Interesting Green: 44 facts about your favourite fruits

This article was first published in Mind Your Body, The Straits Times.
Sat, Nov 06, 2010, Mind Your Body, The Straits Times

Source website: http://www.asiaone.com/Health/Eat%2BRight/Story/A1Story20101101-245148.html

PHOTO: Bananas
Bananas contain three natural sugars - sucrose, fructose and glucose - which can give you an instant energy boost.
http://www.asiaone.com/a1media/health/11Nov10/images/20101106.183329_st_banana.jpg

Bananas

1. Bananas don't grow on trees. Although we use the term banana "tree", it is a perennial herb, according to website homecooking.about.com. Its trunk is not a true one, but many leaves wrapped tightly around a single stem which emerges at the top as the fruit-bearing flower stalk.

2. Some banana trees can continue producing fruit for up to 100 years, although most banana plantations renew their stock every 10 to 20 years.

3. The banana is botanically classified as a berry and is from the same family as ginger, turmeric and cardamom.

4. There are over 400 varieties of bananas around the world and it is the world's best-selling fruit, outranking the apple and orange.

5. Bananas are a good source of vitamin C, potassium and dietary fiber, and contain no fat, cholesterol or sodium, according to the International Banana Assocition (website: eatmorebananas.com).

6. They also contain a rich supply of vitamin B6, providing 20 per cent of the Recommended Daily Allowance of B6. Vitamin B6 helps in protein metabolism, red blood cell formation and the functioning of the central nervous system.

7. Bananas contain more digestible carbohydrates than any other fruit. The advantage is that the body burns off calories from carbohydrates more quickly and easily than calories from protein or fat.

8. Bananas contain three natural sugars - sucrose, fructose and glucose - which can give you an instant energy boost.

9. A banana makes a good after-workout snack because it helps to replenish necessary carbohydrates, glycogen and body fluids depleted during exercise.

10. Research has proved that just two bananas provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout.

Source website: http://health.asiaone.com/Health/Eat%2BRight/Story/A1Story20101101-245148/2.html

PHOTO: Lemons
A medium lemon contains just 15 calories, which include 5g carbohydrate, 1g dietary fibre and 4g sugars.
http://health.asiaone.com/A1MEDIA/health/11Nov10/images/20101104.150410_lemon_cynthia-low.jpg

Lemons

1. Lemons are thought to have originated in the wild both in China and India and have been in existence for at least 4,000 years. They were taken to the Middle East between 400 and 600 BC and then to the Mediterranean where food historians say they have been in cultivation from as early as the first century AD.

2. The next time you have a sore throat, reach for this citrus fruit. Add the juice of one lemon to an equal amount of hot water for an anti-bacterial gargle, advises www.sunkist.com, which also says a bowl of fresh lemons will add fragrance and colour to a room for days.

3. The lemon is very low in saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium. It is also a good source of folate and potassium, and an excellent source of vitamin C, according to www.nutritiondata.com

4. A medium lemon (about 60g) contains just 15 calories, which include 5g carbohydrate, 1g dietary fibre and 4g sugars.

5. You can store lemons at room temperature for about two weeks. They will keep for up to six weeks in a plastic bag in the refrigerator, www.foodreference.com says.

6. Lemon juice is often cited as a good stain remover. For rust stains from clothing, moisten the spot with lemon juice, sprinkle with salt and leave in the sun for a couple of days, advises www.fairfaxfresh.com/facts, which has a list of other tips on the uses of lemons.

7. Lemon juice helps in cleansing our body of impurities. Its vitamin C content helps prevent diseases and believers in natural remedies favour it for treating asthma, colds, coughs, heart burn, liver complaints, fevers and rheumatism. It helped prevent scurvy in navigators of old.

8. The lemon as a fashion statement? During the Renaissance in Europe, fashionable ladies were said to have used lemon juice to redden their lips.

Source website: http://health.asiaone.com/Health/Eat%2BRight/Story/A1Story20101101-245148/3.html

PHOTO: Oranges
A medium orange is packed with as much fibre as seven cups of cornflakes.
http://health.asiaone.com/A1MEDIA/health/11Nov10/images/20101104.150410_st_oranges1.jpg

Oranges

1. Oranges can be stored at cool room temperature for a day but should then be refrigerated for up to two weeks.

2. They are an excellent source of vitamin C and contain some vitamin A.

3. Once cut or squeezed, the vitamin C quickly begins to dissipate. After eight hours at room temperature or 24 hours in the refrigerator, there's a 20 per cent vitamin C loss. Canned, bottled and frozen-concentrate orange juices have a greatly decreased vitamin C content.

