Guavas

First of all, I must tell you that I grew up eating guavas. I was lucky enough to live in a house that was next door to house where there was a robust, and prolific guava tree. As you can imagine, my brothers and I had our fill of green and ripe guavas from that generous tree. Looking back, I realize why we were so healthy then; the guavas had a lot to do with our good health.

The list of health benefits attributed to guavas is too long for this short post. However, I will mention some of the most common nutritional and curative properties attributed to this super fruit.

Guavas in their natural form have been shown to possess the following properties:

1.    Guavas are rich in vitamins A, B, C, E, and K. Their content of vitamin C is even greater than that of citrus fruits.

2.    Guavas also contain important minerals such as magnesium, copper, manganese, and potassium, which can help keep you healthy and stabilize blood pressure.

3.    They contain flavonoids like beta-carotene, lycopene, and lutein,  which are known to have antioxidant properties, and may protect your eyes, skin, and mucus membranes.

4.    Guavas have a high content of dietary fiber, which helps control diabetes, and protects the colon and the prostate. 

5.    Guavas are rich in astringents (compounds that make your gums feel tighter and fresher), so when you eat a raw guava your mouth feels healthier, and the astringent qualities also add substance to loose bowels, which helps treat diarrhea. These astringents are alkaline in nature and have disinfectant and anti-bacterial properties, so they help to treat diseases such as dysentery and gastroenteritis by stopping microbial growth and removing excessive mucus from the intestines.

6.    Even the leaves of the guava tree have healing properties. The juice of the guava leaves has been known to cure swollen gums, toothaches and oral ulcers. It can also accelerate the healing process of wounds.

Finally, guavas are one of the least sprayed and chemically treated exotic fruits so they are safer to eat in their natural form than other fruits and vegetables. If you eat guavas in this manner you will be getting the most benefits out of them.