Guava is one of the tropical super fruits offering high nutrients for your health. The sweetness and softness of the pulp in Guava is also what makes this fruit easy to love. Moreover, guava is treated with less chemicals compared to other nutritious fruit such as apple and grape, making this a better option during the season. Although this tropical fruit is not always sweet, depending on how ripe it is, it always comes with a long list of nutrition your body can reap because it contains these good components like below:
Vitamin A
You can find vitamin A in guava for maintaining your vision’s health. Not only for your vision, is vitamin A also great for the bones and white blood cells. Simply consume a cup of guava and you can give your body 1,030 vitamin A in international units.
Vitamin C
Raw guava is typically sour, but that is why this is rich in vitamin C, with 377 milligrams from only one cup. Vitamin C itself is very important for your body as it is helpful in absorbing iron while preventing from cancer since this is also a kind of antioxidant. As an antioxidant, vitamin C can fight the free radicals and protect your body cell from environmental damage.
Carbohydrate
The content of carbohydrate and fiber in guava is quite in a high amount. While carbohydrate might not be good if consumed too much, the fiber can be helpful for maintaining your digestive system since this can’t be digested and it keeps your appetite in control. It can be helpful if you are on a diet. The amount of fiber is around 20 percent of the recommended daily intake. However, the carbohydrate content is much higher with 24 grams for every one cup compared to fiber that is available for about 8 grams. Still, this tropical fruit is a good option to fill your body with the calories required.
B-Complex
B-complex vitamins play an important role in producing energy by helping the cells in your body performing chemical reactions. Niacin is one of the B-Complex vitamins can be found in guava and it can support the health of your nervous system. This type of B-Complex is available around 1.8 milligrams in one cup. 744 micrograms of B-5, which is great in balancing the hormone in your body, is another type of B-Complex contained in guava. One more B-Complex type is B-6 vitamin that your body can take in 182 micrograms. This vitamin supports the red blood cells synthesis.
Minerals
Guava comes with a completed package of nutrients because it contains vitamin C that can help your body absorb iron better, while the iron itself is also there to absorb. So you don’t need to consume two different fruits, simply eat a cup of guava you can get both vitamin C, the absorber, and the iron, the mineral. Iron is needed for transporting oxygen in your body. Along with iron, calcium is another mineral to find, which is important for the health of your bone. Other minerals can be found in guava are potassium, manganese, magnesium, zinc, phosphorus and selenium.
Guava Benefits for Health
- Treating Diarrhea
Guava benefits for diarrhea already proven around the world, this disease happens when your bowel is loosened. This condition can be treated using astringents, which can be found in high mount in guava. By binding up the loosened bowel, some symptoms of diarrhea can be relieved. Also, astringents can make your gum and mouth fresh and tight. You can feel the freshness after chewing raw guava or guava leaves.
Containing antibacterial properties, astringents can help maintaining the health of your mouth. These properties are also effective in inhibiting the growth of microbial causing dysentery. Diarrhea treatment using guava is more completed as the potassium, vitamin V and carotenoids can make the digestive system stronger.
- Losing Weight
Super effective health benefits of guava is fore lose your weight and prevent obesity. Guava can be used as a healthy snack for dieters as it is zero cholesterol, low digestible carbohydrates and packed with fiber, minerals and vitamins. Eating guava would provide your body the required nutrients without adding too much carbohydrate while keeping your stomach full. To make this fruit healthier, choose raw guava, which contains less sugar than other super fruits such as apples, grapes and even oranges. You can eat it between meals to keep you energized until your lunch or dinner.
Unfortunately, not only losing weight, guava can also help you gain weight especially for thin people because the richness of nutrients helping your body have a better nutrition absorption by boosting the metabolism.
- Preventing Cancer
The reason why guava is great in preventing cancer is because its richness in lycopene and vitamin C. lycopene is a kind of powerful antioxidant, which is effective in lowering the risk of prostate cancer according to some studies as this is containing anti-cancer and anti-tumor properties. The amount of vitamin C in guava is very rich, even richer than oranges, which is for long known as the powerhouse of vitamin C.
This vitamin also acts as antioxidants that can be helpful in boosting your immune system for more protection from free radicals. Cancer is frequently caused by free radicals, so providing the protection from them is the same as lowering the risk of cancer. More than the fruit, guava leaf can also reduce the growth of cancerous cells. Some studies have shown that the leaf is even more effective than the medicines used in modern cancer treatment. The fiber in guava is also good for cleaning toxins from the colon, maintain its health and prevent colon cancer.
- Controlling Diabetes
Being rich in fiber, guava is good for controlling diabetes. Fiber can help your body absorb reduce sugar absorption so that the blood sugar level can be regulated. Also, this fruit is also low in glycemic index, which is great in inhibiting sudden sugar levels spike.
The vitamin C content in guava can also manage diabetes as it keeps your body flushing regularly. Diabetic people are mostly obesity and eating guava will help them lose some weight without adding fat and calories. Moreover, the antioxidant properties can boost the immune system leading up with a perfect combination.
- Relieving Cough and Cold
Guava is a natural cough and cold medicine. The astringent properties in guava can loosen the cough, reduce mucus and inhibit microbial causing the cough and cold. Also, vitamin C is very important for relieving cough and cold as it is effective in preventing the viral infections.
For curing cough and cold, you shouldn’t eat ripe guava, but go with the raw one. Make a combination of raw guava and guava leave and turn it into juice would effectively reducing the symptoms.
- Addressing Constipation
Both the flesh and seeds of guava can treat constipation since the flesh contains fiber and the seeds provide laxative agents. This combination can maintain the health of your bowel movement while cleaning the excretory system and intestines. The health of your body is mostly controlled by the digestive system and this is why constipation is said to lead to other seventy two types of ailments. By ensuring your digestion work properly, you can prevent other ailments coming. Consuming guava can maintain your digestive system health without having to put too much effort. You don’t have to put away the seeds, just eat them along with the flesh and get the benefits for your digestion.
- Regulating Blood Pressure
With zero cholesterol and rich fiber, guava is a good fruit to consume for regulating high blood pressure. Fiber plays an important role in reducing blood pressure since it can quickly turn into sugar. Also, the balancing heart beat affects the smooth blood flow in your body and this can be helped using potassium, which can be found in guava. This is more supported by vitamin C in keeping the blood vessels healthy, so the blood pressure can be well regulated.
- Improving Immune System
Vitamin C plays a very important role in improving immune system, but unfortunately, it is not orange that contains an extremely high level of vitamin C, but guava is. You can four times higher level of vitamin C in guava compared to orange. So simply eating one guava in medium size a day has given you two times of the recommended vitamin C daily intake.
Vitamin C is required by your body as it can provide protection from infections. It is important to consume vitamin C daily as it is soluble and flushed easily. Restoring the flushed vitamin C can be done by eating a guava a day, so it is very easy and natural.
- Supporting Healthy Heart
Heart disease is closely related with high blood pressure or hypertension. When the blood pressure is well regulated, heart disease can be prevented too. The amount of potassium is helpful in maintaining normal blood pressure while improving good cholesterol levels in the body.
- Boosting Brain Health
As has been mentioned above that guava is containing niacin and B6 vitamins, this fruit is very appropriate for supporting brain’s health. B6 is required by your brain to improve its function. Those vitamins can maintain the proper blood circulation to your brain resulting in relaxed nerves and sharpened focus.
- Relaxing Nervous
If you are tired of working hard in the office, get a glass of guava juice can be a great treatment for relaxing your muscles and nerves. The high level of magnesium in guava can make your nerves calmer resulting in a more relaxing feeling in your mind and body. It can help boosting your energy after feeling exhausted.
- Improving Nutrition Absorption
Getting all the good nutrients from foods that you eat is very important because the purpose of eating is more than just keeping your stomach full, but it is also about providing enough nutrients for your body to keep every organ and cell work properly. Guavas have a long list of nutrients including Manganese. This mineral is helpful in supporting better nutrient absorption in your body making the healthy foods that you eat can be taken properly.
- Maintaining Eye Health
Eye health is always connected with consuming carrot since this vegetable is known for its vitamin A content, but guava is also rich in vitamin A, which can help preventing some eye disorders. This is a great option for those who don’t like the taste of carrots since guavas are easier to eat, sweeter and softer.
- Preventing Scurvy
Vitamin C plays very important role for your body especially for boosting the immune system. This is why lacking of vitamin C can lead to a condition called Scurvy, where the sufferers can lose their appetite, feel pain in the bones, get fever, lose some weight, suffer bleeding gums, feel irritable and many others. don’t let your body suffering from vitamin C deficiency by keeping this vitamin fulfilled. Consuming guava is a great idea to prevent this disease from coming or curing it if you already experienced this health issue.
- Relieving Toothache
Relieving toothache using guava leaves is an effective natural remedy. They contain astringent that can reduce the symptoms, leaving you with a better feeling. Also, you can consume the fruit to treat swollen or bleeding gums, which are some causes of toothache. So if you have some problems in the gums, drink guava juice to prevent toothache from happening or relieving the sores if it has happened.
Guava Benefits for Beauty
- Slowing Down Aging Signs
The first benefits of guava for beauty is for antiaging agent. The richness of antioxidants in guava with the existence of potassium and vitamin A, B, C. these nutrients are perfect properties for neutralizing free radicals, which can make your skin aging faster. You might not free from the aging signs since they can come naturally as you are older, but you can prevent them from happening too early. Moreover, guava contains lycopene that serves as toxin protector so that the healthy cells won’t get damage and cause premature aging signs to come up.
- Addressing Skin Problems
The high level of vitamin C in guava is excellent for your skin health as it plays an important role in collagen generation. Collagen is highly required by skin since it acts as the firmer that keeps your skin young. This super fruit also contains vitamin K that can prevent your skin from irritation and redness by improving your blood coagulation. In the other word, your dark circles can be properly treated too.
