Private health // The health benefit of Dragon fruit for body

Dragon Fruit:

The Pitaya is more commonly referred to as the dragon fruit. It is an extremely beautiful fruit that has dazzling flowers and an intense shape and color. The dragon fruit is usually a dark red color, although some types of this fruit are pink or yellow. The skin of the dragon fruit is a thin rind. The skin is usually covered in scales, and the center of the fruit is made up of a red or white, sweet tasting pulp.

Health Benefits of Dragon Fruit:
Dragon Fruit Cholesterol

Keeping a heart healthy low cholesterol diet? Don't worry about your cholesterol Dragon fruit cholesterol is not an issue. Dragon fruit is both low in cholesterol and has little to no unhealthy cholesterol producing fats (certain fats which are metabolized to cholesterol contribute to increased cholesterol levels more than even cholesterol itself in food sources of cholesterol). 

Dragon Fruit Vitamin C

The amount of vitamin C in dragon fruit is high, and because the dragon fruit is a natural fruit providing you with a rich balance of nutrients coming along with the vitamin C, you absorb the Vitamin C in dragon fruit efficiently when you eat dragon fruit as part of your fruit healthy diet. 

Dragon Fruit Antioxidants

Eat dragon fruit as a good natural source of anti-oxidants which help to prevent the dangers of free radicals which can cause cancer and other undesirable health detriments.The number, quantity, and variety of antioxidants in real foods like dragon fruit is completely unmatched by any food supplement or pills - even those claiming to have 'antioxidant' health benefits. Nothing compares to the rich array of nutrients and antioxidants in a real natural food like the dragon fruit. Forget about junk foods and processed foods, as they are poison not foods! Even though a supplement claiming to offer a high amount of antioxidant benefits may sound good, the fact is that foods like dragon fruit have literally thousands of varieties of antioxidant substances and the supplement likely will contain only one (e.g. vitamin E supplements). Taking a single megadose of a single antioxidant compound may in fact cause harm or be toxic! Stick with dragon fruit antioxidant sources and other fresh fruits and vegetables and avoid trying to take a shortcut through a pill. 

Dragon fruit does have a small amount of fats because there are so many seeds in the edible part of the fruit. There can be literally thousands of the small black seeds in any given dragon fruit, and like most seeds and nuts they have both fats and protein in them while the flesh of the fruit itself has virtually none. Many fruits we eat have the seeds removed, like apricots, peaches, apples and the like, so we tend to think of fruits as being completely fat and protein free. It would be literally impossible to remove the seeds from dragon fruit unless you pressed it through a strainer, as the seeds are very small and mixed evenly in the flesh. Fortunately these are mostly the healthy mono-unsaturated fats as, of course, they are not processed in any way and therefore are none of the dangerously unhealthy trans-fats seen in most junk food and processed foods. 

Dragon Fruit Fiber

Dietary fiber is an important nutrition factor for everyone from young to old, and the best way to get dietary fiber is to eat fruits and vegetables including fruits like the dragon fruit. As you might expect, like many fruits, dragon fruit has lots of dietary fiber with almost 1g of fiber per 100g of the fresh dragon fruit. Of course, the amount of dietary fiber in dragon fruit which is dried on a gram for gram basis is much higher than the amount of dietary fiber in dragon fruit as the fresh fruit. Depending upon the degree of moisture retention in the dried dragon fruit fruit, expect to see 10g or more grams of dietary dragon fruit fiber per 100g of the dried pitahaya fruit. The amount of dietary dragon fruit fiber in the fresh dragon fruit will be more on the order of 1g of fiber per 100g of the fresh dragon fruit because the fresh fruit has so much water in it. If you want to increase how much fiber is in dragon fruit, you can eat more of the dragon fruit skin if it is in good condition (free of any spoilage or molds). Many sources of dried dragon fruit fiber may include some or all of the dragon fruit skin already, so depending upon this fact, you may find that the dried dragon fruit has even more fiber than the fresh fruit even after taking into account the drying process and the resulting concentration of fiber on a gram for gram basis. The health benefits of dragon fruit fiber are just one other example of the reason that eating natural sources of nutrients is superior to getting them from pills and supplements Dragon fruit nutritional benefits also include the levels of dragon fruit antioxidants - the antioxidants in dragon fruit are numerous and varied.

Dragon Fruit Improves Your Heart Health:

The greatest of dragon fruit advantages if for cardiovascular health (7). It decreases bad cholesterol levels from the body and then increases good cholesterol levels. This fruit is a good source of mono saturated fats which helps to keep our heart in good condition.

