Gourd is a very familiar food in every family meal of Vietnamese people. This is a plant belonging to the family of gourds, which is grown on trellises and has a high yield, suitable for the hot and humid climate of our country. This fruit is very popular and popular because they can be processed into many delicious and attractive dishes for everyone. In addition to using them as a food, gourd is also used as a medicine to cure a number of diseases in many countries.
What health benefits can this fruit bring? Let’s learn about gourd with increaseheightblog.com with the article below.
What is a gourd? 
The gourd is a type of vines that are grown a lot in Vietnam
The gourd, scientifically known as Lagenaria siceraria, is the fruit of a flowering vine belonging to the cucurbit family. The gourd is a herbaceous vine with rolling tassels, broad heart-shaped leaves and fine hairs covering the stem and leaves. The gourd is a fruit that is light green when young, darkens and turns yellow as it gets older. The gourd comes in various shapes with white flesh and seeds. The pods when old will harden and turn wood. Gourd is a climbing plant that likes high ground, so it is often grown on a trellis. They are vigorous and highly productive. The processed gourd has a sweet taste, cold properties and is quite healthy to help clear heat, detoxify, except for itching and urination.
This plant is native to Africa, and is related to both the Americas and Asia. They appeared between 8,000 and 9,000 years ago. It was one of the first plants to be domesticated in the Americas and was brought by the first inhabitants from Asia. Genetic analyzes have confirmed their origins to Asia and Africa.
Gourds come in many different varieties and are often divided according to its shape or skin. In Vietnam, the popular varieties of gourd are star gourd, nam gourd, regular gourd (the most common type) and solid gourd.
Nutritional composition in gourd
Gourds have many different varieties, but they all contain high nutritional content
Gourd is a sweet and cool food that can be easily processed into many delicious dishes. The gourd contains a lot of vitamins as well as a number of minerals that bring many health benefits. According to data from USDA, in 100g of gourd flesh contains the following nutrients:
- Calories: 14
- Carbohydrates: 3.39g
- Protein: 0.62g
- Fat: 0.02g
- Folate: 6μg
- Niacin: 0.32mg
- Riboflavin: 0.022mg
- Thiamine: 0.029mg
- Vitamin A: 16 IU
- Vitamin C: 10.1mg
- Calcium: 26mg
- Copper: 0.034mg
- Iron: 0.2mg
- Zinc: 0.7mg
Fresh gourds contain a small amount of folate, about 6 µg / 100g (providing 1.5% of the body’s need). Folate is a substance that helps reduce the rate of neural tube defects in babies so mothers need to use and supplement more in the first months of pregnancy. They are a good source of vitamin C (for the body. Vitamin C is one of the powerful natural antioxidants that help the human body eliminate harmful free radicals that are considered one of the reasons for the formation of cancer cell.
Besides, this food is also a good source of thiamin, niacin (vitamin B3), pantothenic acid (vitamin B5), pyridoxine (vitamin B6) and minerals like calcium, iron, zinc, potassium, manganese and magnesium .
Health benefits of gourd
The gourd has many health benefits
Clearing heat and cooling the body
Gourds are foods that contain a lot of fiber and vitamins and minerals for the body. Besides, some foods or drinks from gourd also help to replenish and compensate for the lack of water to help reduce body heat. Since you tend to sweat a lot during the summer, eating and drinking gourd foods regularly can help replenish lost water. Several Indian studies have shown that the consumption of gourd is an excellent remedy for any kind of heat and heat related ailments in the body such as nosebleeds, boils, heatstroke or ulcers.
Reduce stress
Gourds are a food that contains a large amount of choline – a neurotransmitter that improves brain functions and helps prevent stress, depression and other mental disorders. Therefore, you can add this type of food to your family’s daily diet as a complementary therapy to help reduce stress and raise spirits for the whole family.
Promote weight loss
The gourd has a high content of saponins that help control body weight by suppressing appetite. Besides, this substance also helps inhibit the formation of fat tissue. Gourds are also a rich source of fiber and low in calories to keep you full for a long time.
An Indian study has shown that fiber is the key to weight loss. Gourds are low in calories and fat-free. It also contains essential vitamins and minerals like Vitamin C Vitamin B, Vitamin K, Vitamin A, Vitamin E, Iron, Folate, Potassium and Manganese. These vitamins and minerals will help supplement the body with essential nutrients to balance hormones, keeping the body in a stable condition so it doesn’t cause cravings.
Good for heart health
Gourds are rich in flavonoids. Studies have shown that regular consumption of flavonoids is associated with a reduced risk of neurodegenerative disorders, cardiovascular disease as well as cancer. In addition, some analyzes also suggest that consuming gourd as a regular food can help lower blood cholesterol levels, helping to maintain healthy heart function.
