Pomegranate Calories & Nutritional Values
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Pomegranate offers consumers a way to reap the broad spectrum health benefits of this exotic fruit. It is one of the nature’s richest sources of antioxidants and an excellent source of dietary fiber which entirely contained in the edible seeds. People who choose to discard the seeds forfeit nutritional benefits conveyed by the seed fiber and micronutrients.
Although pomegranate is known as autumn seasonal fruit, but in the Northern Hemisphere, it is typically in season from September to February and in Southern Hemisphere from March to May. Pomegranate has warming nature.
Although pomegranate is known as autumn seasonal fruit, but in the Northern Hemisphere, it is typically in season from September to February and in Southern Hemisphere from March to May. Pomegranate has warming nature.
Scientific Discoveries:
Pomegranate is native to Iran and has been cultivated since ancient times. It is used in cooking, baking, juices and smoothies. Its juice has long been a popular drink in Iran and it is widely used in traditional recipes. Pomegranate has been intertwined with Iranian culture and tradition for ages and it is a symbol of life abundance and fertility.
In the traditional system of medicine, the pomegranate has extensively been used as a source of remedies for thousands of years. The seeds and the juice are considered a tonic for the heart and throat. The astringent qualities of the flower juice, rind and tree bark are considered valuable for a variety of purposes, such as stopping nose bleeds, gum bleeds and toning skin.
Researchers have determined that the pomegranate extracts worked via several mechanisms simultaneously to slow cancer cell growth, in sharp contrast to chemotherapy drugs, which work through only a single mechanism. Over time, cancer cells can develop resistance to chemotherapy, leading some scientists to propose that anti-cancer agents that work by multiple mechanisms may offer greater treatment efficacy.
In the traditional system of medicine, the pomegranate has extensively been used as a source of remedies for thousands of years. The seeds and the juice are considered a tonic for the heart and throat. The astringent qualities of the flower juice, rind and tree bark are considered valuable for a variety of purposes, such as stopping nose bleeds, gum bleeds and toning skin.
Researchers have determined that the pomegranate extracts worked via several mechanisms simultaneously to slow cancer cell growth, in sharp contrast to chemotherapy drugs, which work through only a single mechanism. Over time, cancer cells can develop resistance to chemotherapy, leading some scientists to propose that anti-cancer agents that work by multiple mechanisms may offer greater treatment efficacy.
- Protecting Skin Health: Pomegranate protects skin against two important factors that degrade its health and appearance over time; accumulating damage inflicted by ultraviolet light, and a decreased ability to regenerate or heal. Excessive exposure to ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation has numerous adverse health effects on skin, including redness, hyper pigmentation, immune suppression, and photo aging. Pomegranate protects human skin cells against UVB-induced changes. It also protects against ultraviolet A (UVA) radiation, or the damaging, long-wave rays that penetrate deeply into the skin to promote wrinkles and both benign and malignant tumors. As skin ages, it often becomes thinner and slower to heal. Pomegranate seed oil extract promotes regeneration and thickening of the skin’s epidermis, while an extract of the peel promotes repair of the dermis.
- Preserving Dental Health: Maintaining optimal dental health is not only important for preserving the appearance and function of the teeth, but also for protecting against cardiovascular disease. Scientists now know that the chronic inflammation from periodontal disease is closely tied to the worsening of cardiovascular diseases. Pomegranate fights dental plaque, the yellowish buildup of microorganisms on the teeth that can lead to cavities and gum disease. Pomegranate helps to kill microorganisms isolated from the dental plaque of healthy adults. Additionally, rinsing the mouth for one minute with a mouthwash containing pomegranate effectively reduces the amount of microorganisms cultured from dental plaque.
- Ensuring Liver Health: As one of the body’s most metabolically active organs, the liver is responsible for breaking down and rendering harmless a multitude of chemicals, toxins, drugs, and hormones. Performing this daily task requires a prodigious amount of antioxidants, and new findings suggest that pomegranate is a rich source of liver-protective antioxidants.
- Preventing Osteoarthritis: Inflammation destroys joint-cushioning cartilage, inflicting tremendous pain and disability on the millions of people who suffer from osteoarthritis. By severely curtaining physical activity, osteoarthritis can initiate a vicious cycle in which its sufferers become ever more sedentary (and often overweight), triggering additional health problems. Pomegranate’s ability to break the cycle of inflammation and tissue damage spurred researchers to explore whether it could protect joint cartilage from inflammation in patients with osteoarthritis and they concluded that pomegranate inhibits enzymes that break down cartilage, and sharply reduces the volume of inflammatory products released from the tissue. It inhibits cartilage degradation in osteoarthritis and may also be a useful nutritive for maintaining joint integrity and function.
