Cherry fruit nutrition facts

Wonderfully delicious, cherry fruit is packed with full of health-benefiting nutrients and unique antioxidants. Cherries are native to Eastern Europe and Asia Minor regions.

Botanically, the fruit is a “drupe” (stone fruit), belonging to the broad rosaceae family of small tree fruits in the genus, prunus. Some of common “drupe” family fruits are plums, peaches, apricots etc. Although several species of cherries exist, two popular cultivars are wild or sweet cherry and sour or tart cherry. While wild or sweet cherry belongs to the species; prunus avium, tart cherry belongs to that of prunus cerasus.

Cherries are drupe fruits with central “stony-hard” seed surrounded fleshy fruit measuring 2 cm in diameter. Externally the fruits have bright "shiny" red or purple color with very thin skin.

The West Indian cherry fruit known as aserola (Malpighia emarginata) is native to West Indian islands and grown in Mexico, Texas regions in North America. Acerola belongs to tropical fruit-bearing shrub or small tree in the family Malpighiaceae and contain 2-3 small seeds. Acerola contain exceptionally high levels of vitamin-C and vitamin-A than North American and European cherries.

Health benefits of cherry fruit

• Cherries are one of the very low calorie fruits; yet are rich source of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals. Both sweet as well as tart Cherries are packed with numerous health benefiting compounds that are essential for wellbeing.
• Cherries are pigment rich fruits. These pigments are in fact polyphenolic flavonoid compounds known as anthocyanin glycosides. Anthocyanins are red, purple or blue pigments found in many fruits and vegetables, especially concentrated in their skin, known to have powerful anti-oxidant properties.
• Scientific studies have shown that anthocyanins in the cherries are found to act like anti-inflammatory agents by blocking the actions of cycloxygenase-1 and 2 enzymes. Thus consumption of cherries has potential health effects against chronic painful episodes such as gout arthritis, fibromyalgia (painful muscle condition) and sports injuries.
• Research studies also suggest that tart cherries are help body to fight against cancers, aging and neurological diseases and pre-diabetes.
• Cherry fruits are very rich in stable anti-oxidant melatonin. Melatonin can cross the blood-brain barrier easily and produces soothing effects on the brain neurons, calming down nervous system irritability, which helps relieve neurosis, insomnia and headache conditions.
• They are also good source of minerals such as potassium, iron, zinc, copper and manganese. Potassium is a heart-healthy mineral; an important component of cell and body fluids that regulate heart rate and blood pressure.
• The fruits, especially tart cherries are exceptionally rich in many health promoting flavonoid poly phenolic anti-oxidants such as lutein, zeaxanthin and beta carotene. These compounds act as protective scavengers against harmful free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS) that play a role in aging, cancers and various disease processes.
• Anti-inflammatory property of cherries has been found effective in reducing heart disease risk factors by scavenging action against free radicals.
• Acerola or West Indian cherry has exceptionally very high levels of vitamin-C (1677.6 mg per 100 g or 2796 % of RDA) and vitamin-A (767 IU per 100 g).

  

Selection and storage

Cherry fruit season lasts from May end until August in the United States. Fresh ripe cherries have short shelf life. In the store, choose cherries that have bright, shiny skin with green stalk firmly attached to the top of the fruit.

Keep fresh cherries in the refrigerator. Whenever you wish to eat them, just rinse cherries in lukewarm water to remove dust and to bring them to room temperature. Then, gently pat dry with soft cloth to remove moisture.

Preparation and Serving method

To prepare cherry, remove the stalk, wash them gently in cold water, and pat dry in soft cloth. Ripe ones can be eaten as a whole including skin to get the maximum benefits.

Sweet cherries are being used in several recipes,

• Sweet cherries can be eaten all alone.
• In fruit cocktail made with cherry, peach, pineapple, pear and grape.
• As fruit salad with peach, pear, apricot and pineapple.
• Add dried cherries infruitcakes, bread, and cookie.
• Use them in desserts, pie fillings and toaster Pastries.

Tart cherries are mainly used in the preparation of sauce, pie fillings, jams, muffins and cheese cakes. Tart cherry fruit juice concentrate is a favorite refreshing drink among athletes and various sports personnel. Dried tart cherries make delicious additions to meals and snacks.

Grapes nutrition facts

Grapes, “queen of the fruits” are storehouse of numerous health promoting phyto-nutrients such as poly-phenolic antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. So, include them in your regular diet, be it in the form of fresh fruits, juice or in salads!

Botanically, they are small round berries; grow in clusters on a perennial and deciduous woody vine of the genus: Vitis. Grapes are native to Europe and Mediterranean regions but now widely cultivated all over the planet.

