Cantaloupe with Lime and Mint-health tips

[Guest guest]

Cantaloupe with Lime and Mint

Prep and Cook Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

a.. 1 cantaloupe

b.. 2 TBS fresh lime juice

c.. 4 mint leaves

Directions:

1.. Cut cantaloupe in half and scoop out the seeds.

2.. Sprinkle each half with 1 TBS lime juice.

3.. Tear mint leaves by hand and sprinkle over cantaloupe.

Serves 2

In-Depth Nutritional Profile for Cantaloupe with Lime and Mint

Healthy Food Tip

Cantaloupe with Lime and Mint

Prep and Cook Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

a.. 1 cantaloupe

b.. 2 TBS fresh lime juice

c.. 4 mint leaves

Directions:

1.. Cut cantaloupe in half and scoop out the seeds.

2.. Sprinkle each half with 1 TBS lime juice.

3.. Tear mint leaves by hand and sprinkle over cantaloupe.

Serves 2

Printer Friendly Version of Cantaloupe with Lime and Mint

In-Depth Nutritional Profile for Cantaloupe with Lime and Mint

Healthy Food Tip

The Latest News About Cantaloupe

The name " cantaloupe " actually comes from the name of a town in Italy near

Rome called Cantaloupo in Sabina, where seeds were brought from Armenia and

planted in the Papal gardens during the 1400-1500's.) Cantaloupes are

members of the cucurbit family of plants (Cucurbitaceae) that also includes

cucumbers, pumpkins, squashes, gourds, and a long list of melons. Melons in

this same plant family with cantaloupe include Watermelon and honeydew

melon, along with crenshaw, casaba, Persian, and canary melon. Because many

members of the cucurbit plant family can easily cross-pollinate, there are

also many different hybrid melons in the marketplace that combine features

of true cantaloupe with features of these other melons.

What's New and Beneficial About Cantaloupe

a.. Because the flesh of the cantaloupe is often pastel-like in color

(compared to the more vibrant color of fruits like oranges), we sometimes

forget how important cantaloupe can be as a fruit source of vitamin A (in

the form of carotenoids). Researchers have recently measured the carotenoid

contents of six different California-grown cantaloupe hybrids and discovered

that their beta-carotene content can reach levels as high as 3,138

micrograms (per 100 grams of fresh weight). That's about 30 times higher

than the beta-carotene content of fresh oranges. Although this nutrient

richness of cantaloupe still does not place it in the beta-carotene range

for fresh carrots here (about 8,300 micrograms), it's still an aspect of

this delicious fruit that is all-too-frequently overlooked.

b.. At first, we were disappointed in the outcome of a recent French study

that put cantaloupe at the very bottom of the fruits list in terms of its

polyphenol content. In this French study, fruits like strawberries, lychees,

and grapes came out far better in their concentration of antioxidant

polyphenols than cantaloupe, and no fruit scored lower in its concentration

of polyphenols. But then we read about the total amount of polyphenols that

cantaloupe contributed to the average daily diet. When looked at in this

practical context, cantaloupe ranked higher than many other commonly eaten

fruits, including kiwi, grapefruit, and clementines. It also ranked higher

than watermelon and pineapple. Obviously, the higher volume of cantaloupe

consumed helped to offset its lower polyphenol concentration. This practical

principle is important to remember. A health-supportive, whole food like

fresh cantaloupe may show up as being lower in its concentration of certain

nutrients (including total polyphenols), but because we often eat it in

serving sizes that are relatively large, we often get substantial nutrient

benefits, even in the case of nutrients found in lower concentrations.

c.. Intake of cantaloupe has recently been found to lower risk of

metabolic syndrome. In a study involving hundreds of women living and

teaching in Tehran, Iran, the lowest risk of metabolic syndrome was found to

occur in women who ate the greatest amount of fruit. (In this study, the

" greatest amount " meant a minimum of 12 ounces per day.) Five fruits

contributed most to total fruit intake: apples, grapes, cantaloupe,

watermelon, and bananas. Women who consumed the largest amounts of these

fruits were also determined to have the healthiest levels of C-reactive

protein (CRP) in their bloodstream. CRP is an indicator very commonly used

to assess levels of inflammation, and it's very likely that the

anti-inflammatory phytonutrients in cantaloupe and other fruits contributed

not only to these participants' healthy levels of CRP but also to their

decreased risk of metabolic syndrome. The Latest News About Cantaloupe

The name " cantaloupe " actually comes from the name of a town in Italy near

Rome called Cantaloupo in Sabina, where seeds were brought from Armenia and

planted in the Papal gardens during the 1400-1500's.) Cantaloupes are

members of the cucurbit family of plants (Cucurbitaceae) that also includes

cucumbers, pumpkins, squashes, gourds, and a long list of melons. Melons in

this same plant family with cantaloupe include Watermelon and honeydew

melon, along with crenshaw, casaba, Persian, and canary melon. Because many

members of the cucurbit plant family can easily cross-pollinate, there are

also many different hybrid melons in the marketplace that combine features

of true cantaloupe with features of these other melons.

What's New and Beneficial About Cantaloupe

a.. Because the flesh of the cantaloupe is often pastel-like in color

(compared to the more vibrant color of fruits like oranges), we sometimes

forget how important cantaloupe can be as a fruit source of vitamin A (in

the form of carotenoids). Researchers have recently measured the carotenoid

contents of six different California-grown cantaloupe hybrids and discovered

that their beta-carotene content can reach levels as high as 3,138

micrograms (per 100 grams of fresh weight). That's about 30 times higher

than the beta-carotene content of fresh oranges. Although this nutrient

richness of cantaloupe still does not place it in the beta-carotene range

for fresh carrots here (about 8,300 micrograms), it's still an aspect of

this delicious fruit that is all-too-frequently overlooked.

b.. At first, we were disappointed in the outcome of a recent French study

that put cantaloupe at the very bottom of the fruits list in terms of its

polyphenol content. In this French study, fruits like strawberries, lychees,

and grapes came out far better in their concentration of antioxidant

polyphenols than cantaloupe, and no fruit scored lower in its concentration

of polyphenols. But then we read about the total amount of polyphenols that

cantaloupe contributed to the average daily diet. When looked at in this

practical context, cantaloupe ranked higher than many other commonly eaten

fruits, including kiwi, grapefruit, and clementines. It also ranked higher

than watermelon and pineapple. Obviously, the higher volume of cantaloupe

consumed helped to offset its lower polyphenol concentration. This practical

principle is important to remember. A health-supportive, whole food like

fresh cantaloupe may show up as being lower in its concentration of certain

nutrients (including total polyphenols), but because we often eat it in

serving sizes that are relatively large, we often get substantial nutrient

benefits, even in the case of nutrients found in lower concentrations.

c.. Intake of cantaloupe has recently been found to lower risk of

metabolic syndrome. In a study involving hundreds of women living and

teaching in Tehran, Iran, the lowest risk of metabolic syndrome was found to

occur in women who ate the greatest amount of fruit. (In this study, the

" greatest amount " meant a minimum of 12 ounces per day.) Five fruits

contributed most to total fruit intake: apples, grapes, cantaloupe,

watermelon, and bananas. Women who consumed the largest amounts of these

fruits were also determined to have the healthiest levels of C-reactive

protein (CRP) in their bloodstream. CRP is an indicator very commonly used

to assess levels of inflammation, and it's very likely that the

anti-inflammatory phytonutrients in cantaloupe and other fruits contributed

not only to these participants' healthy levels of CRP but also to their

decreased risk of metabolic syndrome.

'All that I have seen teaches me to trust God for all I have not seen.'

~Sugar