Health Benefits Of Pomegranates

Now that they are in season, I'm enjoying the health benefits of pomegranates.

The season doesn't last long - only from October to January, so I'm eating them to my hearts content and loving every single moment of it!

These rare fruits are definitely one of my favorites!

Pomegranates are about the size of a large apple.

Inside each fruit are hundreds of tiny little ruby-red juicy sacs called arils - each one bursting with delicious flavor!

There are so many health benefits of pomegranates. It's no wonder that people are still raving about them.

So full of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and more, the delicious pomegranate benefits your body in so many ways.

Here are some of the nutrients that you will find in these amazing fruits:

Polyphenols

Polyphenols are very powerful and potent antioxidants that help to protect you from free radicals. Free radicals are unstable molecules that can damage your DNA and cell membranes.

When your cells and DNA gets damaged, it puts you at risk for all kinds of diseases including cancer.

Polyphenols help to protect you against cancer, heart disease, and other chronic conditions.

Vitamin C

Pomegranates are a great of this vital nutrient. Vitamin C helps you fight off colds and other infections.

Vitamin K

You need this vitamin to help your blood coagulate (clot) properly.

Potassium

Pomegranates are rich in this important mineral.

Pomegranates also have folic acid, iron, calcium, and fiber. All essential for good health!

More Health Benefits of Pomegranates

Here are some specific ways that pomegranates and pomegranate juice help your body and promote good health:

They have anti-inflammatory properties that can help protect you against osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Pomegranate juice benefits your heart and arteries in a few different ways. It protects them by improving blood flow. It also prevents your arteries from hardening and becoming inflexible. This can help to protect you against a heart attack or stroke.

According to the results of one study in Clinical Cancer, pomegranates may help to slow down the growth of prostate tumors.

Pomegranate juice may help to lower the blood pressure of people who suffer from high blood pressure (hypertension).

Drinking pomegranate juice can help you to get rid of diarrhea.

Pomegranates may help protect your body from diabetes and cancer and may help to slow down the aging process.

Here are some other ways that the pomegranate benefits you: Eating this fruit or drinking the juice regularly helps to protect you from diabetes and cancer. It can even help to slow down the aging process.

Now that you know about the many health benefits of pomegranates (they aren't called a superfruit for nothing) let me tell you how to pick and eat them.

How to Pick the Perfect Pomegranate

• Avoid fruit that have cracks or splits. They may be spoiled inside.
• Choose fruit that are heavy for their size.
• The skin should be shiny, thin, and tough.
• It's normal for the skin color to vary from a medium red to a deep red.

How to Peel A Pomegranate

Once you've picked the perfect pomegranate, you will want to eat it right away (or at least at your next meal). :-)

Try to eat them within 1 to 2 weeks of buying them.

If you can't eat them within that time (ship them to me! - just kidding!), you can store them in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.

If you've never had a pomegranate before, be forewarned. Peeling a pomegranate is no easy task.

It does take some time and work to get to those delicious arils, but it is well worth the effort.

Here's how to peel a pomegranate:

1. Cut off the top (crown) of the fruit. Cut about 1/2 inch from the top.
2. Score the pomegranate at each section.
3. Place the pomegranate into a bowl of water and break it into sections along the score lines. This will help prevent you from getting squirted with the juice. Pomegranate juice will leave a stain!
4. Gently loosen and roll out the arils with your fingers.
5. The pith and other membranes will float to the top of the water. Scoop them out and throw them away. They are not edible.
6. Strain out the water.
7. Eat the delicious arils whole, seeds and all. Yummy! (Yes, it's ok to eat the tiny white seed inside. The seeds are where you get the fiber).

Here are some ways you can enjoy the health benefits of pomegranates:

• Enjoy the arils just like that.
• Have them in your fruit salad.
• Add them to desserts.
• Mix them in your oatmeal or other breakfast cereals.
• Have them with your soy yogurt for an exciting change.
• Use them as a topping for your breakfast waffles.
• Try drinking pomegranate juice to enjoy this fruit all year round. Stay away from brands that are loaded with sugar.

If you love these fruits as much as I do, eat them as often as you like. But, do keep one thing in mind:

Even though there ARE a lot of health benefits of pomegranates, you should not focus on just ONE superfood.

Eating a wide variety of healthy foods is one of the keys to great health. That will increase your chances of getting all the nutrients your body needs.

Related Pages

Healthy Foods