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Woundrous Watermelon

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I love watermelon. It’s a fact! And a complete joy to my taste buds. For those of you unaware, July is National Watermelon Month. Yes, every month in our calendar associates with some food, cause or Hallmark occasion so I know you aren’t too surprised.

Why is July set as the auspicious occasion to celebrate the wondrous watermelon? Watermelon harvests peak in July of course! According to the USDA’s statistics the United States produces 4,200,000,000 pounds of watermelon annually. Estimated per capita fresh watermelon consumption in 2010 was 15.5 pounds. Wow.

There is much more to watermelon than its flavor. It contains powerful health benefits for you too. Watermelon is an excellent source of the vitamins A, B6, and C, fiber, and potassium, which are vital to good health and disease prevention. As a bonus, a cup of watermelon is only 46 calories. That’s all great and good, but here are five things you may not know about the wildly wonderful watermelon:

5 Wacky Watermelon Facts

1. Is a fruit and a vegetable! – As with most fruits, watermelon is a seed producing plant with a sweet taste. They are classified in the family of Cucurbitaceaes, including cucumber, pumpkin and squash. Plus, it is completely edible; rind, seeds and all!

Watermelon Rind

2. The juice relieves muscle soreness. – A study in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry found that drinking watermelon juice helped ease muscle soreness for athletes. It’s attributed to the naturally occurring citrulline found in watermelon. Citrulline is known for its ability to relax blood vessels, improve artery function and lower blood pressure. However, the most citrulline is found in the rind so juice it or pickle it for later!

  1. It has more lycopene than raw tomatoes. –Lycopene, a powerhouse antioxidant, found only in a few red plant foods, has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease and certain cancers. The USDA estimates watermelon has 1.5 times the lycopene than a large fresh tomato!
  1. It is packed with…you guessed it…water. Watermelon is estimated to be 91.5 percent water. This is a big deal as dehydration, even mildly so, can cause headaches, poor concentration, fatigue and grumpy moods. Most of us wander through the day partially dehydrated so if you aren’t a big water drinker, consider adding watermelon to your day!
  1. It is an anti-inflammatory food. –There is an enzyme reaction blocked by COX-2 inhibitors – think NSAIDs like aspirin and ibuprofen. The lycopene and other antioxidants found in watermelon reduce the activity of the inflammation causing enzyme reactions and help with pain relief.

Not sure how to pick the perfect watermelon? Follow these tips:

  • Look for a pale, butter-yellow spot on the bottom. This is where it Pick Watermelonsits on the ground to ripen. Be sure the spot isn’t white or green.
  • Make sure your watermelon is heavy for its size.
  • Some say the melon should have a hollow sound when thumped.

Looking to grow your own? Here’s a good resource: Watermelon

As with any food, moderation is key. While the watermelon offers up fantastic nutritional benefits, it is also higher on the scale in fructose.

Enjoy!

 

Stop Wasting Overripe Fruit with This Tip

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Overripe Fruit Blues

Do you ever feel like you buy fruit and it seems like only the fruit flies enjoy it once it’s overripe?

I have a confession. Yes, I am a bit obsessive on occasion. I love fresh fruit when it’s at the peak of season and I’ve been known to go overboard when I buy. Sweet Georgia peaches? I’ll take a dozen! Plump blueberries? A few pints in the cart. Oh, strawberries? Might as well grab a couple quarts. Watermelon? Better get a big one. And bananas? Only a big bunch will do!

While I might be exaggerating a wee bit, it’s not by much. There are only the two of us here and how much fruit can, or should, we consume in a week? The obsession became a stressor when some of Nature’s bounty started to look less than stellar on the kitchen counter.

I buy mostly organic produce and since I don’t have money to burn, I’ve also made a solemn vow to not waste any produce. Period. End of discussion.

So, I got creative. You remember the saying, ‘Necessity is the mother of invention.’ right? It’s true.

My Save the Overripe Fruit Crusade

The fruit I’m talking about saving are the ones with wrinkled skin and not so appealing to eat by hand any longer. You know – past its prime, overripe. It’s not quite ready to become future dirt in my garden so I backed away from the compost bin and headed to the blender.

A super simple way to save your overripe fruit is to puree and freeze it. First cut away any spoiled spots, run it in the blender or food processor, and freeze the puree in ice cube trays for later.

Pureed Fruit Cubes

Just about any type of fruit will work! Berries, melons, stone fruits, pineapples, mangoes, or whatever you happen to have. If any fruit has a pit, you’ll need to remove it before pureeing. And for things like peaches and nectarines that have skin, you can remove it or leave it on. It all depends on your taste.

Bananas get treated differently. When their peels look like cheetahs you couldn’t pay me to eat one, but if I peel, cut in thirds, place in a freezer bag and freeze – I love them!

Put That Overripe Fruit to Work

Of course, the fun and creative reward is putting these frozen fruit purees to work! Blend them into smoothies, shakes, and cocktails; use them to cool drinks; or let them melt and use as a dessert topping.

The bananas have even more versatility. A super ripe banana that’s been frozen for at least 24 hours makes a fabulous frozen treat that rivals ice cream. Or you can try them smothered in chocolate with this recipe… FROZEN BANANA BITES.

Remember… waste not, want not.

What are your best tips for using up overripe fruit?

Dehydration

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Dehydration occurs when the body loses water and essential salts (like sodium and potassium). Did you know that by the time you get that first nudge of thirst you are in early stages of dehydration? It’s true!

By the time we get the signal we’ve lost close to 2% of our total water content. How many of us always listen to the warning signals our bodies try to send? I’m guilty too, but we should heed the call when it comes to staying hydrated.

Why dehydration matters?

Our beautiful bodies consist of roughly 65% water and there’s a reason why. Water is needed to keep you humming in terms of biochemical reactions and physiological processes. Important things like; blood circulation, detoxification or waste removal, metabolism and regulating your body temperature all use water to work their magic.

Signs of dehydration

The first sign is the feeling of thirst. Nothing major. Just a little tap on the shoulder to remind you to hydrate. But what happens if you don’t heed the need?

  • Sugar Cravings – Oh, yes! This is real. You may just think you are hungry or having a craving when in reality you just need a glass of water.
  • Headache
  • Muscle Cramps
  • Fatigue and sometimes dizziness
  • Dry, dull skin with more pronounced wrinkles
  • Joint or back ache
  • Foggy headed
  • Dark urine
  • Constipation

 How to avoid dehydration

Water. Pure, clean water is your best bet. Simply swapping out all the sweetened, bottled beverages for pure water can go a long way to improving your health.

The daily amount required is up to the individual. You can use the pee test to monitor your hydration. Concentrated, dark-colored urine is a sign that your kidneys are retaining fluids to maintain your bodily functions, and is a good sign you need more water. Ideally, you’ll want to drink enough water to turn your urine a light-colored yellow.

Here’s a popular formula to give you an idea…

Your Current Weight X 2/3 = # of ounces

(Example: 100 x 2/3 = 67 ounces)

If you are working out then you should adjust for your activity level. Rule of thumb is an additional 12 ounces for every 30 minutes of exercise.

What about electrolytes?

Sugar in Sport DrinksIf you’ve been sweating or working out you want to make sure you replace the lost electrolytes, but the popular sport drinks aren’t the best choice. It’s been drilled into every little kid that Gatorade will help them be the athlete they dream of becoming, but here’s the deal – most sport drinks have two-thirds or more sugar than soda! Not to even mention all the artificial coloring and flavoring. It’s a veritable chemical sh*t storm. Yikes.

It is super easy and inexpensive to solve the lost electrolyte issue. Simply add a small amount of natural, unprocessed salt, such as Himalayan salt, to your water.

Unlike processed salt, this natural salt has 84 different minerals and trace minerals that your body needs for optimal function. Another great option is coconut water. Both are natural and provide additional healthy benefits. Win!

