found in a handful of tropical fruits and possess anti-allergen, anti-inflammatory and anti-convulsant properties. This makes mangosteen an excellent choice for treating asthma, eczema, allergies, fibromyalgia, arthritis, cardiovascular diseases and many other serious conditions.
2. Mangosteen is a great weight loss food for numerous reasons. Firstly, it is highly fibrous – one serving (100 grams) of fresh mangosteen contains 5.1 grams of dietary fiber, or 20 percent of an adult’s recommended daily intake. Fiber helps us absorb water from the colon, which makes us feel fuller for longer and discourages overeating. It also sweeps the intestinal tract of accumulated waste. Secondly, one serving of fresh mangosteen contains only 63 calories, no cholesterol and 0.40 grams of fat. Thirdly, mangosteen is a natural energy booster, making exercise sessions easier, more enjoyable and potentially longer-lasting.
3. Though mangosteen is primarily consumed for its antioxidants, it does provide us with varying amounts of macro and trace minerals. These include potassium, copper, iron, manganese, magnesium, zinc and calcium. These minerals work together to promote superior body health and play an important role in cellular metabolism. Potassium in particular is an important component of cell and body fluids and helps to control blood pressure and heart rate. Thus, mangosteen can protect us from strokes and coronary heart diseases.
4. Mangosteen contains respectable amounts of several B-vitamins, such as niacin, folate, riboflavin and thiamin. This chemically related family of nutrients helps the body to metabolize protein, fats and carbohydrates. B-vitamins also provide mood-boosting benefits, largely because some of them are responsible for making neurotransmitters like serotonin. This makes mangosteen a good choice of fruit for individuals suffering from depression and lethargy.
Langsat or lanzones
Lansium domesticum, also known as langsat, buahluku or lanzones, is a species of tree in the Mahogany family. The plant, which originates from western Southeast Asia, bears edible fruit. It is the provincial flower for the Indonesian province of South Sumatra.
The fruit can be elliptical, oval, or round, measuring 2 to 7 centimetres (0.79 to 2.8 in) by 1.5 to 5 centimetres (0.59 to 2.0 in) in size. Fruits look much like small potatoes and are borne in clusters similar to grapes. The larger fruits are on the variety known as duku. It is covered by thin, yellow hair giving a slightly fuzzy aspect. The skin thickness varies with the varieties, from 2 millimetres (0.079 in) to approximately 6 millimetres (0.24 in).
The fruit contains 1 to 3 seeds, flat, and bitter tasting; the seeds are covered with a thick, clear-white aril that tastes sweet and sour. The taste has been likened to a combination of grape and grapefruit and is considered excellent by most. The sweet juicy flesh contains sucrose, fructose, and glucose. For consumption, cultivars with small or undeveloped seeds and thick aril are preferred.
L. domesticum is cultivated mainly for its fruit, which can be eaten raw. The fruit can also be bottled in syrup. The wood is hard, thick, heavy, and resilient, allowing it to be used in the construction of rural houses. Some parts of the plant are used in making traditional medicine. The bitter seeds can be pounded and mixed with water to make a deworming and ulcer medication. The bark is used to treat dysentery and malaria; the powdered bark can also be used to treat scorpion stings. The fruit’s skin is used to treat diarrhea, and in the Philippines the dried skin is burned as a mosquito repellent. The skin, especially of the langsat variety, can be dried and burned as incense.
The greatest producers of lansium domesticum are Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia. The production is mostly for internal consumption, although some is exported to Singapore and Hong Kong.
One serving of lanzones contains approximately 100 g of the edible portion of the fruit. Per serving, lanzones contain 86.5 g of moisture, 0.8 g of protein, 9.5 g of carbohydrates and 2.3 g of fiber. Additionally, this fruit contains 20 g of calcium, 30 g of phosphorus, 13 IU of vitamin A, 89 mcg of thiamine, 124 mcg of riboflavin, 1 g of ascorbic acid and 1.1 mg of phytin per serving.
Health Benefits of Langsat or lanzones
1. Lanzones have several purported medicinal uses. According to the “Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine,” you can burn the dried peel from this fruit to drive away mosquitoes.
2. The bark from the tree that grows the lanzone fruit can function as an astringent to treat diarrhea.
3. Powder from the bark can also help to treat scorpion stings.
4. The lanzone fruit can serve as a febrifuge, meaning it lowers your body temperature.
5. Lanzones contain riboflavin and thiamine, vitamin B-2 and B-1 respectively. Riboflavin supports body growth and red blood cell production. Additionally, riboflavin helps your body to release energy from carbohydrates. Our body uses thiamine to break down sugars. Additionally, thiamine can help to treat several nerve and heart conditions.