In structure, each individual berry features semi-translucent flesh encased by a smooth thin skin. Some contain edible seeds, while others are seedless. The color of the fruit is due to the presence of poly-phenolic pigments in them. Red or purple berries are rich in anthocyanins while white-green berries contain more of tannins especially, catechin. Interestingly, these antioxidant compounds are densely concentrated in the skin and seeds!

There are three main species of grapes, European (Vitis vinifera), North American (Vitis labrusca and Vitis rotundifolia) and French hybrids.

• Some of popular green cultivars are Thompson seedless, sugarone and calmeria.
• Red varieties include emperor, red globe, cardinal, and flame seedless.
• Concord and zinfandel are some of flavorful blue-black cultivars.

Commercially, many cultivars of grapes are grown for different purposes either eaten as table fruit, fresh or dried (raisin, currant, sultana) or in wine production.

Health benefits of grapes

• Grapes are rich in polyphenolic phytochemical compound resveratrol. Resveratrol is one of powerful anti-oxidant, which has been found to play protective function against cancers of colon and prostate, coronary heart disease (CHD), degenerative nerve disease, Alzheimer's disease and viral/ fungal infections.
• Resveratrol reduces stroke risk by altering the molecular mechanisms in the blood vessels. It does so firstly by reducing susceptibility of blood vessels damage through decreased activity of angiotensin (a systemic hormone causing blood vessel constriction that would otherwise elevate blood pressure) and secondly, through increased production of the vasodilator substance, nitric oxide (a beneficial compound that causes relaxation of blood vessels).
• Anthocyanins are another class of polyphenolic anti-oxidants present abundantly in the red grapes. These phyto-chemicals have been found to have anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, as well as anti-cancer activities.
• Catechins, a type of flavonoid tannin group of anti-oxidants found in white/green varieties has also shown to have these health protecting functions.
• In addition, the berries are very low in calories. 100 g fresh grapes just provide 69 calories but zero cholesterol levels.
• Grapes are rich source of micronutrient minerals like copper, iron and manganese. Copper and manganese are an essential co-factor of antioxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase. Iron is specially concentrated more in raisins. In addition 100 g of fresh grapes contain about 191 mg of health benefiting electrolyte, potassium.
• They are also good source of vitamin-C, vitamin A, vitamin K, carotenes, B-complex vitamins such as pyridoxine, riboflavin, and thiamin.

Selection and storage

Fresh grapes are available all around the seasons. In the store, choose those that feature plump in consistency, free from surface wrinkles with intact skin, without any cuts or cracks or leaking juice, and firmly attached to a healthy-looking green stem. Lift completely healthy-looking bunch up in the air and gently shake; loose berries, if any will fall off easily.

Buy exactly ripened berries; green grapes should have a slight yellowish hue, red types should be mostly pinkish-red, while purple and blue-black types should be deep and rich in color.

Since the fruit tend to spoil early and ferment at room temperature, they should always be stored in the refrigerator. Loosely wrap washed grapes in a paper towel and place them in a zip pouch bag set at high relative humidity. This way, they will keep fresh in the refrigerator for several days.

Preparation and serving method

Just before eating, wash the whole bunch to remove any pesticide residues and dust by rinsing in cold water for several minutes. Place the whole bunch in cold water and gently swish them around several times. Gently pat dry with soft cloth.

If you are not going to consume the whole bunch at one go, then separate it into small clusters using scissors. This way, you can keep the remaining grapes fresher by preventing the stem from drying out.

Although, its seeds are rich in nutrients, seedless grapes make recipes much more pleasant to eat. 

Here are some serving tips;

• Enjoy them as they are without any additions.
• Add seedless berries in fruit/vegetable salads with peach, pear, tomato, lettuce, apricot , berries, currants, apple, pineapple etc.
• Dry grapes (raisin, currant, and sultana) are being used in confectionary, puddings, cakes, muffins, bread etc.
• The fruit can also being used by food industry in the preparation of jams, jellies, juice and wine.

Banana fruit nutrition facts

Go for banana fruit, nature's own energy rich food that comes in a safety envelope! Fresh, delicious bananas are available year around and are very cheap. Botanically, the fruit belongs to the family of Musaceae. Commercially, it is one of the widely cultivated crops in the tropical and subtropical zones.

Scientific name: Musa acuminata colla.

