Dragon fruit also describes as Pitaya. It is a common fruit available in native South America. Over time, the cultivation of dragon fruit extended to the south-eastern part of Asia. It is also common in Thailand, China and Vietnam.
The dragon fruit named like this because its peel looks similar like dragon skin such as green scales, red and yellow color.
Dragon fruit is different in taste. It has two different varieties such as white flesh and red flesh. Both parts of these contain yellow or red skin which resembles like pineapples. They also contain a cluster of small, edible and black seeds which gives a flavor of pear and kiwi with a kind of crunchy texture.
Dragon fruit nutrients
Table of Contents
- Calories: 264
- Fat: 0 g
- Protein: 3.57 g
- Dietary fiber: 1.8 g
- Carbohydrate: 82.14 g
- Vitamin C: 6.4 mg
- Sugars (total): 82.14 g
- Calcium: 107 milligrams (mg)
- Iron: 0 g
- Sodium: 39 mg
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
High Potassium
Dragon fruit contains important minerals especially potassium and calcium. Adding dragon fruit in your diet can strengthen your bone health and prevent fracture risk. Sufficient consumption of potassium helps to prevent electrical, cellular damage and maintain nervous functions in the body.
Potassium is important for managing water content, acid or pH in the body.
The research of Shiga-University-of-Medical-Science-in-Japan tels that people with diabetes can get benefits from potassium to protect kidney and heart health.
Vitamin C
Dragon fruit contains a rich amount of vitamin C. It provides many health benefits such as glowing skin, collagen production, healthier teeth, promotes immunity. Read more details of the benefits below.
High in Fiber
According to the research of University-of-Leeds, eating dragon fruit contribute a sufficient amount of fiber which helps to lessen the risk of coronary heart problem and cardiovascular illnesses.
Dragon fruit is a great source of dietary fiber, and you can incorporate in your weight loss diet for obtaining more benefits.
Dragon fruit health benefits
Reduce Bad Cholesterol
It’s common these days older adult suffers from cholesterol problem. Unhealthy food choices and lifestyle contribute to increasing the risk of cholesterol.
Nearly 40% of women are more likely to experience high cholesterol, whereas 39% of men get a cholesterol problem in the total population. Studies show that nearly 2.6 million people die every year due to high cholesterol.
Including healthy fruits and vegetables can help to maintain a healthy lifestyle. You can choose dragon fruit to reduce the cholesterol levels.
Your body will need healthy fats which are good cholesterol. It is a type of fat which is essential for proper body functions. The seeds of dragon fruit contain rich amount of polyunsaturated fats, omega-6, and omega-3 fatty acids and it helps to reduce unhealthy cholesterol.
Additionally, dragon fruit provides a rich number of antioxidants which is helpful for fighting dangerous LDL levels.
Fight with Stomach problems
The dragon fruits are special fruits which help to heal several health problems such as constipation and indigestion without any harmful effects.
Dragon fruit contains a rich amount of fiber and high water which helps to relieve constipation. Adding dragon fruit in your diet helps to improve bowel movements by promoting food digestion. It also treats accumulated stool and relieves irritable bowel syndrome. It also heals accumulated stool and relieves irritable bowel syndrome.
Reduces Blood Sugar
Diabetes is one the scary disease which doesn’t have any cure. The constant fluctuation in blood sugar levels causes serious health problems. The phase of diabetes is painful while your sweet tooth craves more than before.
However, you can manage the fluctuating blood sugar with certain medication and eating habits or supplements.
Dragon fruit is a high source of polyphenols, thiols, carotenoids, glucosinolates, and tocopherols which helps in reducing blood sugar. Additionally, its high fiber content prevents sugar spikes which raises after a high glycaemic index meal.
According to one study issued in the Pharmacognosy, Research journal tells that, the dragon fruit contains strong effects which work on oxidative stress happen from aortic stiffness. It commonly occurs in diabetic people.
Improves Cardiovascular Health
Eating dragon fruit can help in retaining your heart health. High cholesterol causes to produce oxidative damage because of free radical’s injury. It limits the blood flow by narrowing the arteries.
Eating dragon fruit serves to reduce the arteries stiffness and stop the heart attack risk.
Additionally, dragon fruit comprises monounsaturated fats which are important for promoting cardiovascular health.
Reduce low Hemoglobin risk
Dragon fruit consumption helps to reduce the low hemoglobin problem such as anemia. Anemia is a common health disorder in women occurs due to low hemoglobin. The fluctuating hemoglobin levels cause to affect dangerously and result in kidney failure.
