Guava Has 4 Times More Vitamin C Than Oranges—Here’s How a Dietitian Recommends Eating It

There is a cause why people have engineered seedless grapes and watermelons: the seeds in fruit will be fairly unappetizing. Relying on the fruit, seeds can typically be tremendous exhausting and tough to eat (or technically edible however not nice to eat). However some fruits disguise the most effective of their advantages inside their seeds. It is true of pomegranates (these beautiful crimson arils are literally seeds!) in addition to many tropical fruits like papaya and fervour fruit. However what about guava, the crown jewel of tropical fruit? Are you able to eat guava seeds?

The brief model: Sure, you may, says Lauren Manaker, RDN, LD, CLEC, CPT. However that is not the one cause to take pleasure in guava. When totally ripe, guava fruit will go from a darkish inexperienced shade to a lighter, lime-green hue. When it comes to style, ripe guava may be very fragrant and has a considerably gentle candy and tangy taste profile much like papaya, strawberry, and pear. The within flesh of the fruit is a cross between the feel of a ripe banana and a crunchy apple—pink guava variations can have a vibrant pink flesh due to carotenoids.

There’s quite a bit to like about guava, however you may need lingering questions on learn how to eat these seeds (and why, for the skeptics on the market). Preserve studying for all the solutions.

What are the well being advantages of guava?

Taste apart, guava is among the greatest fruits available on the market (actually) in terms of their excessive antioxidant and vitamin content material. Manaker calls it “a powerhouse of vitamins.” She says consuming guava comes with a bevy of well being advantages that help immune, pores and skin, and coronary heart well being (and extra).

1. Guava is filled with vitamin C

“It is a pure supply of vitamin C, containing greater than what you discover in oranges, which helps immune well being and pores and skin well being,” Manaker says. For context, you get 53 milligrams of vitamin C in a 100-gram serving of orange. In the meantime, an equal quantity of guava comprises a whopping 228 milligrams of vitamin C—that is 4 instances increased! Orange, who?

2. It comprises plenty of fiber

Guava can be filled with tons of gut-loving fiber, which is essential for wholesome digestion. “Guavas are a supply of dietary fiber, aiding in digestion and selling common bowel actions,” Manaker says. The soluble fiber in guava can even take in fatty acids because it strikes via your intestine, which may help scale back ldl cholesterol and hold your coronary heart wholesome. One guava has about three grams of fiber, per the USDA—getting you midway to your aim of getting six grams of fiber per meal. Simply be sure to complement that with different fiber-rich meals.

3. It’s wealthy in antioxidants like lycopene

Apart from its intestine well being advantages, guava is an effective supply of highly effective antioxidants like lycopene. “Some information suggests lycopene could assist scale back the danger of sure cancers¹. Different information hyperlinks lycopene consumption to a possible profit for males who’re attempting to conceive²,” Manaker says. “Lycopene might also play a task in defending pores and skin towards sunburn and UV injury³, contributing to pores and skin well being.” The lycopene in guava might also help your coronary heart well being. “Research recommend {that a} food plan excessive in lycopene can enhance cardiovascular well being by decreasing blood strain and LDL levels of cholesterol⁴,” she says.

4. Guava is increased in protein than different fruits

Manaker notes guava is among the prime (if not the highest) fruits highest in protein available on the market. Do not count on to begin bulking up on guava alone although; a 100-gram serving of the fruit comprises 2.55 grams of protein, per the USDA. (Fruits, as a rule, have a tendency to not have that a lot protein in comparison with different meals.) Different high-protein fruits embrace avocados (two grams of protein per 100-grams), bananas (one gram of protein per 100-grams), and jackfruit (1.72 grams of protein per 100-grams), to call just a few.

Are you able to eat guava seeds?

Sure, you may eat guava seeds, says Manaker. (No want to select them out—and it is okay to swallow guava seeds.) And actually, all of us ought to eat the entire fruit, together with the seeds, since they’ve plenty of their very own well being advantages, she says.

“Wealthy in vitamins reminiscent of vitamin C, dietary fiber, and antioxidants, these seeds contribute not solely to the fruit’s well being advantages, but additionally to [guava’s] distinctive texture,” Manaker says. The seeds are notably filled with fiber, Manaker says, guaranteeing that they’ll support in digestion, promote common bowel actions, and probably scale back the danger of constipation. In the meantime, she explains that the antioxidants within the seeds assist scale back oxidative stress and irritation within the physique. Both method you select to eat them—guava seeds or not—this fruit is a good supply of a number of key vitamins that help general well-being. #TeamGuavaSeeds

Is soaking guava seeds vital?

Manaker says that you simply need not soak guava seeds earlier than consuming them, though it’d make them simpler to digest.“Prepping guava seeds by soaking shouldn’t be sometimes vital, as they’re sufficiently small to be consumed instantly with the fruit,” she says. “Nevertheless, for many who discover them tough to digest or chew, soaking may make the method simpler, softening the seeds and making them much less of a problem to swallow.”

Why does my abdomen damage after consuming guava?

For some people, Manaker says that the excessive quantities of fiber present in guava fruit and seeds may trigger an upset abdomen. “Consuming guavas can generally result in abdomen discomfort as a result of their fiber content material. For people not used to consuming massive quantities of dietary fiber, this sudden enhance may cause digestive points reminiscent of bloating, fuel, and abdomen ache,” she says. To mitigate this, enhance how a lot water you drink (since your physique wants water to assist transfer fiber via your system), and steadily enhance your fiber consumption so your physique will get used to it.

“Moreover, guavas include fructose, a kind of sugar that some folks discover tough to digest. This situation, often known as fructose malabsorption, can even lead to belly discomfort after consuming fruits excessive in fructose, like guavas,” Manaker provides.

That mentioned, consuming guava carefully shouldn’t be a trigger for concern for most people.

What are the results of consuming guava seeds?

In some restricted circumstances, consuming guava seeds may cause some challenges for sure folks. “Though small and customarily thought-about protected to ingest, guava seeds can, in uncommon circumstances, result in intestinal blockage, notably in people with pre-existing digestive points,” Manaker says. She explains that signs of a possible obstruction embrace extreme belly ache, vomiting, and constipation, which might require fast medical consideration.

Manaker additionally says people with dental considerations must be cautious about consuming guava seeds. “For these with weakened dental well being, the hardness of guava seeds can probably injury tooth enamel or lead to dental fractures, emphasizing the necessity for cautious consumption,” she says. When unsure, you may at all times strive mixing guava to reap its well being advantages with out probably damaging your enamel on the seeds.

What number of guavas do you have to eat a day?

For optimum well being advantages, Manaker suggests consuming roughly one to 2 guavas per day. Nevertheless, she urges people to be aware of extreme sugar consumption relying on what else you eat all through the day. There’s about 9 grams of sugar per 100-gram serving of guava.

Have to poop? Guava to the rescue: