Papaya

Exotic papaya fruit or pawpaw isapacked with numerous health benefiting nutrients. The fruit is one of the favorites of fruit lovers for its nutritional, digestive, and medicinal properties. It probably thought to have originated in the central americas. Papaya is grown extensively all over the tropical regions under cultivated farms for its fruits as well as for latex, papain, an enzyme that found applications in the food industry. Botanically, the plant belongs toacaricaceae family of flowering plants, in the genus; carica.a.

Papaya tree bears many spherical or pear-shaped fruits clumped near its top end. They come in variety of sizes ranging from 6-20 inches in length and 4-12 inches in diameter. The average-sized papaya weighs about a pound. The fruit is said to ripen when it yeilds to gentle thumb pressure, and its skin turned amber toorange hue.

The papaya fruit is very low in calories (just 39 calories/100 g) and contains no cholesterol; however, it is a rich source of phyto-nutrients, minerals, and vitamins.

Papayas contain soft, easily digestible flesh with a good amount of soluble dietary fiber that helps to have normal bowel movements; thereby reducing constipation problems.

Fresh, ripe papaya is one of the fruits with the highest vitamin-c content (provides 61.8 mg or about 103% of dri, more than that of in oranges, or lemons). Research studies have shown that vitamin c has many important functions like free radicals scavenging, immune booster, and anti-inflammatory actions.

It is also an excellent source of vitamin-a (provides 1094 iu/100 g) and flavonoids like i-carotene, lutein, zea-xanthin and cryptoxanthin. Vitamin a is required for maintaining healthy mucus membranes and skin and is essential for healthy vision. These compounds are known to have antioxidant properties; help act as protective scavengers against oxygen-derived free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ros) that play a role in aging and various disease processes. Consumption of natural fruits rich in carotenes has known to protect the body from lung and oral cavity cancers.

Papaya fruit is also rich in many essential b-complex vitamins such as folic acid, pyridoxine (vitamin b-6), riboflavin, and thiamin (vitamin b-1). These vitamins are essential in the sense that body requires them from external sources to replenish and play a vital role in metabolism.

Fresh papaya also contains a good amount of potassium (257 mg per 100 g) and calcium. Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids and helps controlling heart rate and blood pressure countering effects of sodium.

Papaya seeds have been proven natural remedy for many ailments in the traditional medicines. The seeds are found application as anti-inflammatory, anti-parasitic, and analgesic, and used to treat stomachache, and ringworm infections.