Also, fresh fruits are full of potassium and other important minerals that help electrolyte balancing. But always opt for whole fruit, not fruit juices.

Basically, to avoid dehydration we don’t ignore the signals from our beautiful bodies and we fill up on healthy choices instead of chemical and sugar laden sport drinks. It’s only as complicated as we make it, right? Try this recipe for a homemade sport drink:

Old School Gatorade

Ingredients
1 quart of coconut water, water or green tea
1/8-1/4 tsp Himalayan Sea Salt
Juice of one lemon
1/4 cup berries of choice
1 tablespoon raw honey or a few drops of stevia (not really needed)

Let this baby infuse for 6 hours in your fridge, then drink up.

I was feeling dry, tired and blah until I started to hydrate the right way. Our cells, our adrenals, our thyroid and our body – need salts for every metabolic process and those babies are alkalizing too! Hydrate and regenerate. Plus, it is yummy and the kids love it too!

Fabulous Fruit

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I’ve started a new feature on my Facebook page starting in August – Monthly Challenges! I started these challenges as weekly endeavors, but in order to make the biggest impact on your health I’ve opted for a monthly time frame. This gives us more time to really understand the benefits of making the simple change I’m offering up to you.

Our first challenge is to add new fruit to your diet. After I started researching fruit consumption it occurred to me that instead of a new fruit –  let’s just say –  ANY fruit. How many of us are eating enough fruit? Not enough! According to the CDC report published in 2013, 38 percent of adolescents and 36 percent of adults report consuming fruit less than one time daily. To top it all off we are taught through marketing what to eat but not why. Consequently, orange juice is our major fruit and French fries our major vegetable consumed. Ack! The horror!

fruit
August’s Challenge is more FRUIT!
Let’s get to the WHY of fruit consumption.

Off the top of my head, adding fruit to your balanced whole food diet brings five fabulous fruity benefits!

  1. Boost your immunity! Essential vitamins and minerals from fruits and vegetables help to increase the body’s immunity against a host of diseases. It will protect your body from many common infections like common cold to serious disorders like cardio problems. Start boosting your immunity now before the cold and flu season begins.
  2. Fiber makes you full! Fruit and vegetables are high in fiber. For example, an apple contains 12% of the daily recommended allowance of fiber, pears contain 18% and a cup of strawberries packs 12%. A diet rich in fiber helps lower cholesterol and prevents constipation. Interesting tidbit about the fiber from an apple. Apple has two types of fiber: insoluble and soluble. Insoluble fiber helps lower LDL cholesterol. Soluble fiber helps the LDL be removed from the liver.
  3. Increase your energy level! Because fruit and vegetables do not contain artificial sugar and are packed with minerals and other nutrients and vitamins they help maintain energy levels. Foods high in sugar, caffeine or “energy drinks” often result in a sugar-crash because they elevate sugar levels quickly and burn off quickly. Fruit and vegetables provide a more enduring energy level.
  4.  Fight disease with fruit! The antioxidant benefits  of fruit are powerful weapons against disease. According to the Linus Paul Institute a diet rich in fruit and vegetables aids in the prevention of a number of diseases.  Among these are cardiovascular disease, high-blood pressure, diabetes, cancer and osteoporosis.
  5.  Kick start your metabolism! Deficiency of vitamins and minerals will slow down your metabolism. Also, many vitamins are essential for proper absorption of food. Lack of certain nutrients can also lead to improper functioning of thyroid. Many nutrients from fruits and veggies keep the thyroid levels normal. All these reasons can contribute to weight gain.

Let’s not forget the most obvious…flavor! Just think about all the tantalizing flavors fruit offer up to tickle your taste buds. You can be swept away to the tropics with a sweet juicy mango or carted away to the orchard with the first bite of a tart crisp apple. The variety of taste explosions is practically endless when you bravely add a new exotic fruit to your produce basket. Make it a point to treat your taste buds this week!

Let me know how you plan to increase your fruit intake and what your tasty treat sensation is this week!

 

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