It’s good news: mangoes are not only delicious, they are also good for your health. Thanks to their valuable nutrients, they have a positive influence on the functioning of the human body and can therefore, among other things, support our digestion or help us gain weight in a controlled way. In this article, you will discover how to make the most of this fruit.
1. They stimulate digestion.
Mangoes contain many enzymes, such as amylases, which help digestion. In cases of constipation, eating mango pulp can help stimulate digestion. Since mangoes contain little acid, they are also suitable for young children.
2. They lower cholesterol levels.
People who have problems with high cholesterol are at risk of having their blood flow reduced by clogged veins. Including mangoes in your diet may help in this case. The high pectin content of the pulp can actually lower cholesterol levels.
3. They make you gain weight.
People who have difficulty maintaining their weight or gaining weight in a healthy way should eat mangoes regularly. Depending on the variety, 100 grams of pulp contain up to 86 kilocalories. In addition, the starch they contain is quickly converted into sugar by the body. For example, you can drink a mango and milk smoothie as a supplement to your daily meals, in order to consume additional and especially healthy calories.
4. They strengthen the immune system.
Thanks to its high vitamin A content, the flesh of the mango strengthens the mucous membranes. This has the positive effect of providing better protection against colds, as it is more difficult for pathogens to penetrate the body.
5. They provide the body with iron.
Adequate iron intake is essential, especially during pregnancy, to provide optimal support for the growing child. But people who suffer from anemia often have an iron deficiency as well. So before resorting to iron pills, it’s best to eat mangoes. A spinach and mango smoothie, for example, can help provide extra nutrition in the diet.
What to watch out for when eating mangoes:
At home, mangoes are imported products. After all, they originated in Borneo and are now grown all over the Asian continent, but also in Spain. Mangoes are grown all year round, which is why they are theoretically “in season” all year round. So it doesn’t matter if you buy mangoes in the supermarket in summer or winter. Nevertheless, there are some things you can do to reduce the impact on the environment.
For example, you can make sure that the mangoes were imported by boat rather than by plane. Planes emit about three times more CO2 than ships. Some suppliers already indicate the mode of transport on the fruit. For smoothies, for example, it is also possible to use frozen products or canned fruit. The latter often taste even sweeter than fresh fruit, because they have been harvested when ripe and immediately frozen or processed, in contrast to fruit harvested before ripening and shipped by air.
If you don’t want to put on weight, you have to take into account the high-calorie content of mangoes. The high sugar content is quickly forgotten when consumed in smoothies or dried fruit. Doctors therefore recommend eating no more than one mango a day in total.
It’s great to see the positive effects that one fruit can have on the body. Do you eat mangoes regularly?
