The ruby-red core of the clustered jewel-like fruit is one of the tastiest and healthiest ones to try. Yes, we are talking about the pomegranate that is just irresistible for the sweet tooths. Of course, it is time-consuming to cut and take out the edible part of the fruit, but your efforts are worth it. Here, we will discuss the benefits of pomegranate and why you should add them to your diet.
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Benefits of Pomegranate
You might love the look and taste of pomegranates, but do you know the wellness they bring along? If not, then you must read on! You will see that it is not only beautiful but also has vast benefits.
Rich in Antioxidants
The benefits of pomegranate juice and its arils are endless, and it holds an excellent reputation for its spell on your health. But let us start with the first benefit of pomegranate. You love pomegranate for the lovely red color it has. But do you know why it has that red hue? It is because of the presence of polyphenols, which are potent antioxidants. These antioxidants protect you from cell damage, reduces inflammation, and also removes free radicals.
Rich in Vitamin C
You all know vitamin C is right for your health. But do you know how much vitamin C you are providing yourself from one pomegranate? Well, it is more than 30% of the amount you require daily. But you must not select the packaged pomegranate juice. Homemade juice will reap you the maximum benefits, unlike preservatives. You would want to get the nutrients completely. So, to do that, always go for the freshly made juice or arils.
Prevents Cancer
Pomegranate benefits for men in stopping the growth of prostate cancer cells have been very encouraging. Although the studies are just at the initial stage, the effects are showing great results. Since the initial experiments have shown such splendid results, more prominent studies are being conducted.
Protects against Alzheimer’s
You already know that the benefits of pomegranate are primarily for the antioxidant content present in it. So, there is a belief that you can conserve your memory and curb the chances of Alzheimer’s diseases by consuming pomegranates.
Helps in Digestion
You will find pomegranate to contain anti-inflammatory problems. This helps significantly in improving your digestion and gut health as well. Moreover, people with ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s ailments have this fruit to keep their bowels healthy.
Make sure you avoid having pomegranate or its juice when you’re suffering from diarrhea. Although there are contradictory opinions regarding this matter, it is wise to keep yourself away from it for a while.
Acts as a Natural Anti-inflammation
You know that pomegranate has tons of antioxidants. It is because of this, you can count pomegranate as a very useful anti-inflammatory fruit. Since most of your body problems occur due to inflammation, having pomegranate is beneficial for one’s health. It has the power to reduce oxidative damage and stress in your body too.
Helps in Arthritis
You will find flavanols to be an essential component in pomegranate. It helps you from cartilage damage and osteoarthritis that occur due to inflammation. However, studies are still being done to give a final approval where pomegranate can be used to treat many bone problems. Some of the health ailments that showed positive effects after consuming pomegranate are rheumatoid arthritis, joint inflammation, osteoporosis, and more.
Helps in Heart disease
You can count pomegranate as one of the best fruits to consume to keep your heart healthy. You can protect the arteries and your heart by having pomegranate.
Several studies are done on a small scale to prove that your blood flow remains healthy. It also protects your arteries from being too thick or stiff. Moreover, it can also slow the plaque rate and does not allow cholesterol to increase in your arteries. However, if you are on pre-existing medications for cholesterol or blood pressure, it might interfere with the medicines. So, it will be wise not to include this fruit and take your doctor’s opinion before adding pomegranate to your diet.
Boosts Immunity
Consuming this potential fruit can help you in boosting up your immunity levels. With the ongoing health crisis the world is facing, having vitamins like C and E can be extremely beneficial. So, you can consume this fruit and avail of all its benefits. Pomegranate can help you in fighting against viruses and any common infections.
Lowers Blood Sugar Levels
In the olden times, pomegranate juice was used to treat people having high blood sugar levels. It showed tremendous results and helped tremendously to lower blood sugar. However, the effects of pomegranate in treating diabetes is still not concrete. Although you can consume it to reduce blood sugar and lower insulin resistance power.
Side effects of pomegranate
You know a lot about the benefits of pomegranate and how wonderfully they can leave positive impacts on your health. But there are a few pomegranate juice side effects that we are going to tell you below.
So, the pomegranate juice side effects and its supplements are:
Impact of Enzymes
You will notice that pomegranate is filled with a lot of enzymes in it. So, this can cause hindrance to the working of liver enzymes. So, it is highly recommended to consult your physician before consuming pomegranate juice, its supplements, or the sprout.
Contains High Sugar
Indeed, the pomegranate was traditionally used to fight off diabetes. However, the research is limited. So, pomegranate being very high in sugar may add to an increase in your sugar levels.
High in Calories
Are you following a low-carb diet? Then, it is advisable to avoid having pomegranate. That is because by consuming the juice or the sprouts of this fruit, you add a lot of calories to your body. That would further lead to you gaining excessive weight.
