{"id":819,"date":"2024-03-22T15:46:05","date_gmt":"2024-03-22T10:16:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/?p=819"},"modified":"2024-08-24T13:03:49","modified_gmt":"2024-08-24T07:33:49","slug":"health-benefits-of-dragon-fruit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/health-benefits-of-dragon-fruit\/","title":{"rendered":"Health Benefits of Dragon fruit and Nutrition Facts"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Health_Benefits_of_Dragon_fruit_and_Nutrition_Facts\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Health Benefits of Dragon fruit and Nutrition Facts<\/strong><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Dragon fruit<\/strong> is a tropical fruit, native to the Southern Mexico and Central America. In the recent 21<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">st<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> century, it is being widely cultivated worldwide with South-east Asia, India, Australia and USA being some of the major hubs. The increasing demand has led to its surge in cultivation, in these parts of the world.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is a perennial, herbaceous creeper cactus. It has no as such specific weather conditions for its utmost growth or yield, making it easier to cultivate throughout the year. The fruit has a very eye-catching bright pink colour but its <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/diet4ufitness.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">health benefits<\/a><\/strong> is the main reason for its demand and popularity globally, in the recent times. This, exotic looking fruit from the Central America has immense health benefits and is mainly of two types. Out of the two types, the one with while pulp with black seeds is the most common one, with another rare type having pink pulp with black seeds.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Growing_Dragon_Fruits\"><\/span><b>Growing Dragon Fruits<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dragon fruits are meant to grow in the hot and humid tropical climate of the world with an average temperature of 20-29C but can also tolerate upto 38-40C. This makes it flexible to be grown at different parts of India, as well. It can be easily grown from stem-cutting method, like rose. This also brings down the cost of the cultivation, preventing the need of buying new saplings every time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Nutrition Facts<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With the increase in demand, one might wonder its nutritional facts and benefits. This surge in its demand is due to the presence of all sorts of nutrients in minute amounts, along with being rich in iron, magnesium and high fibre content.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">100 grams of dragon fruit contains: [DV= Daily Value]<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fat: 0.14g<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Protein: 0.36g<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Carbohydrates: 15g<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fibre: 3g<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Iron: 1% of DV<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Magnesium: 2% of the DV<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Vitamin: 5% of the DV<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Total Calories: 57<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Antioxidants_in_dragon_Fruit\"><\/span><b>Antioxidants in dragon Fruit<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is widely consumed because of its high amount of antioxidants. Antioxidants help in getting rid of the harmful free radicals that are being created naturally, due to normal metabolic reactions in the body. Free radicals like superoxide, hydrogen peroxide if produced in excess, can give rise to \u201coxidative stress\u201d. Oxidative stress can alter the cell membrane structure, fluidity and also effects proteins, lipids, lipoproteins and even DNA. Build-up of such free radicals can lead to premature aging and several other disorders. For more information <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/contact\">contact us<\/a><\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Some_of_the_antioxidants_present_in_dragon_fruits_are\"><\/span><b>Some of the antioxidants present in dragon fruits are:\u00a0\u00a0<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Antioxidants present in the dragon fruit help in negating the adverse effects of the harmful free radicals which are formed during the normal metabolic functions. Thus preventing several inflammatory ailments in the body like gout and arthritis.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Betalains:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Betalains is an alkaloid. This is the cause for the \u201cred pigment\u201d of the dragon fruits. These are known to protect against the bad \u201cLDL\u201d and inhibits is oxidation, hence preventing it from causing any oxidative damage. Betacyanin is the red-coloured betalain, giving the fruit the red-pigment. Whereas, betaxanthins is a betalain, which gives the fruit a yellow tint. Yellow dragon fruit is extremely rare, hence priceless.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Hydroxycinnamates:<\/b> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These are phenylpropanoids, a class of aromatic amino acids. It gives a sweet taste and floral scent. These phytochemical present in it, are known to have an anti-cancer activity.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Flavonoids<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: These are a group of phenolic compounds, which help in improving the heart health.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Lycopene:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> This phytochemical is also present in tomatoes. Lycopenes protect the body from chemicals and harmful toxins. Thus, helps in lowering the risk of cardiac disorders and cancer as well.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Glycaemic Control:<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0Dragon fruit when ripe, is sweet in taste. Due to its sweet taste, it might seem to be harmful for diabetics or pre-diabetics. However, it has a low glycaemic index, which makes sure that it does not cause any spike in the blood glucose level. According to scientific research, it has been shown that there has been a relation between dragon fruit consumption and a <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/diabetes-control-tailored-dietary-solutions-for-your-health\/\">better control of diabetes<\/a><\/strong>. Dragon fruit consumption, facilitates the pancreatic beta cells to produce an increased level of insulin in the body. Due to higher levels of insulin, it helps in maintain the blood-glucose level, hence controlling the diabetes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Health_Benefits_of_Dragon_Fruit\"><\/span><b>Health Benefits of Dragon Fruit<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-1435\" src=\"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Health-Benefits-of-Dragon-Fruit-1.jpg\" alt=\"Health Benefits of Dragon Fruit\" width=\"1587\" height=\"2245\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Health-Benefits-of-Dragon-Fruit-1.jpg 1587w, https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Health-Benefits-of-Dragon-Fruit-1-212x300.jpg 212w, https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Health-Benefits-of-Dragon-Fruit-1-724x1024.jpg 724w, https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Health-Benefits-of-Dragon-Fruit-1-768x1086.jpg 768w, https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Health-Benefits-of-Dragon-Fruit-1-1086x1536.jpg 1086w, https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Health-Benefits-of-Dragon-Fruit-1-1448x2048.jpg 1448w, https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Health-Benefits-of-Dragon-Fruit-1-640x905.jpg 640w, https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Health-Benefits-of-Dragon-Fruit-1-1024x1449.