As dragon fruit contains iron, it meets the daily requirement of iron that is 8%. Additionally, dragon fruit contains plenty of vitamin C which helps to enhance the ability of the body to absorb sufficient iron.
Support weight loss
Dragon fruit is best for weight loss. You can manage your taste and favorite food without gaining weight by adding dragon fruit in your diet. Obviously, it’s a difficult thing to be loyal with a weight loss diet plan. If you become cheat during the diet, then you will not get the desired result.
Add some interesting taste to your weight loss plan by including dragon fruit.
As dragon fruit contains sufficient water and fiber, it provides full satiety feeling and prevents overeating. Dragon fruit contains 60 calories in 100 grams which is a perfect substitute for fruit diet.
Prevents Cancer
According to studies, dragon fruit helps to reduce the risk of developing harmful cancer cells. Dragon fruit contains enzyme describe as lycopene and additionally it provides carotene and vitamin C which provide anti-carcinogenic properties. They together help to limit the tumors formation.
Additionally, the dragon fruit peels contain polyphenols which are a chemical and it protects from cancers.
Stops Congenital Glaucoma
Glaucoma refers to the group of ocular diseases which increase the optic nerve damage. The optic nerve is a nerve string of more than 1-million nerve fibers and those nerves linked with retina to the brain. In order to have a good vision, it is important that the optic nerves should be healthy. The damaged nerves cause to reduce the visual field or even cause complete vision loss.
According to one study, dragon fruit help to cure congenital glaucoma. The dragon fruit contains strong power which prevents human cytochrome(P450). It is a protein available in the liver and helps for proper lungs and kidney functions. This protein also has a connection with congenital glaucoma.
Boosts Immunity
Immunity is an important part of the human body. It is a stable state of a multicellular organism which has an equal biological mechanism to fight with the disease, infection and unwanted invasion. Having a good immune system helps to prevent allergy and autoimmune diseases.
Dragon fruit provides immunity boosting properties as it contains loads of vitamin C. Dragon fruits consumption helps to stimulate the antioxidant activity, powerful vitamins, and minerals such as vitamin B1, niacin, calcium, phosphorus, pytoalbumin, and iron. These vitamins help to prevent the viral and bacterial attack.
Reduce Arthritis Pain
Arthritis is an inflammation in the joints, and this term is used for describing 200 conditions of affected joints and tissues around joints called as a rheumatic condition.
Arthritis causes irritation, immobility and severe joint pain. You can reduce arthritis pain by adding dragon fruit in your diet.
As dragon fruit contains anti-inflammatory qualities, it helps to prevent joint pain.
Pregnancy
You can add dragon fruit in a pregnancy diet. This fruit provides much valuable nutrition during pregnancy.
The dragon fruit provides necessary iron during pregnancy and assists in red blood cells composition. According to the modern trend, 6 in 10 women experience anemia even in pregnancy also.
As dragon fruit is a good source of iron, it prevents hemoglobin levels dropping. With mother, the growing fetus also gets the benefit of dragon fruit. The fetus will able to get sufficient nutrients and oxygen.
The content of carbohydrates in dragon fruit helps to boost energy in pregnant mother.
Additionally, the dragon fruit provides folate which is important for pregnancy. The folate nutrient helps for the RBCs formation and prevent neural tube defects in the growing fetus.
Benefit for bone and teeth health
As dragon fruit contains a rich source of phosphorus and calcium which are important nutrients for stronger teeth and bones healthy. Both the nutrient calcium and phosphorus depend on each other. Therefore, your diet should include both for promoting bone and teeth health. Dragon fruit can provide you both nutrients and promote bone density plus strengthening root and mass over teeth.
Benefits Dengue Patients
The people who suffer from a vector-borne ailment such as dengue which is a serious disease and causes a reduction in platelet count. The gradual reduction in platelet causes to increase death risk.
A healthy individual has total platelet count around 150,000 to 450,000 for each blood microlitre, and an individual with dengue have only less than 10, 000 platelet levels.
The foremost function of healthy platelet levels is to prevent blood clotting and bleeding from blood vessels injuries. The depletion of platelet causes hemorrhage.
Thankfully, dragon fruit is one of those fruits which helps to increase the platelet count. It provides powerful antioxidants and improves your health.
Repairs Body Cells
Dragon fruits have unique proteins and enzymes that can assist our body in regenerating and repairing cells. Dragon fruit holds healing properties which provide benefits for treating injuries and burns.
Improves Appetite
Adding dragon fruit helps to promote your appetite. Certain health disorders and diseases such as anemia and fever harm the normal appetite functions. By eating dragon fruit, you can save your appetite health.
