Pawpaw is a delicious fruit that is popular and commonly grown in tropical areas, it certainly has its advantages whether ripe, semi-ripe or unripe. Also known as papaya, it contains soft and easily digestible flesh once it is ripe and can serve as a filling meal for most people. Aside from its deliciousness, pawpaw fruit is fully enriched with many vitamins and minerals that are needed for healthy functioning of the human body as they play important roles and functions in different systems of the body.
However, it is not only the delicious part of pawpaw that serves amazing purposes, the seeds, leaves and even the stem are all used by traditional medicine practitioners for different purposes. The seeds for example, once ground, can serve as an anti-parasitic and anti-inflammatory agent to aid in the healing of wounds and cuts. The leaves when squeezed to produce a juice can be fed to a woman in labor to help in the quick delivery of the baby. Grounded pawpaw seeds are also widely recognized by herbal medicine users as a cure for stomach upsets and discomforts. Below are some of the health benefits that pawpaw fruit offers:
- Pawpaw contains some of the major vitamins and minerals in large quantities, some of these are Folate, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and Vitamin E. It also contains small amounts of Calcium, Iron, riboflavin, thiamine , and niacin.
- Pawpaw fruit has very low-calorie content (39 calories per 100g) and contains no cholesterol thus it is a healthy source of food.
- Ripe pawpaw fruit contains a good amount of soluble dietary fiber that helps in regulating normal bowel movement and reducing constipation problems.
- Pawpaw possesses anti-inflammatory properties that can help in reducing the severity of the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis and also aids in recovery from sports injuries.
- Pawpaw contains antioxidants that are extremely beneficial to health and have been shown to scavenge on the free radicals that aid the development of cancer and other life-threatening illnesses
- Regular consumption of ripe pawpaw fruit has also been seen to aid in the detoxifying of the body system and keeping a healthy pH balance of the body
- Traditional medicine practitioners have claimed that eating soft and ripe pawpaw fruit every morning can assist in the prevention of high blood pressure also known as hypertension.
Most fruits, (not only pawpaw) contain loads of vitamins and minerals that are essential for the continued functioning of our body system. Fruits generally should be consumed on a regular basis in order to maintain a healthy weight and a fit body. Junk and canned foods should be avoided as much as possible, and fruits like pawpaw should replace the fatty meals.
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This article was first published on 8th April 2016
jelifat
Opoola Jelifat is a young and passionate writer. She holds a B.Sc degree in Microbiology and enjoys reading, cooking and writing on real life issues. She is currently pursuing a Masters degree at the University of Ibadan. Contact her on opoolajelifat@gmail.com, and via Twitter and facebook by clicking the icons below.
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