Although the grapefruit diet, which involves eating grapefruit and small amounts of protein, isn't healthy because it is too restrictive and doesn't contain all of the essential nutrients, adding grapefruit to an otherwise healthy diet might help people lose weight, according to Dr. Ken Fujioka of the Scripps Clinic in San Diego. Grapefruit also has other health and nutrition benefits.
Nutrition Facts
Half of a medium grapefruit has only 40 calories. It contains 1 g of protein; 1 g of fiber; 70 percent of the daily value for vitamin C; 4 percent of the daily value for folate, magnesium, thiamine, vitamin A and vitamin B-6; and 2 percent of the daily value for niacin, riboflavin and calcium. It also is a good source of pantothenic acid, or vitamin B-5.
Possible Health Benefits
Consuming grapefruit regularly might help to reduce the risk of heart disease, kidney stones, high cholesterol, stroke and cancer, according to the George Mateljan Foundation. Grapefruit also is high in antioxidants.
Considerations
To gain the most health benefits from antioxidants, people should get them from multiple sources, says Dr. Alan Crozier of the University of Scotland. Consuming lots of grapefruit and grapefruit juice will provide only lots of the antioxidants that are in grapefruit, while other fruits contain different beneficial antioxidants. By mixing up antioxidant sources, it is possible to get a wider range of beneficial antioxidants, possibly leading to more health benefits.
Warning
Grapefruit and grapefruit juice interact with many prescription medications in unpredictable ways, making it dangerous for people to consume grapefruit if they are taking these medications. Interactions exist with some medications used to treat anxiety, depression, psychotic conditions, angina, heart problems, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, convulsions, cancer, erectile dysfunction, HIV, GERD, infection and organ graft rejections, according to a 2009 article on the CBC News website.
Expert Insight
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends consuming at least two to four servings of fruits each day, consuming a variety of fruits and whole fruits more often than juice. One serving of grapefruit is half of a medium fruit or 3/4 cup of 100 percent grapefruit juice.
Member Comments