Improve the digestive system
The gourd fruit is known for its digestive aid thanks to its high fiber content, which helps in laxatives. The water and fiber content helps cleanse your digestive tract and allows for easy bowel movements. In addition, the insoluble fiber found in plants has the ability to help stabilize and balance beneficial bacteria in the intestinal tract, stimulating the growth of beneficial bacteria to help improve the digestive system.
Reduce kidney stones
Some studies have shown that preparations from gourd have the ability to reduce the amount of sodium oxalate in the kidneys that causes kidney stones. Therefore, you can learn more about adding gourd to your diet or gourd preparations to improve the health problems associated with kidney stones.
Improve respiratory diseases
The pulp of the gourd is known to promote respiratory health and is considered effective against asthma, cough and other bronchial disorders.
Treatment of urinary tract infections
Fresh gourd juice is known to treat urinary tract infections. Some Indian studies have also shown that drinking freshly squeezed gourd juice mixed with some lemon juice is one of the natural remedies to treat urinary tract infections. However, you need to carefully consult the information before making as well as the quality of the gourd before doing it, because some information suggests that the bitter gourd juice can have a negative effect on your health. health and even death in some cases.
Supports liver health
Some studies show that consuming gourd has hepatoprotective properties which means it has the potential to prevent possible liver damage. Thanks to the above-mentioned cooling and hepatoprotective effects, they help cure some skin diseases related to liver heat such as boils, rashes and sores. Therefore, some studies have shown that the consumption of gourd has the ability to help improve skin beauty through water supply and protection of liver function.
Support sports practice.
Gourd snacks or gourd juice can act as a natural post-workout drink as they contain natural plant sugars that help restore sugar levels as well as assist in replacing carbohydrates lost during the day. your set. Besides, gourd is a plant that contains protein and other nutrients that help improve your muscle efficiency.
In addition to the main benefits mentioned above, gourd offers many other benefits including controlling lipids in the body, lowering blood cholesterol levels, treating high blood pressure and treating insomnia. Some folk methods indicate that gourd is a natural pain reliever, an antibacterial pain reliever, an anthelmintic thanks to its ability to kill parasitic worms, antiviral as well as anti-proliferative, and has the ability to kill parasitic worms. ability to prevent or control the rapid growth of malignant cells. With so many health benefits, gourd is really a plant that should be added to every family’s diet.
Some attractive dishes from gourd
The gourd is very easy to make into many rich and attractive dishes
Gourd soup stuffed with meat
After buying the gourd, you need to wash it, peel it and cut it into circles about 4-5cm thick and lightly scrape the intestines. After that, you need to finely chop the green onions and mince the purple onions to marinate with the ground meat, you can add the mixture on salt and seasoning and ground pepper to suit your family’s taste. Next, you stuff the marinated meat into the sliced gourd. Put the pot of boiling water on the stove, until the water boils slightly, then gently drop the gourd in and cook for about 7-10 minutes and season to taste. Finally, scoop out a bowl of onions, cilantro, and pepper and serve with hot rice.
The stuffed gourd soup is a quick and easy dish to make and is extremely suitable for family meals. You can make this dish for the family to enjoy to help fully supplement the fiber as well as other nutrients for the body’s needs.
Stir-fried gourd with shrimp
After buying the gourd, you need to peel it, wash it, cut it in half lengthwise, then cut it into thin slices in the shape of a semicircle. Shrimp washed, peeled, removed the black thread and marinated with a little minced purple onion and seasoning seeds to absorb the flavor. Next, you put the pan on the stove, add two tablespoons of non-aromatic cooking oil with minced shallots, add the shrimp and sauté them and add the gourds and stir fry for about 2 minutes. Then, you season to taste and put on a plate sprinkled with onions and pepper on top, served with hot rice.
In general, gourds are a very healthy food thanks to their high fiber content and nutrients. Regular consumption of this fruit also supports general health and helps limit the risk of some dangerous diseases and other health conditions. Therefore, you should consider adding gourd to your family’s daily diet.
Reference source:
Top 15 health benefits of bottle gourd. https://www.boldsky.com/health/nutrition/2019/nutritional-health-benefits-of-bottle-gourd-035847.html Accessed date: 08/01/2021
Bottle gourd (Calabash) nutrition facts. https://www.nutrition-and-you.com/bottle-gourd.html Accessed date: 08/01/2021
7 health benefits of the humble bottle gourd or ‘lauki’. https://indianexpress.com/article/lifestyle/food-wine/health-benefits-of-the-lauki-5245683/Accessed date: 08/01/2021
White flower gourd. http://www.fitbit.com/foods/White-flowered+Gourd+Boiled+No+Salt+calabash+/7231 Access date: 08/01/2021
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