What We Know About the Health
Benefits of Fruit
Botanical Name: Mangifera Indica L.
Mango
is a
tropical tree
cultivated in many regions of India, and now its farming distributed
wide across the world in many continents. Usually, fruits grow at the
end of
a long, string like stem, with sometimes more than one fruit to a stem.
Each fruit measures 5 to 15 cms in length and
about 4 to 10 cms in width, and has typical “mango” shape, or sometimes
oval or round. Its weight ranges from 150 gm to around 750 gm. Outer
skin is smooth and is green in un-ripe mangoes but turns into golden
yellow, crimson red, yellow or orange-red when ripen depending upon the
cultivar type. Fresh mango season lasts from April until August.
Mangos Harumanis |
Health benefits of Mangoes
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Mango
fruit is rich in
pre-biotic dietary fiber,
vitamins, minerals, and poly-phenolic
flavonoid antioxidant compounds.
-
According to new research study, mango fruit has been
found to protect against colon, breast,
leukemia and prostate cancers. Several trial studies suggest that polyphenolic
anti-oxidant compounds in mango are known to offer
protection against breast and
colon cancers.
-
Mango fruit is an excellent source of Vitamin-A
and flavonoids like beta-carotene,
alpha-carotene, and beta-cryptoxanthin.
100 g of fresh fruit provides 765 IU or 25% of recommended daily levels
of vitamin-A. Together; these compounds have been known to have
antioxidant properties and are essential for vision. Vitamin A is also
required for maintaining healthy mucus membranes and skin. Consumption
of natural fruits rich in
carotenes is known to protect the body from lung and oral cavity
cancers.
-
Fresh mango is a good source of potassium. 100 g fruit
provides 156 mg of potassium while just 2 mg of
sodium. Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids
that helps controlling heart rate and blood pressure.
-
It is also a very good source of vitamin-B6
(pyridoxine), vitamin-C and vitamin-E. Consumption of foods rich in vitamin C helps the
body develop resistance against infectious agents and scavenge harmful
oxygen-free radicals. Vitamin B-6 or pyridoxine is
required for GABA hormone production within the brain. It also controls
homocystiene levels within the blood, which may otherwise be harmful to
blood vessels resulting in CAD, and stroke.
-
Further, it composes moderate amounts of copper. Copper
is a co-factor for
many
vital enzymes, including cytochrome
c-oxidase and superoxide
dismutase (other minerals function as co-factors for this
enzyme are manganese
and zinc). Copper is also required for the production of red blood
cells.
- Additionally, mango peel is also rich in phytonutrients, such as the pigment antioxidants like carotenoids