Pomegranates or Punica grantum, are one of the healthiest fruits that mankind will ever see. They comprise range of beneficial compounds that are vital for growth of your body. Various studies have shown that they contain wide range of minerals and vitamins that keeps your body fit and healthy. Today we will explore different evidence-based health benefits of pomegranate.
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Health benefits of pomegranate
Pomegranates have antioxidants, anti-tumor and anti-viral properties and are rich in vitamins like vitamin A, vitamin C, Vitamin E. Consuming pomegranate regularly helps to lower the risk of diseases. Here are some of the major health benefits of pomegranate.
Pomegranate are loaded with various nutrients
Skins of a pomegranate are thick and inedible, but the seeds enclosed inside are. Each seed is covered by red, juicy and sweet covering often called as aril. One cup of arils (175 grams) of pomegranate contains below-listed nutrients.
- Protein: 3 grams
- Vitamin C: 30% of the RDA
- Folate: 16% of the RDA
- Fiber: 7 grams
- Vitamin K: 36% of the RDA
- Potassium: 12% of the RDA
- Sugar: 24 grams
- Energy: 144 Calories
Pomegranates are rich in fiber, vitamins, minerals and other compound but they come with some sugar. They have all the powerful compounds some of which have medicinal properties.
Provides shield from free radicals
They are rich in antioxidant compounds which protect our body from free radicals. Free radicals often cause premature ageing, consuming pomegranate regularly helps you to overcome this problem. Free radicals can be caused by several factors like exposure to sun, due to harmful toxins in the environment.
Contains compounds with powerful medicinal properties
Pomegranate has Punicalagins and Punicic Acids which are responsible for most of the health benefits of pomegranate.
- Punicic Acid
Punicic acids are mostly found in pomegranate seed oil and are the main fatty acids in the arils. It is a kind of conjugated linoleic acids that has potent biological effects.
- Punicalagins
As pomegranate is rich in antioxidants; punicalagins are powerful antioxidants having lots of health benefits. Antioxidant value of punicalagins are three times than that of red wine or green tea. They help to prevent some common form of cancers.
Prevents atherosclerosis
While we continue to grow up, walls of our arteries become harder and thicker due to cholesterol deposits over the time resulting blockages. Various antioxidants in pomegranate prevent bad cholesterol from oxidizing, thus removing excess amount of fat in our arteries.
While you are going through health benefits of pomegranate, we recommend you to check health benefits of mango.
Prevents arthritis
Arthritis includes swelling, pain, stiffness and decreased range of motion. When our body reacts with enzymes, it can cause some damage to our cartilage. Pomegranate ability to reduce inflammation helps our body to reduce damage of the cartilage caused by fighting enzymes. Test-tube studies have proven that pomegranate can reduce inflammatory activity in digestive tracts, colon cells.
May help to fight prostate cancer
Different lab studies suggest that pomegranate can slow cancer cell reproduction, and even cause cancer cell death. Prostate specific antigen PSA is a blood make for prostate cancer which is common type of cancer in men. Studies found that drinking 8 ounces of pomegranate juice everyday increases the PSA doubling time.
Fights heart diseases
Pomegranate helps to reduce amount of fat in our blood cell making our heart easy to pump blood. It also thins our blood and prevents our blood platelets from forming clots and coagulating. Pomegranates are also rich in other mineral which helps our body to tackle several cardiovascular diseases.
Improves memory
Recent studies proved that people having 8 ounces of pomegranate juice daily have improvement in their verbal and visual memory. Experiments conducted in rats shown that pomegranate consumption can also prevent Alzheimer’s. However, the experiment is yet to be done on human beings.
Aids Digestion and boosts immunity
Fiber is found in most of the fruits and are great for digestion. Pomegranate contains 7 grams of fiber on every 175 grams of arils. Adding pomegranate to your shopping basket is one of the best ways to include fiber in your daily routine.
Pomegranates, being rich in anti-inflammatory compound and minerals are extremely beneficial for those suffering from immune related disorders. Like lemons they are rich in Vitamin C which boosts antibody production in our body and helps in development of immunity.
Prevents plaque formations
Health benefits of pomegranate also have some effects in your oral health. We however can use mouth wash to improve our oral health, but pomegranate juice is better than those mouth washes. Different compounds found in pomegranate juice promotes strong antiplaque effects.
We have discussed a lot about health benefits of pomegranate let’s answer few common questions about them:
How long does it take for a pomegranate tree to bear fruit?
Pomegranate are widely grown in the subtropics and don’t bear fruit for 5-6 years old. Flowering on pomegranate trees starts in spring and continues all the way till summer. Having suitable conditions on hand, pomegranate trees can bear fruit within 5-7 months after flowering. High temperature is required for fruits with good flavor.
How to peel/ deseed a pomegranate perfectly?
Wash pomegranate well before you peel them. Then after slice the pomegranate in half horizontally. Place the cut side down facing towards the bowl. Take a spoon and start to whack firmly with a top surface of pomegranate. Apply some effort while whacking as it won’t work if you only tap. Continue to whack all over until all the seeds are out.
What is pomegranate seed oil good for?
Pomegranate oil is a cold-pressed from the seeds of pomegranate and are rich in flavonoids and punicic acids. Pomegranate seed oil is good for our skin and has numerous nutrition benefits. This can be a stan alone oil in your skin care routine. They can boost collagen production, enhance skin elasticity and reduce an appearance of ageing. Studies have shown that they promote the reversal of skin damage and moisture skin as well.
How to make pomegranate juice or pomegranate recipe?
Once you extract seeds from pomegranate, place them inside a blender. Pulse them and release their juice, start blending but do not blend them for long time of period as the seed will break apart and create cloudy juice. After this, use the strainer to strain the juice into a container. Slightly press the pomegranate in strainer to extract most out of it. Freeze it for a while and enjoy the best juice to get all the health benefits of pomegranate.
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