PRICELESS GIFT OF NATURE

GAC FRUIT

Gac fruit is an edible fruit which is highly nutritious and has a lot of attractive medicinal benefits. Botanical name of this fruit is Momordica cochinchinensis. It belongs to the family of Curcubitaceae. Traditionally, gac has been used as food as well as medicine for treating many diseases in China, India, Carribean islands and in Southeast Asian countries like Malaysia, Vietnam, Phillipines, etc. Leaves and fruits are used in Vietnamese culinary dishes. There are several beverages prepared from gac fruit for wedding and other festivals in their culture.

Gac is purely seasonal fruit that only ripens once in a year. It is a climber plant and is usually cultivated to grow on fences. Gac fruits round to oval in shape and  orange in color. The outer layer of this fruit is covered with red color thorns which are toxic and whole outer layer is not edible. So, these should be removed while consuming and the soft pulp inside the fruit surrounding the seeds is the only edible part of this fruit.  The edible seeds are brown or black in color and are used as traditional medicine in china.Gac fruit can be consumed in various ways like mixing its juice with other fruit juices or can be blanched and consumed raw.

Nutrients in Gac fruit

It has the following health promoting nutrients - carotenoids, proteins, dietary fibers,unsaturated fatty acids, antioxidants, Vitamins like A, D, E, K, beta carotene, lycopene, bioactive compounds like trypsin, zeathanin, phenolic compounds and flavonoids. 

Antioxidants in this 10 times more than in carrots. Lycopene is more than 70 times than in tomatoes. It is low in sugar which makes it diabetic friendly.

Regular intake of this fruit can help to

  • Prevent a wide range of heart diseases like hardening of the walls of the arteries, atherosclerosis, etc.
  • Lower the risk of heart attack.
  • Heal wounds, sun burns, burns, skin diseases and scars.
  • Cure prostate problems in men.
  • Improve vision and prevent eye related problems.
  • Prevent the formation of cataract.
  • Improve the function of nerves system and prevent the nerve damage.
  • Prevent aging and delays the formation of wrinkles.
  • Give youthful appearance.
  • Reduce depression.
  • Cure anemia because it contains high amount of iron and folic acid.
  • Lower the risk of lung and colon cancer.
  • Reduce the risk of blood clots.
  • Improve fertility in both men and women.
  • Reduce the risk developing cancer as it has anti-cancer property.
Add this wonderful fruit to your diet for a healthy living. 

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