Lifestyle
Watermelon, Packs More Nutrition Than We Think!
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Jul 6, 2008 - 5:37:22 PM

(HealthNewsDigest.com) - The Fourth of July may be over but watermelon, a popular summer fruit will still be around. Watermelon is a fruit that packs more than we think, more in the way of nutritional value that is. Summer is definitely here, and there's plenty of this popular summer fruit available. Many of us (this included me once upon a time), think that watermelon is high in calories, contains too much sugar and is all water, but this sweet red fruit does pack more than we think!

Before we discuss the full value of watermelon, let's look at just how much sugar and water it does contains. One cup of diced watermelon is about 90% water, and 50 calories (doesn't sound too bad to me). Approximately 44 of these calories do come from sugar, but let me say that this is a natural, healthy fruit sugar. If we remember my "Sugar, Not an Enemy" tip, we will remember that sugar is a vital nutrient for fueling our energy, and it is the sole source of fuel for our brain. Along with water and sugar, watermelon also contains vitamin C, has just a trace of fat and like all plant foods, it's without cholesterol. Not a bad deal I think, but the best news is about its red color.

Watermelon contains the phytochemical lycopene, one of our colorful disease preventing cartenoids! Watermelon is red because it contains a natural chemical in the form of red pigments just like the tomato. This time if we remember our "Tomato, a Superstar" tip, the tomato was the leading source of lycopene when cooked (so much for the raw diet all the time?). Lycopene appears to be released from the plant cell wall and used by our body (defined as bioavailable) when sources such as the tomato are cooked. Unfortunately, we don't always eat tomato sauce, or heat processed tomato juice, do we? We do have evidence from a 2002 study although many of us are still unaware of it, that shows raw watermelon unlike the raw tomato, contains a source of bioavailable lycopene! Here is just a small quote from the Press Release from the USDA research agency titled "Watermelon Shows its Lycopene Stripes" which appeared in the June 2002 Agricultural Research Magazine.
"Watermelon is fat free and is a source of vitamins A, B6, C, and thiamin. Studies have shown that a cup and a half of watermelon contains about 9 to 13 milligrams of lycopene. On average, watermelon has about 40 percent more lycopene than raw tomatoes. Red, ripe flesh is the best indicator of the sweetest and most nutritious watermelon, though it's hard to choose the ripest melon when it's uncut".

Do we need a quick refresher on the disease fighting merits of lycopene? Well, studies indicate that lycopene protects against cardiovascular disease, and certain types of cancer most notably prostate with some studies showing protective properties against breast, endometrium and lung cancers as well. A more recent study discusses the properties of lycopene which make it highly reactive towards oxygen and free radicals, with this anti-oxidant activity probably contributing to its efficacy as a chemoprevention agent.

So, watermelon definitely packs more than sugar and water. It packs a lot of Lycopene even when it's raw! Want to up your intake of lycopene by not eating spaghetti and meatballs tonight with tomato sauce? Try a cup of fresh sweet red watermelon!

Here's to our Health!

June M. Lay M.S.
www.junefit.com
Look for my "Fruit Boat" recipe made with watermelon at http://www.junefit.com/tips_recipehp.htm posted now

Source used:
Breemen RB, et. al., Multitargeted therapy of cancer by lycopene; Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, University of Illinois College of Pharmacy
Cancer Lett. 2008 Jun 26.

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