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Health Benefits of Strawberries

By Laura Ng

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 11Nov2007 Word count: 446 Viewed: 455 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

Though I'm not a great fan of the infamous Strawberry Shortcake cartoons, I remembered many of my childhood friends were. But strawberries have always been one of my favorite fruits - bright red, juicy and sweet. They make excellent healthy snacks for any time of the day by simply eating them plain or mixing with other fruits like blueberries, cranberries, bananas etc.

You can also use strawberries as the perfect ingredient for salads, smoothies, bread, cakes and desserts, especially fondues. Due to their bright, appealing appearance, chefs also like to use them as decorations to enhance the presentation of dishes, making them more appetizing to the guests.

Nutrition & Health Benefits of Strawberries

Strawberries are the only known fruit to have their seeds outside, with an average of 200 seeds per fruit. The leaves and roots of strawberries are claimed for their medicinal benefits in terms of easing diarrhea, digestive upsets and gout. You'll find strawberries leaves in blended herbal teas. You can use its fruit juice to treat sunburn, skin blemishes and discolored teeth.

Nutrients found in strawberries include vitamin A, C and B6, fiber, potassium, folate and various antioxidants and flavonoids. These nutrients help to boost your immune system against diseases like cardiovascular diseases and cancers.

Compared to fruits like apples, oranges or bananas, strawberries score highest in most of the nutrients. For example, 100g strawberries contain 60 mg Vitamin C, which is more than 100 g of oranges (50 mg) will have. Best of all, they carry low calories and are absolutely fat-free!

That means, you can even include them as an important weight loss food in your weight loss diet plan.

How Strawberries Benefit Your Health

Potassium and fiber present in strawberries can help to lower your blood pressure which in turn reduces the risk of heart disease whereas folate in the fruit reduces homocysteine, an independent risk factor for heart disease.

Their rich quantity of antioxidants also plays an important role in the prevention of plaque build-up in the arteries. Flavonoids, an antioxidant too, also provides anti-inflammatory effect on arteries, meaning they prevent blood clotting, thereby reduces risk of stroke.

But the health benefits of strawberries do not stop there. Their high levels of polyphenols and Vitamin C help you fight cancer effectively by hampering damages caused by carcinogens - a cancer-causing agent. But don't wait till your cancer advances to the terminal stage then you start eating strawberries. It could be too late by then.

So, while you're still doing well, start eating strawberries to reap their health benefits now. Remember, prevention is always better than cure. And what's more, they're so deliciously juicy I'll never understand why people can simply neglect their attractive existence.

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