Papaya (fruit of Carica papaya L.) is also known as the fruit of vitality thanks to its tonic, energetic and revitalizing action. Rich in antioxidants, such as carotenoids, it also contains high amounts of vitamin A and vitamin C. Let's find out more.
> 1. Description and variety of papaya
> 2. Properties and benefits of papaya
> 3. Calories and nutritional values ​​of papaya
> 4. Ally of
Papaya description and variety
Papaya is the fruit of a plant, Carica papaya L., belonging to the Caricacee family, native to Central and South America which has about 25 species and about 50 cultivated varieties.
Amante del caldo umido cresce anche nelle regioni tropicali e subtropicali come in Brasile, Africa e India. Le varietà più conosciute sul mercato del paese sono: Solo, Hortus Gold, Cera, Kagdum, Semangka.
The papaya plant has a palm-like shape (but it's not a tree!); it looks like a small shrub with a little branched trunk that ends with a large tuft of leaves and which can reach a height of up to 10 meters.
Papaya is its fruit, with a very variable shape and size, yellow-orange in color and with sweet, soft and juicy pulp (there is also a variety with white pulp that is used to obtain fermented papaya).
Properties and benefits of papaya
Papaya contains powerful antioxidants such as carotenoids and flavonoids that protect our cells from free radicals responsible for cellular aging and from some serious diseases.
Among the carotenoids stands out the lycopene (an average papaya contains 2,5 mg - Source: Carotenoid Database for US Food, 1998), a powerful natural antioxidant whose action is to fight cellular aging and cell proliferation that cause multiple chronic degenerative diseases.
Not synthesized by the body, it must be obtained from the foods that contain it and which are represented, as a privileged source, for 90% by tomatoes and its derivatives, pink grapefruit, watermelon, grapes, apricots and precisely from papaya.
Very similar to melon, papaya is a very thirst-quenching fruit thanks to its high water content (about 88%), it also has excellent nutritional properties because it is very rich in vitamin A, vitamin C (more than kiwifruit and carrots!) and vitamin P, it has a lot of fiber, very little fat (0,3%) and a low calorie intake (about 39 kcal per 100 grams).
An enzyme is obtained from unripe fruit, papain: enzima proteolitico che può essere usato per l difficoltà digestive grazie alla sua capacità di degradare le proteine. Questo enzima, infatti, facilita la digestione delle proteine ingerite e la sua azione è particolarmente evidente dopo i pasti frettolosi e abbondanti.
In ripe fruit, however, the amount of this enzyme is lower. This function is particularly useful since after the age of 35 the production of enzymes with proteolytic activity decreases by the pancreas.
In addition, papain, thanks to its alkalizing effect, restores the acid-base balance in the body often compromised and unbalanced towards hyperacidity by various factors, such as an incorrect diet, poor in fresh fruit and vegetables, stress, excessive consumption of drugs, environmental pollution and insufficient physical activity.
One of the consequences of hyperacidity is an increase in the formation of free radicals that damage cell structures.
Also discover the properties of fermented papaya
Calories and nutritional values ​​of papaya
100 grams of papaya contain 43 kcal.
Furthermore, for 100 g of product we have:
- 0.3 g of fat
- 0 mg of cholesterol
- 8 mg of sodium
- 182 mg of potassium
- 11 g of carbohydrates
- 1.7 of fiber
- 8 g of sugar
- 0.5 g of protein
Papaya among the natural vitamin C supplements: discover the others
Papaya, ally of
Thanks to the presence of proteolytic enzymes in papaya, it is particularly suitable for digestive problems caused by meals rich in fats and proteins, for gastritis and gastroduodenitis problems.
Useful in case of constipation (thanks to the laxative action produced by the ingestion of the pulp and above all by the driving effect of its numerous small, grayish seeds covered with mucilage; not to be ingested if pregnant!) and also to the remineralizing properties e diuretic (thanks to its high water content).
The experience of Japanese culture, relating to the fermentation of food, has also led to the production of fermented papaya whose transformation leads, on the one hand, to the profound change in the content of proteins and carbohydrates present in the fresh fruit and, on the other, to the ability to generate a pool of new substances, beta-glucans, with strong antioxidant and immunomodulating properties (they help the system immune).
The whole fruit (pulp, peel and seeds) of papaya is fermented with the addition of a yeast (Saccaromyces Boulardii) and glucose through a biotechnological process. Its natural components play an effective antioxidant action, protecting the body against cell damage caused by free radicals and stimulating the immune system.
Fermented papaya is therefore effective in guaranteeing the correct supply of daily energy and antioxidant substances, to offer valid help to the immune system and how adjuvant in periods of physical and mental stress.
Curiosities about papaya
Papaya is also called
- "Fruit of vitality": name used to recall the tonic, energetic and revitalizing properties.
- "Fruit of the angels": this is how the papaya is called by the inhabitants of the Caribbean. It was Christopher Columbus, arriving in the New World, who heard this fruit called this way.
- "Golden tree of eternal youth": this is how the papaya plant is described by the Portuguese navigator Vasco De Gama.
- "Caribbean melon": Marco Polo checked his properties against scurvy (disease caused by the lack of vitamin C) that had affected the sailors of his boat who, having been at sea for a very long time, could not get supplies of fresh food.
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