Know your Local Fruits and their health benefits: Series Three – Paw-paw
Papaya Fruits and its Health Benefits
Papaya is known to be natural sources of vitamins and minerals that are beneficial for proper body functioning.
It is one of the common fruits which can be found mostly in the tropics and is enjoyed by all not only because of its sweet and savory taste but also because of the wonderful health benefits it provides.
14 Amazing Health Benefits of Papaya (Pawpaw)
1. Improves Digestion
Papaya contains an enzyme called papain enzyme that helps in breaking amino acids present in the body into strings of protein and support gastrointestinal health. That is it improves digestion.
Eating papaya after each meal is so beneficial to our health because papain, when taken orally, can treat less digestive disorders than when you take papaya.
2. Reduces Menstrual pain
This enzyme called papain that is present in pawpaw fruit also helps to reduce menstrual pains and contributes to the regulation and ease of flow during the menstrual period; consuming unripe papaya helps in menstrual regulation.
Therefore it is advisable for women who experience menstrual pain to take papaya; as it will help to reduce the pain.
3. It Lowers Cholesterol
Some vitamins are contained in pawpaw fruits such as vitamin C, vitamin B-6 thiamin, riboflavin, folate and niacin that help in cholesterol prevention and keep the immune system and the cells healthy
Eating papaya regularly helps a lot in preventing cholesterol from building up in your arteries.
4. Helps in Body Development
It has some essential minerals that contribute to proper health such as magnesium, potassium, irons, and phosphorus needed in the body for proper functioning and development.
Eating pawpaw regularly will help greatly in your body development and functioning.
5. It Boosts Immune System
Papaya contains several antioxidants that play important roles in improving the immune systems. Regular intake of papaya helps in the improvement of the immune system of the body.
Papaya contains a big amount of vitamin C, making it serve as a great agent for a strong immune system.
6. Good For Diabetic Patients
It also improves blood glucose control in diabetic people and helps in prevention as well because of its low sugar content; the intake of pawpaw helps to stabilize the glucose level naturally.
Papaya is a good food option for diabetics because of its low sugar content. Regular eating of papaya aids in the cure and preventing of diabetes for those who don’t have it.
7. Helps in Weight Loss
Pawpaw helps people who are overweight to lose weight and those that wish to maintain their normal weight because the fiber content in it will always help to make the stomach full and at the same time clear the bowel movement thereby making the body lose some weight.
Therefore don’t forget to always add this fruit papaya to your daily meal if you want to lose weight.
8. Has a Powerful Antioxidant Effects
The seeds of papaya contain three major antioxidants such as vitamins A, C, and E that help in the prevention of health diseases and maintain good heart health.
Antioxidants contained in papayas helps a lot in neutralizing free radicals in your body so that they won’t have any harmful effect.
9. Helps in Wound Healing
Papaya helps in wound healing due to the presence of proteolytic enzymes; chymopapain and papain enzyme which has its highest concentration of papain on the papaya skin so either the papaya skin or everything mashed together improves wound healing.
10. Promotes Hair Growth
Papaya contains vitamin A that is utilized in a compound known as sebum, which helps in keeping the hair smooth
Papayas are good effective fruit that helps in hair growth and maintenance. It helps in keeping your hair shiny, smooth and moisturized. Regular intake of papaya aids in maintaining healthy hair.
11. Helps in Skincare
Papayas are used in many cosmetics; it is known to be a refreshing agent. The papin contained in papaya aids in killing dead cells and cleanse your skin
The useful content and healing enzymes contained in papaya aids in treating irritated skin and sunburn. Papayas aids in fighting free radical that affects your skin. You can try this; by rubbing the peels of papaya on your face and hands,
Papayas help greatly in skin disorders treatment such as psoriasis, eczema and other skin diseases.
12. Good for Pregnant Women
Papaya aids in the development of the fetus in the womb. Papaya contains a lot of nutrients and one of the nutrients that are needed is folate.
Folate is known to be one of the nutrients found in pawpaw fruit that helps the growth of neural networks in the fetus.
Pawpaw fruit is made up of minerals that are very essential for pregnant women and fetuses.
Iron being one of the minerals helps in the formation of blood cells in the fetus and also aids pregnant women not to experience the shortage of blood during pregnancy.
