Fruit Diet Benefits

Fruit Diet Benefits
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Fruits are filled with nutrients that help the body defend itself against disease. This is very good news if you consume a lot of fruit, but according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the majority of the people should be eating more fruit to give their body the quantity advised. Eating more delicious fruit is not the only benefit that comes with following a fruit diet.

Health Enhancing Fiber

Fruits are a good source of fiber. Fiber contributes to normal bowel function and is helpful in improving diverticulosis. Fiber in fruit also assists in lowering cholesterol in the blood, and it can help decrease your chance of developing cardiovascular disease, states MyPyramid.gov. Dietary fiber may help keep your appetite at bay since fiber in your diet makes you feel full. A fruit diet may also help prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes. Apples and pears are two kinds of fruit that contain a significant amount of fiber, but other fruits contain fiber as well.

Health Promoting Potassium

Many fruits are a good source of potassium, and potassium intake sharpens your mind by assisting in transporting oxygen to your brain. Besides enhancing mental function, potassium also offers protection against strokes and hypertension, and this mineral helps the muscles in your body function better. When your body does not get enough potassium, you may start to feel blue and irritable. Beneficial fruit sources of potassium include kiwis, bananas, peaches, prunes, apricots, cantaloupe and honeydew.

Protective Vitamin C

Fruit contains vitamin C, which boosts immunity and helps prevent infections. Vitamin C is also responsible for mending wounds and keeping the teeth and gums in good shape. According to Linda Page, author of "Linda Page's Healthy Healing," vitamin C is considered an antioxidant that protects the body from damage caused by free radicals. It promotes healthy skin as well. Excellent fruit sources of vitamin C include oranges, kiwi, strawberries, grapefruit and mangoes.

Healthy Pregnancy Folic Acid

Folic, acid found in oranges, is a B vitamin that helps protect babies from being born with spina bifida when the mother has enough of this vitamin in her system before she conceives and while she carries her unborn child. Spina bifida is a serious birth defect of the spine that often damages nerves and results in partial immobility. This is one benefit that comes with eating oranges on a fruit diet.

References

Article reviewed by MER Last updated on: Sep 2, 2010

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