Dragon Fruit Helps Control Diabetes:

Dragon fruit contains a high amount of fiber that helps a person stabilize his blood sugar levels. It also avoids sugar spikes that are often observed after eating high glycemic index foods. Therefore, it is good for a diabetic patient though you should consult your doctor before consumption (8).

Dragon Fruit Fights Signs Of Aging:

This fruit is a rich source of antioxidants (9). It helps us to fight free radicals in our body. It also helps to slow down the aging process after the free radicals are reduced. Due to this, the skin looks young, flexible and tight.

Dragon Fruit Is High In Vitamins and Minerals:

Dragon fruit contains high amounts of vitamin C, vitamin B1, B2, and B3. It is also rich in many important minerals as iron, calcium, phosphorus (12). Apart from this, it contains a good proportion of protein, fiber and niacin and last but not the least, 80 percent water. Hence you can easily call it a ‘super fruit’ that helps in enhancing nutrition and corrects body ailments. Not only that, dragon fruit can be a vital ingredient in your daily beauty regime even. Dragon fruit seeds contain unsaturated fat and fights bad cholesterol.

Dragon Fruit Face Pack To Fight The Aging Process:

To prevent premature aging, you may apply a dragon fruit facial mask once in a week. To make this mask, take half of dragon fruit and make a smooth paste out of it. Mix one tablespoon of yogurt to it and apply entire face and neck. Wait for 20 minutes and rinse it off with lukewarm water. Owing to its antioxidant properties this facial mask effectively slows down aging progression of cells.

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Private health // Health benefits of star fruit

Star fruit is a small, bushy evergreen tree that grows very well under hot, humid, tropical conditions.

The plant bears small lilac colored, bell-shaped flowers in clusters which subsequently develop into oblong shaped fruits with characteristic five angled edges (sides or ribs) that appear like a starfish in cross sections. Both sweet and sour varieties begin to yield under cultivable orchards, and ready for harvesting when the plants reach about 3-4 years old. Carambola fruit features light-green to yellow with attractive smooth waxy surface and weighs about 70-130g. Inside, its crispy, juicy pulp can either be mildly sweet or extremely sour depending upon the cultivar type and amount of oxalic acid concentration. In some seed types, 2-5 tiny edible seeds found at the center of each angled cavitiy. 

Health benefits of star fruit:

•  Star fruit is one of very low calorie exotic fruits. 100 g fruit just provides 31 calories, which is much lower than for any other popular tropical fruits. Nonetheless, it has an impressive list of essential nutrients, antioxidants, and vitamins required for well-being.
• The fruit along with its waxy peel provides a good amount of dietary fiber. Fiber helps prevent absorption of dietary LDL cholesterol in the gut. The dietary fibers also help protect the mucous membrane of the colon from exposure to toxic substances by binding to cancer-causing chemicals in the colon.
• Star fruit contains good quantities of vitamin-C. Vitamin C is a powerful natural antioxidant. 100 g of fresh fruit provides 34.7 mg or 57% of daily-required levels of vitamin C. In general, consumption of fruits rich in vitamin C helps the human body develop resistance against infectious agents and scavenge harmful, pro-inflammatory free radicals from the body.
• Star fruit is rich in antioxidant phyto-nutrient polyphenolic flavonoids. Some of the important flavonoids present are quercetin, epicatechin, and gallic acid. Total polyphenol contents (Folin assay) in this fruit is 143 mg/100 g. Altogether, these compounds help protect from deleterious effects of oxygen derived free radicals by warding them off the body.
• In addition, it is a good source of B-complex vitamins such as folates, riboflavin, and pyridoxine (vitamin B-6). Together, these vitamins help as co-factors for enzymes in metabolism as well as in various synthetic functions inside the body.
  It also carry small amount of minerals and electrolytes like potassium, phosphorus, and zinc and iron. Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids helps controlling heart rate and blood pressure; thus, it counters bad influences of sodium.

Medicinal uses:

Star fruit and its juice is often recommended in many folk medicine in Brazil as a diuretic (to increase urine output), expectorant, and to suppress cough.

Preparation and Serving tips:

Star fruits are generally used as a garnish in salads, sorbets, drinks, as well as to impart tart flavor in dishes.

Given their high oxalic acid content and extreme tartness, they used quite less frequently in food the industry.

