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

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

The quick model: Sure, you may, says Lauren Manaker, RDN, LD, CLEC, CPT. However that is not the one motive to get pleasure from guava. When absolutely ripe, guava fruit will go from a darkish inexperienced coloration to a lighter, lime-green hue. When it comes to style, ripe guava could be very fragrant and has a considerably delicate candy and tangy taste profile just 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 so much to like about guava, however you might need lingering questions on the best way 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 likely one of the greatest fruits in the marketplace (actually) with regards to their excessive antioxidant and diet 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 full of 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 occasions greater! Orange, who?

2. It comprises plenty of fiber

Guava can be full of tons of gut-loving fiber, which is important 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 may take in fatty acids because it strikes by means of your intestine, which might 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 ensure 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 knowledge suggests lycopene could assist scale back the danger of sure cancers¹. Different knowledge hyperlinks lycopene consumption to a possible profit for males who’re making an attempt to conceive²,” Manaker says. “Lycopene can also play a task in defending pores and skin towards sunburn and UV harm³, contributing to pores and skin well being.” The lycopene in guava can also help your coronary heart well being. “Research recommend {that a} weight loss program excessive in lycopene can enhance cardiovascular well being by decreasing blood stress and LDL levels of cholesterol⁴,” she says.

4. Guava is greater in protein than different fruits

Manaker notes guava is likely one of the prime (if not the highest) fruits highest in protein in the marketplace. Do not anticipate to start out 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 a couple of.

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 quite a lot of their very own well being advantages, she says.

“Wealthy in vitamins resembling 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 full of fiber, Manaker says, making certain that they’ll assist in digestion, promote common bowel actions, and doubtlessly 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 manner 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 needed?

Manaker says that you just need not soak guava seeds earlier than consuming them, though it would make them simpler to digest.“Prepping guava seeds by soaking will not be usually needed, as they’re sufficiently small to be consumed instantly with the fruit,” she says. “Nonetheless, for individuals who discover them troublesome 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 resulting from their fiber content material. For people not used to consuming massive quantities of dietary fiber, this sudden improve could cause digestive points resembling bloating, gasoline, and abdomen ache,” she says. To mitigate this, improve how a lot water you drink (since your physique wants water to assist transfer fiber by means of your system), and steadily improve your fiber consumption so your physique will get used to it.

“Moreover, guavas include fructose, a kind of sugar that some folks discover troublesome to digest. This situation, often known as fructose malabsorption, may end in 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 could cause some challenges for sure folks. “Though small and usually thought of 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 quick medical consideration.

Manaker additionally says people with dental considerations ought to be cautious about consuming guava seeds. “For these with weakened dental well being, the hardness of guava seeds can doubtlessly harm tooth enamel or end in dental fractures, emphasizing the necessity for cautious consumption,” she says. When doubtful, you may all the time attempt mixing guava to reap its well being advantages with out doubtlessly damaging your tooth 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. Nonetheless, 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.

Must poop? Guava to the rescue: