Benefits of Rambutan Fruit, The Sweet Rich in Vitamin C
The rambutan fruit has a characteristic skin that is like hair. In addition to offering freshness, there are various health benefits possessed by this fruit. Check out the various ingredients and benefits of rambutan fruit in the following review.
Rambutan content
Rambutan ( Nephelium lappaceum ) is a fruit that comes from Southeast Asia, such as Indonesia. If you pay attention, rambutan looks similar to lychee fruit.
Although both are red and taste fresh, rambutan has hair growing on the skin of the fruit, while lychee does not.
In addition, the nutritional and vitamin content in rambutan fruit is also different.
The micro and macronutrient content in 100 grams of rambutan includes:
1. protein: 0,9 gram (g),
2. fat: 0.1 g,
3. carbohydrates: 18.1 g,
4. fiber: 0.8 g,
5. calcium: 16 milligrams (mg),
6. fosfor 16 mg,
7. iron: 0.5 mg,
8. natrium: 16 mg,
9. potassium: 104.2 mg,
10. copper: 0.17 mg,
11. Seng: 0.1 mg,
12. riboflavin (vitamin B2): 0.07 mg,
13. niacin: 0.5 mg, and
14. vitamin C: 58 mg
Not only that, rambutan also has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, and anti-diabetic components.
Benefits of rambutans
The rich nutritional content of this rambutan fruit offers a myriad of benefits that are good for health.
Here are some benefits of rambutan which would be a shame if you miss it.
1. Launching digestion
Rambutan is a type of fruit to improve digestion. The reason is, about half of rambutan fruit contains soluble fiber not water.
That is, this type of fiber does not mix with water and directly passes through the digestive system.
Most of this insoluble fiber goes directly into the digestive system and pushes the stool in the intestines. This will help the stool to be easily removed during bowel movements.
In addition, the content of types of water-soluble fiber in rambutan fruit will be food for good bacteria in the intestines which play a role in keeping digestion healthy.
2. Helps lose weight
Another benefit of rambutan fruit is that it helps you lose weight.
In every 100 grams of rambutan meat contains calories of 75 kcal and 0.8 grams of fiber.
This high fiber and low-calorie content does not contribute to significant weight gain if consumed in reasonable quantities.
Fruits that are rich in fiber make the body feel full longer so that your appetite will be more controlled.
As a result, you will be better able to resist overeating habits that can lead to drastic weight gain.
3. Increase endurance
You can increase your immune system by eating rambutan fruit.
Intake of vitamin C that enters the body encourages the production of white blood cells to strengthen immunity and fight infection.
This efficacy has also been proven through research published in the Virology Journal (2015). The researchers reported that geraniin on rambutan skin has antiviral activity against the dengue virus.
It turns out that these compounds can inhibit the process of attaching the virus and interfere with the initial viral cell interactions.
4. Reducing the risk of diabetes
The benefits of this one fruit are obtained thanks to the geraniin content in the skin of the rambutan. Geraniin is a type of ellagitannin polyphenol that has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
According to research published in Procedia Food Science (2015), rambutan skin can also lower blood sugar levels.
The researchers tried to give the ethanol extract of rambutan skin orally for 11 days to diabetic rats. As a result, the percentage of blood glucose levels decreased by 61.76 percent.
However, these findings require further research because it is unclear whether rambutan peel extract has the same benefits in humans.
5. Helps control blood pressure
Did you know that the high potassium content in rambutan fruit is efficacious in controlling blood pressure?
Every 100 grams of rambutan contains about 104 grams of potassium. Foods high in potassium can help maintain blood pressure within normal limits in various ways, namely:
1. relaxes the walls of blood vessels,
2. good for muscle function, and
3. lower blood pressure.
You can choose foods high in potassium that contain low calories, such as rambutan, to control blood sugar levels.
6. Increase energy
Rambutan fruit contains nutrients needed by the body, one of which is carbohydrates.
Carbohydrates are a source of energy as well as the main intake for the brain to function properly
When you consume carbohydrates, the body will break them down into glucose. Later, this simple sugar will be used by the body as a source of energy.
If not used as energy, the sugar will be stored in the liver as glycogen for future use.
7. Prevent anemia
Iron deficiency can put you at risk for anemia. One way to prevent it is to eat rambutan.
As mentioned above, rambutan contains iron as well as vitamin C. This vitamin C functions to increase the absorption of iron in the body.
In addition, this fruit is usually often recommended for consumption by pregnant women. The reason is, pregnant women tend to be at risk of experiencing iron deficiency because the blood supply is also needed by the fetus.