6. Lanzones also contain vitamin A, also known as retinol or carotenoids. Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin that plays a fundamental role in maintaining healthy skin, teeth, soft and skeletal tissue and mucous membranes. Vitamin A also functions as an eye pigment fundamental in night or low light situations.
7. Lanzones contain carotene, a powerful antioxidant. Antioxidants play a fundamental role in protecting cells from free radicals, associated with many medical disorders.
8. The mixture of powdered seeds and water are used for treatment of intestinal worms.
9. The resin from bark was prescribed for flatulence (a state of excessive gas in the alimentary canal), for swellings and as an antispasmodic (a drug used to relieve or prevent spasms).
10. The resin may be useful in the treatment of inflammation and colic (acute abdominal pain) of the gastro-intestinal tract.
Star fruit or Carambola
Carambola, also known as starfruit, is the fruit of Averrhoa carambola, a species of tree native to the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The fruit is popular throughout Southeast Asia, the South Pacific and parts of East Asia. The tree is also cultivated throughout non-indigenous tropical areas, such as in Latin America, the Caribbean, and the southern United States.
The fruit has distinctive ridges running down its sides (usually five, but can sometimes vary); in cross-section, it resembles a star, hence its name. The entire fruit is edible and is usually eaten out of hand. They may also be used in cooking, and can be made into relishes, preserves, and juice drinks.
It is believed that it may have originated from Sri Lanka or Moluccas, Indonesia; but has been cultivated in the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia for hundreds of years. They remain a local favorite in those areas but have also recently gained popularity in parts of East Asia and Queensland, Australia; as well as in the Pacific Islands, particularly Tahiti, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Hawaii, and Guam. They are cultivated commercially in India, Southeast Asia, southern China, Taiwan, and Florida. They are also grown in Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Trinidad, Mexico, Guyana and parts of Africa.
The entire fruit is edible, including the slightly waxy skin. The flesh is crunchy, firm, and extremely juicy. It does not contain fibers and has a texture similar in consistency to that of grapes. Carambolas are best consumed shortly after they ripen, when they are yellow with a light shade of green or just after all traces of green have disappeared. They will also have brown ridges at the edges and feel firm. Fruits picked while still slightly green will turn yellow in storage at room temperature, but will not increase in sugar content. Overripe carambola will be yellow with brown spots and can become blander in taste and soggier in consistency.
Ripe sweet type carambolas are sweet without being overwhelming as they rarely have more than 4% sugar content. They have a tart, sour undertone, and an oxalic acid odor. The taste is difficult to compare, but it has been likened to a mix of apple, pear, grape, and citrus family fruits. Unripe starfruits are firmer and sour, and taste like green apples.
Ripe carambolas may also be used in cooking. In Southeast Asia, they are usually stewed in cloves and sugar, sometimes with apples. In China, they are cooked with fish. In Australia, they may be cooked as a vegetable, pickled, or made into jams. In Jamaica they are sometimes dried.
Unripe and sour type carambolas can be mixed with other chopped spices to make relishes in Australia. In the Philippines, unripe carambolas are eaten dipped in rock salt. In Thailand, they are cooked together with shrimp. The juice from carambolas is also used in iced drinks, particularly the juice of the sour varieties. In Hawaii they are used to make sherbet, while in the Philippines they can be used as seasoning. In India, the juice is bottled for drinking
Carambola is rich in antioxidants, potassium, and vitamin C; and low in sugar, sodium, and acid. It is also a potent source of both primary and secondary polyphenolic antioxidants. Averrhoa carambola has both antioxidant and antimicrobial activities. Scavenging of nitric oxide (NO) by the fruit extract is dependent on concentration and stage of ripening. Extracts showed antimicrobial activity against E. coli, Klebsiella spp., Staphylococcus aureus, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
Carambolas contains oxalic acid, which has been considered harmful to individuals suffering from kidney failure, kidney stones, or those under kidney dialysis treatment. Consumption by those with kidney failure can produce hiccups, vomiting, nausea, and mental confusion. Fatal outcomes have been documented in some patients. Recent research has however, identified another compound structurally similar to phenylalanine which the researchers have termed caramboxin, to be responsible for the observed effects.
Like the grapefruit, carambola is considered to be a potent inhibitor of seven cytochrome P450 isoforms. These enzymes are significant in the first-pass elimination of many medicines, and, thus, the consumption of carambola or its juice in combination with certain medications can significantly increase their effective dosage within the body. Research into grapefruit juice has identified a number of common medications affected, including statins, which are commonly used to treat cardiovascular illness, and benzodiazepines (a tranquilizer family including diazepam).