 

Banana is a perennial herbaceous plant that develops from underground rhizome. It flourishes well under tropical moisture-rich, humid low-lying farmlands. The whole plant is a false stem (pseudostem) consisting of broad leaves and their petioles overlapping around each other in a circular fashion standing up to 2 to 6 meters tall from the ground surface depending upon the cultivar types. At maturity, the rhizome gives rise to flower (inflorescence) that is carried up on a long smooth un-branched stem through the centre of the pseudo-stem emerging out at the top in the centre of the leaf cluster. The flower subsequently develops to hanging bunch consisting of 3 to 20 hands (tiers), each with at least 5-10 fingers (fruits) in each hand (tier). Banana plant or plantain bears hanging clusters of fruits as bunch. Fruits are arranged in tiers, with 6-20 fruits in each tier.

There are several cultivars of banana grown with different size (4”-9”inch), color (yellow to brown), weight (70-150g) and taste. Structurally, fruit has a protective outer skin and delicious, sweet and tart, creamy white color edible flesh inside.

 Plantains are other cultivars types, more often used as cooking bananas. They are closely related to the familiar fruit banana or dessert banana. Plantains are used as a staple diet in Thailand, Laos, and other Southeast Asian as well as in many parts of tropical African and Caribbean regions.

   

Health benefits of banana fruit

• Banana fruit is rich in calories, but very low in fats. The fruit contains good amounts of health benefiting anti-oxidants, minerals, and vitamins.
• Banana pulp is composed of soft, easily digestible flesh with simple sugars like fructose and sucrose that when eaten replenishes energy and revitalizes the body instantly; thus, for these qualities, bananas are being used by athletes to get instant energy and as supplement food in the treatment plan for underweight children.
• The fruit contains good amount of soluble dietary fiber (7% of DRA per 100 g) that helps normal bowel movements; thereby reducing constipation problems.
• It contains many health promoting flavonoid poly-phenolic antioxidants such as lutein, zeaxanthin, beta and alpha carotenes in small amounts. These compounds help act as protective scavengers against oxygen-derived free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS) that play a role in aging and various disease processes.
• It is also a very good source of vitamin-B6 (pyridoxine), provides about 28% of daily-recommended allowance. Pyridoxine is an important B-complex vitamin that has beneficial role in the treatment of neuritis, anemia, and decreasing homocystine (one of the causative factor for coronary artery disease (CHD) and stroke episodes) levels in the body.
• The fruit is also good source of vitamin-C (about 8.7 mg per 100g). Consumption of foods rich in vitamin-C helps body develop resistance against infectious agents and scavenge harmful oxygen free radicals.
• Fresh bananas provide adequate levels of minerals like copper, magnesium, and manganese. Magnesium is essential for bone strengthening and has cardiac-protective role as well.  Manganese is used by the body as a co-factor for the antioxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase. Copper is required in the production of red blood cells.
• Fresh banana is a very rich source of potassium. 100 g fruit provides 358 mg potassium. Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids that helps control heart rate and blood pressure, countering bad effects of sodium.

Selection and storage

Once ripened, bananas are very fragile and start decaying in short time. In the field, bananas are usually harvested while they are green as it is easy to transport when the fruits are raw and firm.

 In order to ripen, they are usually subjected to ethylene or kept in close proximity with other ripened fruits. In the stores, choose banana fruits based on when you want to use them; greener ones last for more days, while yellow and brown-spotted bananas should be eaten in a few days.

Ready to eat bananas should be quite firm, bright yellow in color and emanate rich fragrance, and the skin should be peeled off easily. Ripened, fresh bananas are nutritionally enriched and sweeter in taste.

Avoid mushy or damaged bananas, as they are un-appealing.

Preparation and Serving methods

• Bananas comes with nature gifted protective outer layer of skin, therefore are less likely contaminated by germs and dust.
• Just remove the peel and enjoy!
• Banana fruit sections are a great addition to the fruit salads.
• Fresh "banana-milkshake" with sugar syrup is a delicious drink.
• Bananas have also been used in the making of fruit jams.
• Banana fritters can be served with ice cream as well.
• Banana chips are a snack produced from dehydrated or fried banana or plantain slices.
• Mash ripe banana fruits and add to cakes, casseroles, muffins, bread pudding etc.
• Plantain is raw unripe banana that is used as vegetable in recipes.

 Safety profile

Banana fruits are sometimes known to cause skin and systemic allergic reactions. In "oral allergy syndrome" which causes itching and swelling in the mouth or throat within hours after ingestion and is related to birch tree and other pollen allergies.

The other type of reaction is related to latex allergies and causes urticaria and potentially serious gastrointestinal symptoms like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.

Blueberries nutrition facts

Sweet, juicy blueberries are rich in natural pigment anti-oxidant, pro-anthocyanidins. The small round blue-purple berries have long been attributed to the longevity and wellness of indigenous natives around arctic regions of Northern hemisphere.

Botanically, the plant is a deciduous shrub belonging to the family of Ericaceae, of the genus: Vaccinium.

