People around the world have enjoyed fruits for thousands of years. Back then, little did we know that we were consuming a powerful array of nutrients crucial for longevity and quality of life. Fruits are universally accepted healthy foods that must be included as part of a balanced diet. People who eat a variety of fruits regularly are more likely to have a reduced risk of chronic diseases.
Fruits provide nutrients that are vital for the health of your body and mind. There are so many reasons to eat plenty of fruit every day. A growing body of research proves that fruits are critical to promoting good health. In fact, fruits should be the foundation of a healthy diet. Fruits can serve as the most robust type of snacks once could indulge in.
They come packed with essential vitamins, minerals, fiber, and disease-fighting phytochemicals, and a wide variety of antioxidants. Because of this, eating plenty of fruits and every day can help reduce your risk of:
• Heart Diseases
• High Blood Pressure
• Type II Diabetes
• Certain Cancers
It’s a common notion that fresh fruits are expensive, but think about the price you pay for the takeout meals or that packet of potato chips that will affect your overall health in the long run. The real benefit of replacing unhealthy snacks with fruits is the fact that you are becoming much healthier. There is no way to put a price on your health.
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Watch: Benefits Of Fruits You Should Know
Here are 6 quick facts about the benefits of fruits for you
- Fruits supply dietary fiber, and fiber intake is linked to a lower incidence of cardiovascular disease and obesity.
- Fruits are low in calories and fats. In addition to this, fruits are also a source of simple sugars, fiber, and vitamins, which are essential for optimizing our health.
- Fruits are a source of soluble dietary fiber that helps take up the good cholesterol levels, ward off fats from the body and also helps keep your digestive system healthy, further relieving you from constipation and other related issues.
- Fruits are rich in minerals that are known to benefit the digestive tract.
- Vitamin C, present in abundance in most fruits, helps the immune system to stay strong and healthy.
- Phytonutrients are abundant in fruits and help to protect the body from tissue damage.
With all these wonderful health benefits there are some things we need to take care of.
Fruits still contain naturally occurring sugar and too much of it may influence your insulin and glucose levels in a bad way. So those who have diabetes or want to lose some excess weight or those who find that losing weight is becoming difficult may want to stay away from excessive consumption of fruits. The way suggested is by limiting your servings to 2 or less a day and opt for low glycemic fruits like berries.
Keep seasonal fruits your preferred choice when it comes to your daily intake. When in doubt search ‘which fruits are seasonal’ to your particular area where you are living.
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Spectacular Benefits Of Fruits
1. Cardiovascular Health
Fresh fruits are rich in potassium. Potassium is particularly dominant in bananas and they help the body in maintaining healthy blood pressure. When you choose a diet that is rich in fruits, you have a chance of lowering the risk of heart diseases.
2. Lowering of Blood Cholesterol
Fruits contain fibers that have dual functions. Remember that fibers help in the catabolic process of the body. This can lower cholesterol in the body and reduce the risk of heart diseases.
3. Fruits May Reduce The Risk Of Cancer
It will interest you to know that one of the benefits of fresh fruits is that they help reduce the risk of some cancers.
Fruits can add an extra layer of protection against critical diseases because of the presence of antioxidants that are natural free radical scavengers. Particularly, the lycopene that is found in tomatoes can help in preventing the development of prostate cancer.
4. Fruits Improve Vision
Eating fresh fruits can prevent a lot of sight-related problems. To be precise, you can keep cataracts and macular degeneration at bay when you eat lots of fresh fruits and vegetables. The reason for this can be attributed to Lutein and Zeaxanthin which are found in fresh fruits, a study has revealed.
5. Fruits Consumption Reduces The Risk Of Diabetes
When you eat green leafy vegetables and fruit, you will have a reduced chance of developing diabetes. Eating fiber-rich fruits and veggies is a natural deterrent to consuming too many processed foods that can create a weight issue as well. So many people are suffering from diabetes and most of them will give anything to be free from it. You stand an opportunity to avoid that.
6. Fruits Bring About Better Digestive Health
This is where fiber comes into focus. With fruits that come with lots of fiber content, you are going to enjoy better digestive health. It will keep you comfortable and you can avoid constipation.
7. Fresh Fruits Cannot Make You Fat
People erroneously think that fruits can make you fat because they contain natural sugars. The truth is that the sugar in fruits doesn’t have the same effect on the body as other kinds of sugars added to our food.
Fruits contain fiber, phytochemicals, and micronutrients, which help to process the natural sugar in fruits and slow the rate of its introduction to the bloodstream.
8. Fresh Fruits Boost Brainpower
Oxidative stress and inflammation can negatively affect brain function and memory in humans. Anthocyanins can help in reducing the above deficiencies and they are found in fruits. This is probably the reason why it is widely believed that fruits help in keeping your brain sharp.