The trees are also grown as ornamentals for their abundant brightly colored and unusually shaped fruits, as well as for their attractive dark green leaves and their lavender to pink flowers. Like the bilimbi, the juice of the more acidic sour types can be used to clean rusty or tarnished metal (especially brass) as well as bleach rust stains from cloth. They may also be used as a mordant in dyeing.
Health Benefits Of Star Fruit
1. Sources of vitamins A and C
As a source of vitamins, especially vitamin A and C, starfruit effective as an antioxidant in the fight against free radicals. The fruit is also able to help prevent the spread of cancer cells, increase endurance and prevent canker sores. Star fruit provides small amounts of vitamin A and folate, but it is an especially good source of vitamin C. Every serving of raw star fruit contains 22.7 milligrams of vitamin C, an amount that fulfills 20 percent of the RDA of the vitamin. Individuals who regularly eat enough vitamin C may be less likely to develop cardiovascular disease, osteoarthritis, cancer and age-related macular degeneration because vitamin C inhibits the ability of free radical compounds to damage DNA. The vitamin C content in star fruit degrades rapidly when the fruit is exposed to heat, air or light. To maximize nutrition, eat star fruit within three to four days of purchase.
2. Lowering cholesterol levels
Starfruit contains pectin that is able to bind cholesterol and bile acids contained preformance intestines and helps expenditures. In addition, this fruit can also reduce levels of bad cholesterol in the body.
3. Rich in fiber to improve digestion
High fiber content, making starfruit useful to improve digestion. Star fruit contains insoluble dietary fiber. Insoluble dietary fiber plays an important role in keeping the digestive system and lowers blood cholesterol. High levels of potassium and low sodium, also suitable as a hypertension drug. For those who are overweight, starfruit good choice because it contains low calories.
A 1/2-cup serving of star fruit provides approximately 4 percent of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s recommended daily allowance of dietary fiber for healthy adult men and women following a 2,000-calorie diet. Star fruit contains primarily soluble fiber, a type of fiber that swells with water and forms a viscous mass in the digestive tract. Diets with a high intake of soluble fiber may help prevent diabetes and high cholesterol. According to 2009 article published in “Nutrition Reviews,” eating plenty of dietary fiber may also help prevent high blood pressure, stroke, obesity and gastrointestinal disorders.
4. Treating cough
Flowers have a sweet starfruit As with antipyretic and expectorant properties. Flowers sweet starfruit can be used for treating coughs in children. starfruit tree roots can also be used for headaches and joint pain (arthritis). If there is a star fruit in the market, do not hesitate to buy.
5. Anti-microbial ingredients
Star fruit contains an antimicrobial agent against certain types of diseases such as microbial Bacillus cereus, E. coli, Salmonella typhi and Staphylococcus aureus.
6. Sources of vitamin B
Star fruit contains vitamin B, especially vitamin B5 (pantotenik acid) that help lower cholesterol in the blood, and vitamin B9 (folic acid), which helps reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke.
7. Rich source of minerals
A 1/2-cup serving of raw star fruit supplies 5 percent of the RDA of potassium and 3 percent of the RDA of magnesium. In addition to being a mineral essential for bone health, potassium is an electrolyte required by the body for cardiac, smooth and skeletal muscle contraction. A diet low in potassium-rich foods like star fruit may increase the risk of osteoporosis, stroke and hypertension. Magnesium contributes to the strength of bones and teeth and helps regulate the amount of potassium in the body. Adequate magnesium intake is linked to a lower risk of heart problems, depression and diabetes. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, vitamin B-6 promotes magnesium absorption. If you’re concerned about your magnesium intake, include foods rich in vitamin B-6 along with star fruit in your diet. Spinach, carrots, fish, poultry and whole grains are all good vitamin B-6 sources.
8. Source of Antioxidants
In 2006, researchers at the National University of Singapore extracted and studied the antioxidant polyphenol compounds in star fruit. The scientists found that the total oxidizing activity, or TAA, of star fruit was 510 micromoles per gram, making the fruit an excellent source of antioxidants. Their research determined that star fruit contains a particularly high concentration of the proanythocyanidin compound epicatechin. Epicatechin is also found in red wine, dark chocolate and green tea. Studies of the Kuna Indians living on the San Blas Islands of Panama indicate that high epicatechin intake may significantly decrease the risk of cancer, diabetes, stroke and cardiovascular disease. The Kuna Indians regularly consume an epicatechin-rich cocoa drink and have a low incidence of these health problems.