Various Benefits of Peaches are Good for Body Health
Peaches are better known as peaches. This fruit has a shape and color that looks similar to apples or apricots.
Not inferior to other fruits, peaches also contain various beneficial nutrients. This is the reason why there are various benefits of peaches that are good for health. Before peeling further about its benefits, let us know the content of this fruit first.
Nutritional content of peaches
Peaches have a Latin name Prunus persica. This fruit is golden orange with yellow flesh in which there are seeds. Peaches have a sweet taste making them delicious to eat.
Peaches are rich in vitamins, minerals and beneficial plant compounds. The nutrients contained in 1 medium peach or about 150 grams, namely:
- 58 calories
- 14 grams of carbohydrates
- Less than 1 gram of fat
- 1 gram of protein
- 2 grams of fiber
- 10% of the daily value of vitamin A.
- 17% of the daily value of vitamin C
- 5% of the daily value of vitamin E.
- 5% of the daily value of vitamin K
- 8% of the daily value of potassium
- 6% of the daily value of niacin
- 5% of the daily value of manganese
- 5% of the daily value of copper.
Peaches also contain small amounts of phosphorus, iron, magnesium, and several B vitamins. In addition, they contain powerful antioxidants that are good for body protection.
Benefits of peaches for health
The fresher the peach, the higher the antioxidant level it has. This is of course very good for protecting the body from oxidative damage. Here are the health benefits of peaches:
Not only nuts and seeds, peaches also contain vitamin E. The vitamins contained in peaches are important antioxidants for body cells. These vitamins can also keep the immune system healthy and help widen the blood vessels so that blood doesn’t clot inside.
Promotes wound healing
The vitamin C content in peaches can help heal wounds and strengthen the immune system. In addition, this content can also fight free radicals that can damage body cells.
Improve vision health
An antioxidant called beta-carotene gives peaches their golden orange color. When you consume it, the body converts beta-carotene into vitamin A. This vitamin is very good for improving the health of your eyesight.
Peaches have a protective effect that can help keep skin healthy. A test-tube study showed that the compounds found in peaches can improve the skin’s ability to retain moisture.
In addition, other test-tube and animal studies have also found that extracts from flowers or peach flesh applied to the skin can help prevent UV damage. Unfortunately, more research in humans is still needed.
Peaches contain fiber which can help improve digestion and reduce the risk of intestinal disorders. Soluble fiber content can help move food through the intestines thereby reducing the chances of constipation.
Meanwhile, insoluble fiber can provide food for good bacteria so that it can reduce inflammation and digestive disorders, such as Crohn’s disease and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
Helps you lose weight
The fiber contained in peaches can make you full. This will make it take you longer to feel hungry again. On this basis, fiber is good for consumption by those of you who want to lose weight. Moreover, peaches contain only a few calories and do not contain saturated fat, sodium and cholesterol.
Improve heart health
Peaches are believed to reduce risk factors for heart disease, such as high blood pressure and cholesterol. Test-tube studies have shown that this fruit can bind to bile acids which can help lower blood cholesterol levels.
Meanwhile, an animal study also found that peaches can reduce levels of bad cholesterol, blood pressure, and triglycerides. However, further research is still needed to find its positive effects on humans.
Potential to contain anticancer
Peaches contain plant compounds that can offer protection against many types of cancer. Peach skin and flesh are rich in carotenoids and caffeine as antioxidants that have anticancer properties. In a test-tube study, the polyphenol antioxidant content in peaches was found to reduce the growth and spread of cancer cells.