To prepare, wash them thoroughly in cold water, dry mop using absorbent cloth. Trim off the ends and dry edges of the ribbed angles. Cut the fruit crossway into thin sections, which resemble like a starfish. Pick out any seeds located near its center.

Here are some serving tips:

• Only sweet variety carambola can be eaten fresh, or mixed with other fruits in salads. Fresh fruit can also be juiced and used in cocktails with other complementing tropical fruit juices.
• Sour type fruits are favored in cooking as they impart unique tart flavor to poultry, meat, and seafood dishes.
• Cut sections of fresh fruit added in stews, curries, and stir-fries with chicken, and fish and shrimp.
• The fruit can be used to make sauce, pickle, chutney, tarts, and jam.

Safety profile

Star fruit is one of the plant sources that contain highest concentration of oxalic acid; 100 g of fresh fruit contains 50,000-95,800 ppm of oxalic acid. Oxalic acid has been considered as anti-nutrient compound as it interferes with absorption and metabolism of several natural minerals such as calcium, magnesium, etc. It also predisposes to a condition known as oxaluria, a condition which may leads to the formation of oxalate kidney stones. In some people with impaired kidney function, its consumption would result in renal failure and may cause death. People with known kidney disease should therefore, advice to avoid eating star fruit.

Further, Star fruit, like grapefruit, has been found to interact adversely with many drugs. Some of the compounds in carambola irreversibly inhibit cytochrome P450 3A4 isoenzymes (3A4) in the intestines and liver. This resulting increase in drug levels leads to adverse effects and/or toxicity. It is therefore, strongly advised to consult your healthcare practitioner before eating star fruit or its products if taking any kind of pharmaceutical drugs.

Source: www.nutrition-and-you.com

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private health the importance of sugarcane jice

The Importance of Sugarcane Juice:

How benefit does sugarcane juice bring, but according to advice of predecessor, I make habit of drinking sugarcane juice every week. In the first 3 months, because of morning sickness I could not drink much sugarcane juice; but from the 4th month, my eating situation has been improved and that juice becomes my favorite drink for me every day. Know taste of wife, my husband orders a glass of sugarcane juice for me daily. Although drinking sugarcane juice every day, properly I do not know much about the effect of this drink in pregnancy. At the beginning of pregnancy, my mother said that trying to drink lots of sugarcane juice helped my baby be clean and less viscous. That is conception of the old, so I do not pay attention much. However, refer to books and magazines, according to Oriental medicine, sugarcane juice tastes sweet, neutral temper, has effect on cooling, refreshing, detoxifying, removing sputum, preventing nausea, treating fever, red urine, and is very nutritious. About nutritional value, many studies have shown that in the body of sugarcane, beside basic ingredients - variety of sugar – which count for about 70%, it also contains protein and fat, carbohydrate, many minerals, vitamins and nearly 30 types of organic acid. Therefore, sugarcane not only tastes light sweet suitable for everyone, but also provides your body energy and necessary nutrients.
The story on the advantage of sugarcane juice for pregnant women does not stop here. I have just discovered a great benefit of this drink - treatment for morning sickness - when I visited my friend. My best friend since university has been pregnant for 2 months. I heard that her morning sickness was very serious, so my husband and I decided to come over her house and shared experience of pregnancy. But we saw that she did not have nausea or any symptoms of morning sickness. When asking, she said that she had treated that phenomenon a few days before, but before that she could not eat anything and just had sickness all day. She said that her neighbor suggested her simple and efficient tip for treating morning sickness by sugarcane juice. I was quite surprised because I used to drink it but not effective with my morning sickness. She told me that I had to take it with the right way. And then we paid attention to listening to her introduce about remedy for treating morning sickness with sugarcane juice. Although going over the period of morning sickness, I still wanted to learn in order to apply for next time and presented to other people. The remedy for treating morning sickness of my friend is using a small bowl of sugarcane juice about 150 ml, adding 5ml ginger juice, and drinking that mixture 2 -3 times a day. Take that drink continuously in 2 – 3 days, and phenomenon of morning sickness will reduce obviously. If you still feel nausea, you can drink it until completely recover. Looking radiant face of my friend that day, I know that the remedy is very efficacious. If any pregnant woman has morning sickness, please try this remedy. However, you need to buy fresh sugarcane juice or make it by yourself. In addition, drinking sugarcane juice during pregnancy is very good for both mother and baby; but it contains high sugar, so you should not drink too much. If pregnant women are suffered from diabetes, they need to consult doctor before taking that drink regularly.

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