- Hydrating Skin
To keep your skin hydrated, you need to drink plenty of water a day. Support it by eating guava would make your skin even more hydrated. Dry skin leads to several problems, so you need to provide enough water and guava can help you providing it with its 81 percent water contained in the fruit.
- Improving Complexion
Your skin complexion can be improved by using guava as a face scrub. Combine mashed guava flesh and an egg yolk to scrub your face and leave it there for about 20 minutes before rinsing with warm water. You can do this natural scrubbing once or twice in a week to improve your skin complexion as the scrubs can remove the dead skin cells. As a result, your skin will be fresher and more radiant.
- Toning Skin
Tone your skin with guava is very easy to do as it is packed with many kinds of minerals and vitamins. Many toners at the market are containing astringents and you can find them naturally in guava. Not only protecting your skin from some common problems like pimples and blemishes, guava can also tighten your skin and enhance the texture. Brew some guava leaves and raw guava to use the decoction for washing your face can serve your skin a perfect, natural toner.
- Treating Blackheads and Dark spots
Removing dark spots can be very frustrating, but you can find the solution from guava, not the fruit, but the leaves. Eat the fruit and mash the leaves to create a paste. Make it smooth enough to apply to your dark spots and even acne to cure them and get them away. Do this regularly daily to get the best result. For the blackheads, you also need the fruit combined with the leaves and little water. Make a scrub using this combination and apply it to your nose or anywhere you find blackheads appeared.
- Providing UV Protection
The amount of lycopene in guava is high enough, with around 2.9 grams. As a kind of antioxidant, lycopene provides protection for your skin from UV rays. UV rays exposure has been long known leading to some skin damage, so protecting it can keep your skin healthier.
- Curing Acne
fighting with acne is frustrating, but sometimes the remedy is as simple as drinking a glass of guava juice. The astringent in guava is helpful in addressing many skin problems including acne, so you don’t have to worry dealing with that annoying thing. Not only the fruit, the leaves are also great in curing acne with its vitamin C content.
- Combatting Hair Fall
The richness of vitamin C in guava is good for supporting the growth of your healthy hair. With healthier hair, hair loss problem is surely easy to handle. Guava can be used as a good prevention from hair fall, but if you already suffered from this, then you can use the leaves as the natural remedy. Just boil some of them with water about one liter and let it boiled for 20 minutes. Leave the water to cool down, strain and apply it to the roots and scalp for supporting the hair growth and stopping the hair fall.
- Reducing Allergic Reactions
Crushing some guava leaves and apply it to your allergic problem on the skin can reduce the symptoms. Mostly allergic problem comes with itchiness and once this remedy applied, the feeling could be better. Not only allergic reactions, itchiness caused by insect bites have the same effect if properly treated with crushed guava leaves.
Guava Side Effects
Guava is not commonly used as medicines since this fruit is just treated as a healthy, nutritious food to consume. So, severe side effects of consuming guava are still unknown. The most obvious side effect can happen to pregnant women as eating too much guavas can lead to diarrhea. So there should be limitation in consuming guavas during pregnancy. Also, guava is best consumed in its natural form, in a kind of whole fruit since it is still packed with the carried nutrients. Whether you are pregnant or not, guavas shouldn’t be overeaten since it is rich in vitamin C in fiber. Moreover, there is no food in this world you can overeat, so count how much you should eat it and stop when you have enough.
Tips Consuming Guava
- Just Eat
The simplest and easiest way to eat guava is just eat it directly. You don’t even have to peel the skin since it also contains vitamin C. just wash it properly, slice and eat. You can even just bite it because all parts from the skin to the seeds are nutritious. So if you don’t want to spend a lot of time and energy to be healthy, this is one of the solutions.
- Turn into Juice
If you don’t like chewing guava with its crunchy seeds, then just put it in your blender and turn into juice. You can add sugar if necessary, but this will make it less healthy. Guavas can be very creamy if you add just little water, but you can leave it that way if you like its creamy texture. However, you should filter the juice to remove the hard seeds before enjoying this fresh, healthy juice.
- Make into Jelly
A more interesting way consuming guava is by making it into jelly. You don’t need to use pectin since it is already containing pectin. Just use half ripe guavas and turn them into juice, the combine the juice with other fruits with low pectin. This jelly would be healthy and tasty. Not only jelly, you can even use guava for making jams or butters.
- Combine with Lemonade
To make your guava more refreshing, combine lemon juice, guava pulp, sugar syrup and lemon juice. You need to peel eight guavas, cut them and add four teaspoons of lemon juice and a little sugar syrup depending on how much you want it to be sweet. Blend it all together and put it in a bottle. Whenever you want to drink your guava juice, take a teaspoon of your juice and mix it with half bottle of lemonade and some ice cubes. Enjoy this refreshing drink and get the nutrition.
When the season comes, get some guavas and enjoy them in many different ways to get the benefits for your health and beauty. This tropical fruit is very easy to consume and it is extremely nutritious.