Broadly, vaccinium species are classified according to their growth habit as high-bush and low-bush berries.

High-bush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) is an erect deciduous shrub with many stems. It grows to 10-12 feet tall in cultivated farms and bears clusters of small, cream-white flowers during spring, which subsequently convert to fruits after about 2 months. In the wild, high bush blueberry is found on the edges of marshes, lakes, ponds, and streams. Rabbiteye blueberry (Vaccinium virgatum, also known as V. ashei.) is medium sized shrubs grow naturally in South Eastern parts of USA.

Low-bush blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium) is short, erect plant grow about a one-two feet in height and spread by underground rhizomes. In cultivated farms, it is grown as two-year cycle crop since the whole plant is either mowed down or burnt to allow new shoots to appear only during next season.

Both species require well-drained sandy, acidic soil to flourish. This berry shrub prefers open sunny conditions and intolerant to shade. In general, the berries are ready to harvest when the green- pink berries turn completely blue, juicy and sweeter. Traditionally, blue berries are hand harvested and require intense laboring. Soon after the berries separated from the shrub, they are sorted out and transported to cold-storage facility. 

Health benefits of blueberries

• Blueberry is very low in calories. 100 g fresh berries provide only 57 calories. However, the berries contain health benefiting soluble dietary fiber, minerals, vitamins, and pigment anti-oxidants that contribute immensely for optimum health and wellness.
• Blueberries are among the highest anti-oxidant value fruits. The ORAC value of 100 g fresh blueberries is 5562 TE (Trolex equivalents). Their antioxidant value largely derived from poly-phenolic anthocyanidin compounds such as chlorogenic acid, tannins, myricetin, quercetin and kaempferol.
• In addition, these berries have other flavonoid anti-oxidants such as carotene β, lutien and zeaxanthin.
• Altogether, the phyto-chemical compounds in the blueberry help rid off harmful oxygen-derived free radicals from the body, and thereby, protect the body from cancers, aging, degenerative diseases, and infections.
• In addition, research studies suggest that chlorogenic acid in these berries help lower blood sugar levels and control blood glucose levels in type-II diabetes mellitus condition.
• Fresh berries contain small amount of vitamin C, vitamin A and vitamin E. Altogether these vitamins make potent lipid soluble anti-oxidants, help limit free radical mediated injury to body.
• The berries also contain small amount of B-complex group of vitamins such as niacin, pyridoxine, folates and pantothenic acid. It contains very good amounts of vitamin B-6, niacin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid and folic acid. These vitamins are acting as co-factors help body metabolize carbohydrates, protein, and fats.
• In addition, these berries contain good amount of minerals like potassium, manganese, copper, iron and zinc. Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids that helps controlling heart rate and blood pressure. Manganese is used by the body as a co-factor for the antioxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase. Copper is required in the production of red blood cells. Iron is required for red blood cell formation.

Selection and storage

Fresh blueberries are readily available in the markets all around the year due to imports from across the continents. However fresh wild berries are at their best from June until August when the harvest season begins in Michigan and Maine in USA and from Quebec province in Canada.

In the stores, look for fresh berries that are firm, plump, smooth-skinned, with a silver-gray surface bloom. Buy deep purple-blue to blue-black berries. Avoid soft or shriveled, over-handled bruises berries and those with signs of mold and of old stock.

Once at home place the berries in a plastic or zip pouch and store in the refrigerator set with high relative humidity where they keep well for up to a week. 

Preparation and serving tips

Blueberries are sweet and juicy, leaves deep blue pigment stain over teeth and tongue. Trim away any stems and leaves if you have purchased berries directly from the local farmer.

They are better eaten fresh after washing in cold water. If taken out from the cold storage, place them in a bowl of water to bring to normal room temperature to enrich their taste and palatability. Gently pat dry using a moisture absorbent cloth/ paper and enjoy!

Here are some serving tips:

• Traditionally, blueberries have been part of food culture of Native Americans.
• While fresh berries eaten fresh, dried ones added to soup, stews and to sweeten venison meat.
• They are one of the most preferred berries in the preparation of muffins, pies, and cheesecakes.
• These berries are also favorite addition to fruit salads, fresh fruit tarts, icecreams etc.
• They are also used to make juice, jellies, and jams.

Safety profile

Blueberries may rarely cause serious allergic reactions in some sensitized individuals. Most often, these kinds of reactions occur because of possible cross-reactions to other fruits (strawberry), pollen or weed allergies. Some of the most common symptoms of blueberry allergy may include swelling and redness of mouth, lips and tongue, eczema, hives, skin rash, headache, runny nose, itchy eyes, wheezing and gastrointestinal disturbances. Individuals who suspect allergy to these fruits may want to avoid eating them.