Regular eating of papaya during pregnancy also gives energy due to sugar content found in papayas.
Papaya is an excellent fruit for pregnant women, because of its rich in vitamin C, papaya prevents the body from contracting infections, flu and cold during pregnancy
13. Helps in Eye Care
Papayas are rich in vitamin A and flavonoids such as beta-carotene, cryptoxanthin, zeaxanthin and lutein that aids in keeping the mucous membranes in the eyes healthy and preventing damage from them.
Vitamin A contained in papaya helps greatly in preventing the growth of age-related macular degeneration, thereby reducing the effects of macular degeneration. Regular intake helps in clear vision.
14. Prevents Cancer
Antioxidants, phytonutrients, and flavonoids contained in papaya help in preventing body cells from experiencing free radical damage. Eating of papaya constantly helps in preventing the risk of cancer due to its richness in beta-carotene that protects against prostate cancer and colon cancer growth.
Nutritional Values of Papaya
| Nutrients | Amount |
| Energy | 39 Kcal |
| Carbohydrates | 9.81 g |
| Protein | 0.16g |
| Total fat | 0.14g |
| Cholesterol | 0mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 1.80g |
| Folates | 38mcg |
| Niacin | 0.338mg |
| Pantothenic acid | 0.218mg |
| pyridoxine | 0.019mg |
| Riboflavin | 0.032mg |
| Thiamin | 0.027 |
| Vitamin A | 1094 IU |
| Vitamin C | 61.8mg |
| Vitamin E | 0.73mg |
| Vitamin K | 2.6mcg |
| Sodium | 3mg |
| Potassium | 257mg |
| Calcium | 24mg |
| Iron | 0.10mg |
| Magnesium | 10mg |
| Phosphorus | 5mg |
| Zinc | 0.07mg |
| Carotene-ß | 276 mcg |
| Crypto-xanthin-ß | 761 mcg |
| Lutein-zeaxanthin | 75 mcg |
Papaya seeds
As we have known the great benefit of pawpaw fruit to our health. Its seed has its own benefits to our health also. Papaya seeds contain a lot of nutrients that aids in improving kidney health and also heals the cirrhosis of the liver.
An alkaloid called carpaine that is found in pawpaw seed kills the amoeba parasites and intestine worms. Papin found in the seed also helps in the digestion of protein.
Pawpaw seeds can stop and treat a good number of sicknesses related to the intestine worms, liver guts and can treat diseases like dengue fever. Pawpaw seeds help in fighting infections and treat food poisoning. It aids indigestion.
Pawpaw seeds can be taken raw, ground or crushed in honey or milk. Eating the seed raw can be more effective but not to be taken very frequently.
Papaya leaves
Papaya leaves are also beneficial to our health just like the fruit and the seeds. The leaves are rich in nutrients and phytochemicals that aids in disease treatment. Papaya leaves are known to be one of the effective treatment of dengue fever and high fever.
The leaves contain enzymes that prevent different kinds of cancer and tumors.
The papaya leave juice is so effective in the treatment of cancers of the breasts, liver, lungs, cervix, and pancreas.
It helps in digestion due to the enzymes papain and chymopapain contained in the leave that prevents indigestion, stomach ulcers, and constipation. It helps in treating menstrual disorders.
The phytochemicals present in the leaves aid in promoting hair growth and prevents hair problems like baldness, thinning of hair, itchy scalp and others. Also helps in promoting healthy skin because of its rich in vitamin A and C.
The papaya leaves can be prepared by cutting a fresh papaya leave, wash and allow it to dry; then cut them and put it in a pot of water and allow it to boil gently until the water is reduced to small, then separate the liquid and serve in a glass container.
The papaya leaves can be taken in the form of tea, which can be taken daily for a long time.
Conclusion
Conclusively, papaya is a nutritious fruit with many nutrients such as grams of protein, vitamins, folate, calories, and carbohydrates that contribute to the proper functioning of the body but too much of it can damage the esophagus, reduce fertility in men and increase the rate of menstrual flow in women.
Papaya is best to be eaten in the morning as it contains vitamins A and C, though it can be taken at any time because it is good for the digestive system.