Therefore, do yourself a favor and get some fruit. Your future can depend on how much fruit you consume now!
9. Fresh Fruits Can Be Beneficial To Diabetic Patients
Most times, it is said that diabetic patients should stay away from fruits because they contain certain amounts of carbohydrates. But you cannot completely stop the intake of fruits for diabetic patients.
Doing this intake will mean that you are effectively cutting out important vitamins and minerals. The patients will be worse off without them. A controlled intake won’t hurt once you have checked with your diabetologist.
10. Reduction in the risk of developing kidney stones and bone loss
Fruits contain enough potassium which helps in reducing the risk of developing kidney stones. More so, potassium can help decrease bone loss when you start growing old.
Don’t forget that it also reduces the risk of developing heart diseases and stroke as already mentioned above. If you want to avert these outcomes, you should make fruits your daily companions.
11. Formation Of Red Blood Cells
Fresh fruits contain folate otherwise known as folic acid. Folate helps the body in the formation of red blood cells. This is needed mostly by pregnant women or those who may be planning a family. The reason is that it will help in the prevention of neural tube birth defects.
12. Presence Of Carotenoids
Finally, fruits especially those with orange color, are very high in carotenoids. The carotenoids include alpha-carotene and beta-carotene. The body acts and converts beta-carotene into vitamin A which provides you with good eye health, strong immune system, and healthy skin.
Top 6 Things To Know About Fruits
- Fruits are a healthy snack. They do not contain many calories, saturated fats or sodium that can harm your body. Moreover, none of them have cholesterol.
- Fruits are sources of many essential nutrients that are under-consumed in other dishes, including potassium, dietary fiber, vitamin C, and folate (folic acid).
- Potassium-rich diets may help regulate blood pressure. Fruits including bananas, prunes, dried peaches, and orange juice are all rich in potassium.
- Dietary fiber from fruits, as part of an overall healthy diet, helps reduce blood cholesterol levels and may lower the risk of heart disease. Fiber is important for proper bowel function. It helps reduce constipation and diverticulosis. Fiber-rich foods help you feel fuller for longer and add only fewer calories. Prefer eating whole fruits as they have a lot more fiber as compared to fruit juices.
- Vitamin C is important for the growth and repair of all body tissues and helps heal cuts and wounds. Vitamin C also keeps teeth and gums healthy.
- Finally, eating fruits and having higher levels of mental well-being are positively related. Eating fruits as a substitute for medical treatment is certainly not suggested, but it’s a simple way to improve your mental health and it could be as easy as adding a little more fruit to your daily diet.
List Of Nutrients Present In Fruits
1. Vitamin A
Vitamin A is naturally present in many fruits. It is a fat-soluble vitamin which is said to have great effects on vision, bones, and skin. It is an antioxidant that helps fight cellular damage in the body and also helps repair tissues. Vitamin A is found in mangoes, papaya, apricots, and other fruits.
2. Vitamin B5
Vitamin B5 has been attributed to maintaining overall good health. Also known as pantothenic acid, this vitamin helps to convert food into energy. Moreover, it keeps your skin healthy and glowing. Vitamin B5 is found in avocados.
3. Vitamin B6
Vitamin B6 is known to keep your skin, nerves, blood cells healthy. A water-soluble vitamin, vitamin B6 is also known as pyridoxine. It is found in fruits like bananas and avocados.
4. Vitamin C
Vitamin C, also known as L-ascorbic acid, is a water-soluble vitamin that is naturally present in fruits like orange, pineapple, pear, raspberries, watermelon.
5. Iron
Iron is a mineral that is naturally present in many foods and present in fruits like berries, pomegranate, and watermelon.
6. Manganese
Manganese is a mineral that helps reduce inflammation, maintains bone health, and plays a role in the regulation of blood sugar levels. It is majorly found in pineapples.
7. Phosphorus
Phosphorus is an essential nutrient required for proper cell functioning, regulation of calcium, strong bones and teeth, and for making ATP (adenosine triphosphate) a molecule that provides energy to our cells. This is found in citrus fruits, bananas.
8. Potassium
Potassium is an important mineral that is required for the heart, kidneys, and other organs to function normally. You can find abundant potassium levels in fruits like bananas and several citrus fruits.
9. Selenium
Selenium is mostly found in the water and some foods. While the body needs less amount of this mineral, it is said to be great for metabolism. It is found in mangoes, bananas, and avocados.
Conclusion
Fruits are a very important part of your daily diet. These naturally occurring foods not only help keep your body fit, but they also provide it with an adequate amount of water and minerals, which can further prevent various diseases. So, get yourself a bowlful of fresh fruits and stay healthy!