May Cause Digestive Disorders
If you excessively consume pomegranate, then it might lead to nausea. It also causes problems like abdominal pain, diarrhea, and vomiting. However, it subsides in a matter of some hours. So, you must be careful about not upsetting your stomach or digestive tract.
Causes Allergies
Sometimes it is seen people come in for allergies that can lead to severe symptoms. Some of the symptoms pomegranate may cause are:
- Rash hives
- Swallowing becomes painful
- Face swelling
- Immense difficulty in breathing
- Excessive pain in your mouth, leading to swelling.
Ways to Eat Pomegranate
You must be careful about how much pomegranate juice or sprout you consume. However, to enjoy the maximum benefits of pomegranate you can have it as a juice or just the sprouts of it. But if you are bored having them like that, we have got some interesting ways to eat pomegranate. If you try out these simple yet delicious recipes, you will surely repeat making them.
Below are the following interesting recipes to eat pomegranate. Which are:
Pomegranate Feta Salad
You can try out this unique way of having pomegranate. It is a yummy salad that will give you the benefit of pomegranate.
Ingredients You Need:
- 200 grams of feta cheese
- Sprouts of 2 whole pomegranates
- 1 clove of garlic, chopped
- 100 grams of any greens like – rocket, kale, watercress, spinach, and more.
- Extra virgin Olive Oil- 50 ml
- Toasted 100 grams of pistachios, almonds or cashews
- Fresh Lemon 1 teaspoon
- Salt and Pepper, according to your taste.
Process to make:
1) First, you need a small bowl to mix lemon juice, crushed garlic, feta cheese together. Leave it at aside.
2) Take a salad bowl and add the greens cut with salt and olive oil. Mix it well.
3) Finally, put in the feta cheese and mix it well. Add in the pomegranate sprouts and finally toss the toasted nuts.
Pomegranate-Avocado Bruschetta
There are so many different types of toppings bruschetta can have. But have you ever tried the Avocado Pomegranate Bruschetta? It is a recipe you will always want to go back to. It is incredibly healthy and tasty too.
Ingredients You Need:
- 6 slices of Bruschetta
- Extra virgin olive oil-2 teaspoons
- Avocado well riped-1
- Fresh Lemon Juice 1 teaspoon
- Goat Cheese 50 grams
- Pomegranate sprouts one and half cup
- Salt and Pepper according to your taste
Process to Make:
1) You need to first, preheat your oven to about 175-degree Celsius.
2) Apply a very light layer of the virgin olive oil on all the bruschetta slices. Then toast it till it turns nice and crispy.
3) Keep the bruschetta in oven and then apply guacamole or avocado paste on it. Mix some red onions, finely chopped, lime juice, pomegranate sprouts, and olive oil. Add the salt according to your taste. But be very careful while mixing the pomegranate. If you mix them vigorously, the seeds might get crushed.
4) Take off the slices from the oven and evenly spread out the mix you made. It would help if you garnished the bruschetta slices with some goat cheese. The cheese and each bite will melt in your mouth. And you are going to love that relish!
Tips and Tricks to Get the Most of Pomegranates
As you have already come to know that the benefits of pomegranate are immense. But it is wise to keep in mind how much you consume the fruit and how to get the most of it. Here we are going to give you tips and tricks to get the most of the pomegranates. Read below to know more:
Select the Right Ones
When it comes to select the best pomegranate, it is quite an easy task. You can visit your grocery store to get them. But you must choose the one that is firm and quite heavy. If you see small scratches or marks on the skin of the pomegranate, that is fine. That is because you cannot judge the fruit from its skin.
Scoop it Correctly
It might be messy when you are having the sprouts and leaving the seeds. You can have up the seeds as it contains half of the benefits of pomegranate. But you must not cut it in a way the seeds get smashed. Take them out carefully into a bowl and consume it.
Keep them Fresh
Have you ended up buying quite a few pomegranates? Don’t you worry! We have an easy trick that can last the pomegranates for very long. Please take out the pomegranate sprouts and spread it well on a butter paper or baking sheet. Put it into the freezer for around 3 hours. Then put them into a zip lock bag and freeze them. You can be sure to top up your feta cheese salad with the pomegranate sprouts for a year.
Make Juice
Do you want to have fresh juice and save up buying the pasteurized one? Well, you can make them yourself. Scoop out those sprouts and toss them into a juicer. Strain it well through a sieve and bottle it up well. You can enjoy all its goodness buy drinking freshly made juice.
Final Thoughts
You cannot deny the benefits of pomegranate and the positive impact it leaves on your health. But you need to keep a check on how much you are consuming. It is a potent fruit that can benefit you only if you are consuming them wisely. We have also given you some tips and tricks to make the most out of pomegranates. Also, how you can have the best juice. However, the best way to enjoy this fruit is to have the sprouts directly after peeling it.
