A piece of cold and fresh watermelon surely is a healthy nutrition to eat. Besides it tastes good, this fruit also contains very high water content. Watermelon is often eaten as a fresh dessert or drink in the form of juice. And the most important thing is watermelon has many benefits for our health.
Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus in latin name) is a kind of vines. This fruit looks like a ball and the color of it skin is green with wavy light green lines. Generally, the watermelon pulp is red, watery and have seeds. But there is also yellow pulp. There is even seedless watermelon as a genetic engineering. And the most important part which contains many nutrients is the green part near the skin. Definitely, almost everybody loves this fruit because it tastes sweet and fresh.
Watermelon pulp is low in calories, contains high water content, and consist of protein, carbohydrates, fiber, Vitamins (A, B, and C), amino acids, citrulline, ammonium acetate, malic acid, phosphoric acid, arginine, betaine, lycopene, carotene, bromine, sodium, potassium, sylvite, lysine, fructose, dextrose, and sucrose. Sitrulin and arginine are very useful in the formation of urea in the liver, from ammonia and CO2 so that increasing urine flow. Potassium content is high enough, so it can help normalize the heart and blood pressure.
Watermelon seeds also have nutritional substances with oil content, protein, citrulline, Vitamin B12, and the urease enzyme. The active compound of Cucurbitacin in the seeds can stimulate the kidneys function and maintaining normal blood pressure.
Watermelon is thought to have originated from the tropical and subtropical of Africa continent, exactly around the Kalahari desert. According to a research, watermelon was first harvested around 5000 years ago in Egypt. Because watermelon is easy to grow, both in lowland and highland (approximately 1.000 meters above sea level), this fruit can now be found everywhere. Even on the roadside, shrubbery, beach, or in the garden and yard.
If you are dieting, watermelon is a fruit that is good for you. Watermelon is fat free fruit and has a limited combination of sugar, and the water content are plentiful. Moreover, watermelon is also quick to make full. This would be a good news for those of you who are troubled by excess weight. So it is good for people who have urinating problems such as kidney stone problems.
Not only that, watermelon is also very good for people with hypertension. The water content and potassium in watermelons can neutralize blood pressure. In addition, watermelon is also beneficial for heart health. The antioxidant in these fruits, including beta-carotene and Vitamin C can help to keep body cells healthy.
One of the benefits of watermelon that may be very useful is as anticancer agents. This is because the lycopene content in watermelon, which able to ward off free radicals and defeat the seeds of cancer in the body. So, multiply to eat this fruit every day was no problem. Even by consuming this fruit, it could shrinking the cervical cancer risk and pancreatic cancer in women. Lycopene in watermelon can reduce the risk in terms of gastrointestinal cancers, as well as oral cavity cancer, esophagus cancer, stomach cancer, colon cancer, prostate cancer, and anal cancer.
Besides useful for against cancer, lycopene substance is also useful to make a glowing face, healthy, and younger. Some other benefits of watermelon are:
- able to reduce fever and preventing thrush,
- keeping our body cool during hot weather, anti-inflammatory, as intestinal lubricant, and of course relieve thirst,
- in Chinese traditional medicine used as medicine of 'summer heat' (symptoms of a disease characterized by a lot of sweat, thirst, body temperature increases,clear color of urine, diarrhea, and angered easily),
- for men: it can increase fertility and help sexual arousal,
- for the elderly: able to recover health problems faster, and enhance mental ability and memory acuity.
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