- Prostate Cancer: Scientists have studied several different types of prostate cancer, including both those that are dependent on male hormones, and those that are not. Rates of growth and reproduction were slashed in all prostate cancer cell types tested, regardless of whether the pomegranate extract was derived from the seeds, juice, or oils of the fruit. Investigators were able to show that the cell-killing and growth-inhibiting effects of the pomegranate extracts were limited to cancerous cells. If these findings hold true in men with prostate cancer, pomegranate may help kill cancerous cells while leaving healthy tissues intact.
- Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome: Pomegranate appears to lower blood sugar levels immediately following a meal. It blocks the breakdown of sucrose (table sugar) in the intestine by inhibiting alpha-glucosidase, an enzyme that breaks down sugars. This action could help prevent sugars from being absorbed, thus lessening the abrupt after meal spike in blood sugar that is so damaging to diabetics. Researchers have evaluated the effects of pomegranate juice on the mix of blood fats and cholesterol in diabetic patients. Twenty-two diabetics with elevated blood lipids consumed 40 grams (1.41 fluid ounces) per day of concentrated pomegranate juice for eight weeks, when blood lipid levels were measured again. Total cholesterol and LDL levels decreased substantially, demonstrating that pomegranate juice markedly reduces cardiac risk factors in diabetic patients.
- Cardiovascular Health: Millions of people suffer from cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension (high blood pressure), coronary artery disease, a history of stroke, or peripheral vascular disease (impaired blood flow to the extremities). Fortunately, natural strategies that can help avert life-threatening heart attacks and strokes are readily available today. One of the most promising heart-protective agents to emerge in recent years is pomegranate. Packed with unique antioxidants that guard the body’s endothelial cells against free-radical assault, pomegranate shows great promise in averting the numerous pathological changes associated with cardiovascular disease.
- Atherosclerosis: (a disease of the blood vessels). Studies of pomegranate juice have demonstrated even more dramatic effects, showing that it may actually reverse atherosclerosis. Scientists have studied patients with narrowing of their carotid arteries as a result of atherosclerosis. The carotid arteries in the neck are responsible for more than 80% of blood flow to the brain, and narrowing of these major vessels is a major risk factor for stroke. Among patients given daily pomegranate juice supplements (providing 78 mg of punicalagins), for one year, atherosclerotic lesions in the common carotid artery decreased by 35% in size.
- Alzheimer’s: Scientists have reported groundbreaking research on a potential role for pomegranate juice in averting Alzheimer’s disease. Pomegranate may protect the brain against oxidative stress-induced changes that can lead to Alzheimer’s. Oxidation is thought to produce the Alzheimer’s protein known as amyloid beta. The researchers declared their study to be the first to show beneficial effects “both behavioral and neuropathological”, of pomegranate juice in an animal model of Alzheimer’s disease.
Selection And Storage:
The trick to picking a good pomegranate is to be sure you are not picking a dry pomegranate. It should be plump and round, heavy for its size, with a rich, fresh color and should be free of cuts and blemishes. Larger fruits promise more juice. Pomegranate is not a fruit that will ripen once picked, so once harvested they will not continue to develop sugar.
Check the top portion of the stem to be sure it doesn't look dry and withered, and avoid pomegranates that have indentions. Whole fruits can be stored for a month in a cool, dry area or refrigerated up to two months; “to create this you can keep them in a plastic bag with a wet paper towel”. Fresh juice should be refrigerated and used within two to three days.
Check the top portion of the stem to be sure it doesn't look dry and withered, and avoid pomegranates that have indentions. Whole fruits can be stored for a month in a cool, dry area or refrigerated up to two months; “to create this you can keep them in a plastic bag with a wet paper towel”. Fresh juice should be refrigerated and used within two to three days.
How To Freeze Pomegranate Seeds:
Make sure the seeds are dry. Arrange them in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet lined with wax paper. Place in freezer for 2 hours or until frozen. Once frozen, put them into a freezer bag or container and store them in the freezer. The seed pips can be frozen in an airtight bag up to one year.
Sources
Image Credit
http://nutritionfacts.org/
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