Dragon fruit helps to cure stomach problems and increase appetite.
Appetite is an urge to eat food due to craving. Tasty foods help to stimulate the appetite even when you are not hungry. Although, appetite helps to decrease the satiety.
Appetite endures in all necessary life-forms, and it helps to manage adequate energy consumption to maintain your metabolic requirement. It manages between digestive tract, the brain, and adipose tissue.
Everyone has a different relationship between behavior and appetite. It also describes an approach behavior. It is responsible for energy intake whereas others involve in consummatory behavior.
When you feel stressed, your appetite levels cause to increase your hunger and eating. The reduced eating desires cause hyperphagia, anorexia ailments.
Improves Vision
Adding dragon fruit in your daily diet helps to improve the blurry vision and pain in the backside of eyes.
The dragon fruit is very benefited to eyes health. The content of beta-carotene and important plant pigments helps to protect the fragile orbs from harmful free radical’s effects. It also prevents eyes diseases such as macular degeneration and cataract.
Promotes Brain Function
The brain is an important organ in your body. Its smooth functioning is vital for the work of other organ’s functions. The brain is responsible for controlling emotions, creative thoughts, storing memory, releasing brain chemical to allow other body parts to work. It comprises of three parts such as brainstem, cerebrum, and cerebellum which is protected in the skull.
The brain collects information by five senses such as smell, sight, touch, hearing, and taste. Often, the brain has to assemble the messages at one time and store in the memory.
It also controls the memory and speech, thoughts, organ functions and arm and leg functions in the body.
Adding dragon fruit in your diet provide benefits to the brain also. As it promotes RBC production in your body, it allows all mineral and vitamins to prevent damage in brain cells.
The nutrients of dragon fruit help to improve healthy nerves functions and keep the brain working in a healthy way.
Heal respiratory disorders
Eating dragon fruit helps to cure respiratory problems such as cough and asthma from common flu which create discomfort in everyday life. Almost everyone feels annoying to stay with blocked nose with breathing trouble.
Eating dragon fruit provide vitamin C which is a strong nutrient to heal the respiratory infections.
Dragon fruit provide hair benefits
When you wish for strong and healthy hair, it requires care and maintenance. Many people try and fail to care there hair. Not only using hair products is helpful but also eating healthy and nutritious food also required.
Dragon fruit provides the best benefits without harming your hair. This fruit costs more than other fruits. The content of fatty acids such as Omega-3 helps to keep the hair healthy and shiny. The content of omega-6 helps to stimulate hair growth. The omega-3 is essential for collagen production and maintain hair thickness.
Dragon fruit helps to create the softness of hair and produce the tresses of hair. Apply dragon fruit juice on your hair and scalp for 15 to 20 minutes before doing the shampoo of your hair which provides antioxidants. It also increases blood circulation and allows oxygen to reach the hair follicles for better growth. It also contains niacin, which helps to dilate the blood vessels which enables better blood circulation for the nourishment of hair follicles and scalp.
Manages Colored Hair
Everyone wishes to follow the lifestyle changing trends such as fashion, footwear, gadgets, accessories and hair color too.
Women were crazy to adopt Shakira’s blonde hair color in the mid of 2000s and half dye of Kylie Jenner which were popular in 2014.
For some people, coloring hair may cause to damage the hair and create dryness. It can be possible that different chemical compound may affect hair roots and stop growth.
Dragon fruit includes healthy nutrients for hair color and repairs the hair damage occurs by chemicals.
You will need one dragon fruit.
How to use it?
- Take out the dragon fruit pulp and make a creamy paste.
- Use this creamy paste to apply thoroughly on your scalp and hair.
- Wait for 20 minutes.
- Rinse with a gentle shampoo.
- Try to do this method once a week.
Prevent aging signs
Aging signs such as sagging, wrinkle, dullness and fine lines are the signs which appear on the skin while you are aging. It can be a very embarrassing phase which requires special care and attention.
The aging problem occurs when your cellular damage happens by free radicals’ damage in the body. It is a natural process of getting old, and it is a premature attack of health on your skin.
Dragon fruit helps to provide health effects on the skin. It is a fascinating fruit containing a rich source of antioxidants, and it helps to fight with free radical damage. Dragon fruit helps to look your skin smoother and younger.
Follow the dragon fruit face pack every week one time and prevent the wrinkles and fine lines.
You will require the following things
- Half-dragon fruit
- 1 tbsp yogurt
- Instructions
- Make a smooth paste of dragon fruit pulp.
