Pomegranate Nutrition Facts, Calories, Side Effects and Health Benefits
The pomegranate is an ancient fruit mentioned in the Book of Exodus. However, it isn't as popular in the United States as many other fruits. One reason is that you eat the seeds rather than the flesh of the fruit. The seeds are bright red and can be messy. Since pomegranate juice made its way to the market, the fruit now enjoys a higher level of consumption. Unlike many different plants, there are few relatives to the pomegranate. In fact, it's a small family of two, the pomegranate and a small tree only growing on the island of Yemen, Punica protopunica.
Calories and Nutrition Facts of Pomegranate
Consuming the seeds of one pomegranate adds 234 calories to your diet. However, it does offer 9 percent of your daily protein requirement as well as many vitamins and minerals. Pomegranates are high in vitamin K and C, with each pomegranate offering almost 58 percent of your daily vitamin K value and 48 percent of the daily vitamin C amount. It also contains significant amounts of thiamin, vitamin E, riboflavin, vitamin B6, folate, pantothenic acid, niacin and choline.
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia
In addition to the many vitamins, pomegranate nutrition facts include a large amount of calcium, approximately 28 percent of the daily value, in one cup of pomegranate seeds. You'll also receive, 19 percent of your daily value of potassium, 22 percent of copper, 17 percent of manganese, in addition to iron, magnesium, zinc and selenium.
Health Benefits of Pomegranate
Because the plant has been used for hundreds of years, many cultures found medicinal uses for not only the fruit but also other parts of the pomegranate. In ancient times, it was used to treat parasites such as tapeworms. However, today, scientists are discovering that many of the ancient uses have sound scientific proof.
The high amount of vitamin C in the pomegranate makes it an aid to for the immune system. The phytochemicals in the pomegranate and vitamins offer a high antioxidant effect on the body. Antioxidants fight free radicals that form bonds with the body cell, including cell membranes. When it does this, it changes the chemical composition and sets up a chain reaction. If the cell membrane changes from a soft semi-permeable substance to a hard shell, the waste can't leave the cell and new food can't enter. This causes damage and death of the cells. If it occurs too frequently and enough cells die, you have disease and aging in the body.
Pomegranate and Prostate Cancer
Studies on the pomegranate's effect on prostate cancer show that it not only slowed the growth of the cancerous cells, it also significantly promoted the death of those cells. The men in the study had a highly aggressive form of prostate cancer. Another study showed that pomegranate juice doubled the PSA doubling time, meaning it slowed the length of time it took for the tumor to double. The doubling time was 15 months before taking the juice and after the juice, the size of the tumor doubled in 54 months by comparison.
Pomegranate juice also may prove effective in reducing the amount of plaque in the body. In one study it showed the thickness of the carotid artery decreased and allowed more blood to flow.
Side Effects of the Pomegranate
The pomegranate may have a negative effect on some prescription drugs. Those with plant allergies may have a tendency toward developing an allergy to the pomegranate also. While most people never see a pomegranate tree, much less taste the root, the roots are toxic.
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