A lot of people have no idea what to do with a pomegranate. It is kind of an awkward fruit that most people are not that familiar with and therefor are not willing to pick up at the supermarket. Surprisingly, the odd fruit comes packed with a lot of practical health and cosmetic benefits. Giving this odd little fruit a chance and will reward you with the many natural benefits that the fruit provides.
Background on the Pomegranate
Pomegranates are historically from the Middle East and have migrated to parts of the Mediterranean, Asia, parts of Southern Europe, Africa, and even semi-tropical areas of California and South America. The fruit has been around for centuries and was even featured in ancient Greek mythology as the fruit of the underworld that Persephone is tricked into eating. There are a lot of culinary and cosmetic applications for the interesting fruit. In its simplest form the pomegranate is sliced open and the seeds are chewed on, which releases the juice of the fruit. The fruit is also used to make commercial products, such as grenadine, that are used around the world.
Finding Pomegranates
Since pomegranates are not that well known in the United States it can be a little bit more difficult to find places that sell them. Most larger supermarkets will sell the fruit during the time that they are in season; you can call your local grocery store to see if they have pomegranates for sale. If you cannot find the fruit itself, pomegranate juice provides some of the same nutritional benefits that the fruit provides and is much more readily available in supermarkets around the country. You can tell when a pomegranate is ripe by the color of the skin, it should be a bright or deep shade of red on the outside. You can also tell if it is ripe by using your fingernail, if you can make a scratch easily on the kin then it is ripe.
Nutritional Benefits of Pomegranates
The key benefits of Pomegranates are the antioxidants that the fruits carry. This helps to reduce the amount of cancer-causing, free radicals that your body can absorb. The juice from pomegranates also acts like a mild natural blood thinner, like aspirin, and can help keep the body’s blood from clotting together to create dangerous blood clots. This also helps to reduce the risk of heart problems that result from hypertension. There are also studies that suggest that pomegranate juice can help to reduce the effects of osteoarthritis by preventing the body’s cartilage from being damaged.
Cosmetic Benefits of Pomegranates
A lot of commercial beauty products today include pomegranates among other ingredients to make products that are used for various cosmetic purposes. You can save a lot of money and concern over other mystery ingredients and make your own natural beauty remedies from pomegranates. Pomegranate oil derived from the seeds of the fruit has been praised for its revitalization abilities; when used on the skin it can add moisture and anti-oxidants that can increase skin elasticity and make the skin look more youthful.
No comments:
Post a Comment