- Mix yogurt in the paste.
Apply this pack on face and neck and let it for 20 minutes.
Remove it with lukewarm water and dry your face with a soft towel.
Repeat doing this every week and stop aging signs.
Treats Acne
Acne is a big problem that occurs from oily skin and increases during puberty years. For some people, acne continues to occur until the age of 30.
Acnes are really annoying to see the pop-out in unexpected places. Some acne is very firm and won’t go easily.
The dragon fruit helps to treat the acne problem from its vitamin C content.
You will require
- Dragon fruit 1/4
- Cotton balls 3 to 4
- Take out the dragon fruit pulp and make a smooth paste.
With the help of a cotton ball, pat the dragon fruit mash on modified sections.
Use another cotton ball to apply on another part to prevent the bacteria from spreading.
After 20 minutes, rinse it off with warm water.
Keep doing this method two times a week for getting acne free and flawless skin.
Improves Skin Health
Getting glowing and healthy skin is not a tough task for proper care. You need to make sure that you know what food is good for your skin. Also, you will need to do proper exercise to get healthy skin.
Including dragon fruit in your daily diet helps to provide good skin.
You can start the morning with fresh dragon fruit juice. It removes all toxins and produces new skin cells.
The dragon fruit provides a high number of antioxidants and prevents free radicals which help to heal the dull skin and sagging. The content of vitamin C helps to create brightness in the skin.
Create moisture in dry skin
Dragon fruit contains plenty of water nearly 90%, and it helps to hydrate the skin and prevent dryness in the skin. Adding dragon fruit in the winter season helps prevent skin dry skin.
Relieves Sunburned Skin
Wandering in the sunlight may seem pleasant sometime, but it can bring severe blisters. In such cases, the dragon fruit pack helps to reduce inflammation and redness.
As dragon fruit contains plenty of vitamin C, you can create a combination of vitamin C and vitamin E for protecting skin from UV rays and relieve sunburns.
What You Need
- Half-dragon fruit
- One vitamin E capsule
- What You Have to Do
- Apply the dragon fruit fine paste by mixing in vitamin E on sunburned affected parts.
- Let it get dry for 30 minutes and wash with cold water.
- You can use this face pack every other day.
Caution
- Every natural food has a warning side effect if taken in more or in the wrong way.
- Here are the serious side effects of dragon fruit which you should not ignore.
- Ask an expert about how much dosage of dragon fruit is sufficient for your health.
- Try to avoid more consumption of dragon fruit as it has fructose which causes to increase the flab in your body and interrupt your weight loss plan.
- Skip eating outer part of dragon fruit because it might have pesticides and it may harm your health.
How to peel a dragon fruit?
It may seem daunting to peel the dragon fruit. It completely depends on what you need from the fruits. You can follow the different cutting and peeling methods of dragon fruit.
Scooping Method
By using a good pattern of the knife, cut the dragon fruit according to width. Cut the dragon fruit into 2- sections and you will view the inner pulp.
With a spoon, scoop out the dragon fruit flesh in a bowl. Later, you can cut this pulp into cube shapes and swing into your favorite salad.
Peel with hands
Cut the dragon fruit crown and stretch the peel on to a scale by using your hand. You can peel the complete skin of dragon fruit in a concentric circle. You will be able to get the whole pulp of dragon fruit. With the help of sharp knife peel of the extra pulp.
Fruit Scooper
You can also use fruit scooper, and it will not require to peel the excess pulp of dragon fruit. All you require to do is to cut the dragon fruit beside and scoop out small parts such as round balls.
Purchasing Dragon Fruit
You can buy fresh dragon fruit from the local supermarket, and you can find it online also. While purchasing dragon fruit, remember that the dragon fruit skin should not have brown spots.
If the dragon fruit looks soft, it means it has gone bad. Since the dragon fruit is seasonal, you can freeze the dragon fruit powder. It provides rich antioxidants, and you can use this in granola, smoothie, and raw desserts.
Dragon Fruit Varieties
There are different types of dragon fruits such as
- Red flesh and red skin
- Red skin and white flesh
- Yellow skin and white flesh.
How to store Dragon Fruit?
You can keep the ripe dragon fruit on the counter for some days. For the longer storage, you can keep the dragon fruit in the sealed plastic bag and keep in the refrigerator. This fruit may adopt odor and flavors of other foods, so you need to keep it protected.
Skip cutting the dragon fruit until you want to eat. To maintain its freshness after cutting, keep it in the fridge. Once you see the dragon fruit brown, toss it with salad and eat.