Papaya is sweet and elongated much bigger than a pear and is a rich powerhouse of Vitamin C. It is generally found in tropical countries throughout the year though it is basically a summer fruit. It is generally greenish yellow, yellow or orange in color, its flesh inside being pink or red or bright orange, depending upon it’s variety. It weighs up to 2.5kgs.
The key nutrients found in papaya are Vitamin A, B9, C, E, K and a great source of dietary fiber. It also good amounts of calcium, potassium, phosphate, magnesium, copper and iron and has very low calories. It is sweet to taste, but has very low sugar content and can be consumed by diabetics.
This tropical fruit, papaya promotes health of heart patients, offering protection to the heart and preventing atherosclerosis. It’s high Vitamin C, carotids, pytochemicals and antioxidants Vitamin A and C helps eliminate building up of cholesterol on the walls of arteries.
Papaya has high fiber content and helps to cleanse the colon and to eliminate colon cancer. Besides it’s antioxidants helps to strengthen the immune system and avoid infections and helps us to be healthy. The fiber content also helps to eliminate all the waste products which could cause diseases if not eliminated.
Papaya helps in avoiding eye diseases like age related ocular degeneration by 36%. Besides it’s high content of Vitamin A is also good for the eyes. So you should have at least 3 servings of papaya a day.
The effect of several unique protein digesting enzymes like papain and chymopapain cannot be overlooked. These enzymes helps in reduction and cure of inflammatory diseases like osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and helps helps healing of burn wounds.
Papain and chymopapain are two proteolytic enzymes found in the skin of papaya.They help digestion and bloating of the stomach. So take papaya after meals to promote digestion and help the body to get nutrients.
Papain helps soften and cleanse the skin. It alleviates swelling and pain of joints due to sports injuries. The free radicals found in this fruit benefits people with Alzheimer’s disease and cancer.
Take care to choose papaya fruits that smell sweet and have the flavor of apricot with a twist of ginger. To hasten the process of ripening the fruit put it in a plastic cover and keep it for a day or two. However green papaya has higher papain. It can be used in various curry preparations. he flesh of the ripe fruit tastes good in fruit salads, jams, and in fruit smoothies and also in non vegetarian dishes.
Solo and Maradol are 2 varieties found in USA. Solo is about 7 inches long, weighs about a pound and can be easily consumed by a single person. But Maradol which is grown in Mexico and Central America is a much larger fruit about 20 inches long and weighs 5 to 6 pounds.
To conclude, take papaya regularly after your meals. It has lesser calories than a dessert and is also a promoter of good health. Besides it is full of nutrients and helps prevent certain dangerous diseases. Hence as we all say that an apple a day keeps the doctor away, similarly we can also say that 3 helpings of papaya a day keeps disease and doctor away. Best of luck for a happy and healthy life with the healthy papaya fruit.
