Overview About Papaya Fruit
Papaya fruit is a popular tropical fruit with the sweet taste, orange color, and the wide variety of health benefits. Papaya is native to Southern America and Mexico. And now this plant is widely grown and popular in Asia and Africa.
In some regions, papaya is also known as papaws or pawpaws (Photo: Internet)
Papaya has white or green flowers, small calyx, large five-petaled rim. Papaya fruit is round, long, and soft when ripe. The seeds are brown or black depending on the variety. The papaya fruit is slightly sweet, with an agreeable musky tang.
You can use it as a fresh fruit; cook or use for processing various products like salads, pies, juices, smoothie, and confections. The unripe fruit can be cooked like squash.
Nutritional Value Of Papaya
Papaya fruit is rich in nutritious and vitamins (Photo: Internet)
On average, 100 grams of papaya contains the following nutrients:
Energy 250 kcal
Protein 2.5 gr
Carbohydrate 65 gr
Fiber 10 gr
Calcium 150 mg
Vitamin A 1000 IU
In addition, papaya also provides vitamin C essential fatty acids for the body and especially they do not contain fat and cholesterol.
Health Benefits
NPV Papaya Juice Drink 330ml Can
1. Contain powerful antioxidants
Papaya is a rich source of antioxidants, the carotenoids in papaya have the ability to neutralize and destroy free radicals extremely effectively.
Free radicals are the cause of oxidative stress that leads to extremely dangerous diseases or complications, one of which is Alzheimer’s disease.
2. Add Glow to the Skin
Papaya is rich in enzyme Papain which plays a key role in dissolving dead cells and giving a glowing skin. Vitamins A, C, E in papaya help to prevent cell damage and wrinkle formation. At the same time, it might increase the production of collagen and keep your skin smooth. In addition, papaya contains oils that retain moisture in the skin and relieve symptoms of skin disorders such as eczema or psoriasis.
3. Improve heart health
Papaya is high in lycopene and vitamin C and antioxidants which prevent cholesterol build up in your arteries. Too much cholesterol build-up can lead to several heart diseases including heart attack and hypertension. They may help to prevent heart disease and enhance the protective effects of “good” HDL cholesterol.
4. Improve the immune system
As mentioned above, papaya contains vitamins A and C that help to reduce the risk of infections and strengthen the immune system. It will help create a “shield” to protect the body against viruses, bacteria that cause colds, colds, and respiratory infections.
Papaya is highly appreciated for strengthening the immune system (Photo: Internet)
5. Treat Gastric Problems & Indigestion
Papain is a proteolytic enzyme extracted from the raw fruit of the papaya plant. This enzyme works as a natural digestive aid, able to break down protein and cleansing the digestive track. It also helps to improve indigestion and chronic diarrhea.
6. Soothes Inflammation
Papain is a critical digestive enzyme found in this tropical fruit but it also has anti-inflammatory properties that can affect the rest of the body. Combined with vitamin C and other antioxidants in this fruit, it can soothe symptoms of arthritis, headache, gout, irritable bowel syndrome and high blood pressure, among others.
7. Helps in weight loss
The fiber content in papaya leaves you feeling full (Photo: Internet)
If you are planning to lose weight, you should add papaya to your daily diet as it is very low in calories.
In 100g papaya only contains about 32kcal while the fiber helps you to stay full for a long time, anti-constipation, and lose weight effectively.
8. Enhance eyesight
Papaya has a high content of vitamin A that is an antioxidant that is good for the eyes and protects your eyesight. This means that eating papaya helps to prevent some eye problems, such as macular degeneration or cataracts
Warnings
Papaya not eaten in right way can be harmful to health (Photo: Internet)
1. Pregnancy
Papaya may be unsafe when taken by mouth during the pregnancy. The Unripe papaya can increase the possibility of uterine contractions due to the resin secreted from papaya. It can lead to miscarriage or premature birth, abnormal birth, even stillbirth.
2. Papain allergy
Papaya contains papain. If you are allergic to papain, avoid eating papaya or taking products that contain papaya.
3. Surgery
Papaya that has been fermented can lower blood sugar. In theory, this form of papaya might affect blood sugary during and after surgery.
4. Do not eat papaya seeds
Papaya seeds contain a poison called carpine, so it is absolutely not advisable to eat enough seeds. Because if you eat papaya seeds in large quantities, it can cause a pulse disorder, depress the central nervous system.
5. Not eating papaya when you have diarrhea
Like all other fiber-rich foods, you should not eat papaya while you have diarrhea because it can make you extremely dehydrated.
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