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Health-Benefits-of-Dragon-Fruit-1-150x212.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1587px) 100vw, 1587px\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It contains <\/span><b>high dietary fibres<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Therefore it helps in maintaining regular bowel movement.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The fruit also have a <\/span><b>low glycaemic index<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (as discussed earlier in the DIET4U WELLNESS article), hence prevents spike in blood-glucose level, if consumed in moderation.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It has also shown, to <\/span><b>maintain one\u2019s weight in check <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and helps against fatty liver, also keeping the gut bacteria in check.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_to_eat_a_Dragon_Fruit\"><\/span><b>How to eat a Dragon Fruit?<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By the mere look of it, <\/span><b>dragon fruit<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> might look very intimidating. The <\/span><b>consumption of dragon fruits<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> however, is fairly simple.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>ripe dragon fruit<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> can be plucked from the cactus bush, sliced into pieces and eaten directly. Eventhough the entire pink or white pulp of the fruit is completely laid with black seeds, considering their minute size, the seeds can be <\/span><b>easily eaten<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and digested as well.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To oomph up the consumption, the <\/span><b>ripe fruit can be cut into thin slices<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and complemented with yoghurt or curd along with other fruits.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>sliced up pieces of the fruit<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> can also be added to a bowl of oatmeal along with a handful nuts to give it a slight crunch.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In cases, where the <\/span><b>fruit has become too ripe<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to be eaten directly, one can consider making a smoothie out of it. Further to improve the texture, a banana could be added along with <\/span><b>pieces of <\/b>it<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Both the fruits would give the smoothie a sweet taste, all natural.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And lastly, dragon fruit along with other fruits can be cut into pieces to make a <\/span><b>bowl of fruit salad.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Side-effects_of_Dragon_fruit\"><\/span><b>Side-effects of Dragon fruit:<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Due to its exotic appearance, sweet taste and immense health benefits, it is being widely consumed world-wide. However, excess of anything is eventually detrimental. Eventhough it is known to have a low GI, excess consumption of <\/span><b>dragon fruit<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> might lead to considerable surge in glucose level.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Some people are known to have allergies as well. In such people, the dragon fruit acts as an antigen, which gets acted upon by the immunoglobulins, thus generating a regular allergic reaction. The allergies lead to swelling of tongue, development of hives, fever and even vomiting. For more queries call <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/\">Diet4u wellness<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<h4><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"FAQs_Related_to_Dragon_Fruit\"><\/span><b>FAQs Related to Dragon Fruit<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\">\n<h5><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_is_the_special_feature_of_dragon_fruit\"><\/span><b>What is the special feature of dragon fruit?<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It has many health benefits, like its immense anti-oxidant compounds like flavonoids, phenolic acids, Betacyanin and hydroxycinnamtes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\">\n<h5><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_to_avoid_while_eating_dragon_fruit\"><\/span><b>What to avoid while eating dragon fruit?<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Research has showed that, consumption of dragon fruit might interfere with the regular diabetes medicines. So, consumption of dragon fruits along with diabetes medicines, often tend to lower the blood glucose level. <\/span><b>Dragon fruits have low glycaemic index<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> which interacts with the lowering of blood-glucose property of diabetic drugs.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\">\n<h5><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Is_dragon_fruit_pregnancy_safe\"><\/span><b>Is dragon fruit pregnancy safe?<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Yes, it is absolutely safe during pregnancy. Rather, <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/nutritionist\/dietitian-rukhsana-azhar\">Dt. Rukhsana Azhar <\/a><\/strong><\/span><b>recommends eating dragon fruit during pregnancy<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, due to its high nutritional value and its high antioxidant properties. To know about the nutritional benefits of the fruit, one should follow and keep a check on the DIET4U WELLNESS page.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\">\n<h5><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Which_is_the_perfect_season_for_dragon_fruit\"><\/span><b>Which is the perfect season for dragon fruit?<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even though <\/span><b>it is available throughout the year globally<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, however its best season is summer (June-September). During these months the fruit gets ripe perfectly, and is sweetest in taste during these months.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Health Benefits of Dragon fruit and Nutrition Facts Dragon fruit is a tropical fruit, native to the Southern<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":821,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/819"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=819"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/819\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1436,"href":"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/819\/revisions\/1436"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/821"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=819"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=819"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diet4uwellness.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=819"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}