4. Orange juice is not necessarily high on the nutritional scale. While it may contain vitamin C and potassium, it provides little more than a source of carbohydrates in the form of a natural sugar.

5. Orange juice will lose more vitamin C content when stored in an open container or one made of plastic with a lid. Always store it in a glass container with a screw cap.

6. A medium orange is packed with as much fibre as seven cups of cornflakes.

7. Oranges are high in antioxidants, which neutralise the effects of free radicals - groups of atoms that disrupt cell reproduction.

8. After chocolate and vanilla, orange is the world's favourite flavour.

Source website: http://health.asiaone.com/Health/Eat%2BRight/Story/A1Story20101101-245148/4.html

PHOTO: Kiwi
One cup of kiwifruit contains 108 calories. It is a good source of fibre, vitamin E and potassium.
http://health.asiaone.com/A1MEDIA/health/11Nov10/images/20101104.150410_st_kiwi1.jpg

Kiwi

1. Most people associate the kiwi fruit with New Zealand, but it has its origins in China's Yangtze River valley. The fruit has been around for over 700 years and was a favourite in the courts of the great Khans. No wonder they were known as Chinese gooseberries till the 1960s.

2. In the early 1900s, New Zealand missionaries took the seeds home where the plant was named for the indigenous bird. Plants were later sent to the United States, Italy, South Africa and Chile.

3. There are more than 400 varieties.

4. The kiwi fruit's black seeds can be crushed to produce kiwi fruit oil, which is very rich in Alfa-Linoleic Acid (an important Omega-3 essential fatty acid), according to kiwi-fruit.info

5. Kiwi fruit is high in the antioxidant vitamin C and is a good source of fibre, vitamin E and potassium. It is fat-free, sodium-free and cholesterol-free, says www.foodreference.com

6. Because it contains an enzyme called Actinidin, it can also be used as a natural meat tenderiser. Just cut one in half and rub the fruit over the meat, or peel and mash with a fork then spread it on the surface of the meat and let it stand for 10 to 15 minutes or longer.

7. One cup (about 180g) of the fruit contains 108 calories.

Source website: http://health.asiaone.com/Health/Eat%2BRight/Story/A1Story20101101-245148/5.html

PHOTO: Watermelon
The watermelon is 92 per cent water and 8 per cent sugar.
http://health.asiaone.com/A1MEDIA/health/11Nov10/images/20101104.150410_st_watermelon1.jpg

Watermelon

1. The watermelon is not a fruit but a vegetable and is of the same botanical family as cucumbers, pumpkins and squash. They were first harvested in Egypt about 5,000 years ago and are now grown in almost 100 countries, says www.fabulousfoods.com

2. There are more than 50 varieties. Most have red flesh but there are orange and yellow-fleshed varieties, according to www.foodreference.com

3. Watermelon is an excellent source of vitamins A, C, and B6. It is also rich in potassium, extremely low in sodium and contains fibre and practically no fat.

4. This famous thirst quencher is 92 per cent water and 8 per cent sugar.

5. Every part of a watermelon is edible, even the seeds, and the rinds which are often pickled.

Source website: http://health.asiaone.com/Health/Eat%2BRight/Story/A1Story20101101-245148/6.html

PHOTO: Papaya
Papayas have 33% more vitamin C than oranges and have fewer calories.
http://health.asiaone.com/A1MEDIA/health/11Nov10/images/20101104.150410_st_papaya1.jpg

Papaya

1. The papaya, or paw paw, is believed to be southern Mexican and Central American in origin and now grows in all tropical and subtropical countries as the plants need warmth throughout the year. These trees may be male, female or bisexual, says www.crfg.org/pubs/ff/papaya.html.

2. Papayas are the only natural source of papain, an effective natural digestive aid, which breaks down protein and cleanses the digestive track. This means less food settles into the metabolism and becomes fat.

3. In addition to aiding in digestion, papayas are rich in vitamin C, folate and potassium. They are also good sources of fibre, vitamin A, vitamin E, the eye-saving carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin, and lycopene, according to health.learninginfo.org.

4. They have 33 per cent more vitamin C and 50 per cent more potassium than oranges and have fewer calories. They have 13 times more vitamin C and more than twice the potassium of apples, says health.learninginfo.org

5. Slightly green papayas ripen quickly at room temperature, especially if placed in a paper bag. Once they've turned from green to yellow you can store the ripened fruit in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for up to a week, but it's best to use them within a day or two, says www.foodreference.com.

6. Papayas have 33% more vitamin C than oranges and have fewer calories.

This article was first published in Mind Your Body, The Straits Times.

Reference