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Winter 2009

Taste the Zest of Health with Citrus Fruits

Fancy a fruit? Pick an orange— or a grapefruit, tangerine, lemon, or lime. Citrus fruits have long been hailed as vitamin C champions, but these fruits are packed with all sorts of nutrients that can help you stay healthy.

For starters, vitamin C is key in the growth and repair of all the body’s tissues. It helps heal cuts and wounds, keeps teeth and gums healthy, and boosts your body’s ability to absorb iron. Other nutrients in citrus fruits may help protect you from heart disease. Orange juice contains a lot of potassium, which is important to heart health because it helps regulate blood pressure. Fiber in whole fruits and juices with pulp can reduce cholest erol, which in turn can reduce heart disease risk. Plus, fiber aids digestive health and may help fight cancer.

PREVENTING HEALTH PROBLEMS

Citrus fruits also contain a B vitamin called folate, which helps your body form red blood cells. Folate is important for heart health, too. Citrus juice—as well as other fruit and vegetable juices—may even help stave off Alzheimer’s disease. According to one study, people who drank such juices two to three times a week had considerably less risk of developing the disease compared with people who had juice less than once a week.

A DOSE OF CAUTION

For most people, citrus can be a great way to boost nutrition. But those who take certain drugs for cholesterol, blood pressure, or a heartbeat irregularity—as well as some antihistamines—may need to skip grapefruit and grapefruit juice. Grapefruit can speed up the rate at which these medicines enter your body, making side effects more likely. Ask your doctor or pharmacist about possible interactions with medications you take.



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