Wonderful Pomegranate – fruit and
supplements
The pomegranate
(Punica granatum) is a fruit-bearing shrub or small tree which grows to between
five and eight metres tall. The pomegranate is native to the region from Iran to
the Himalayas in northern India, and has been cultivated over the whole
Mediterranean region and the Caucasus since ancient times. It is cultivated
throughout Algeria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, India, Syria, Turkey, as well as
parts of southeast Asia, Malaysia, the East Indies, and
Africa.
Introduced into South America and California by the Spanish
settlers, the pomegranate is now cultivated in California and Arizona for its
juice. In the Northern hemisphere, the fruit is in season from September to
January and in the Southern hemisphere, from March to May.
The Qur'an
describes a heavenly paradise of four gardens with shade, water and fruit trees
and bushes, including the pomegranate. It is said that each fruit contains one
seed that has descended from paradise. The prophet Mohammed decreed that
followers should eat pomegranates 'to purge the body of longing'. These days the
fruit is said to have the opposite effect!
In Judaism, the seeds are
supposed to number 613, one for each of the Jewish laws. Pomegranates decorate
the pillars of King Solomon's Temple as well as the robes of Jewish kings and
priests.
Pomegranates feature in paintings of the Virgin Mary and Jesus
and are also mentioned in The Bible. According to legend, the pomegranate was
the 'tree of the knowledge of good and evil' in the Garden of Eden.
In
Buddhism it is one of the three blessed fruits and represents 'the essence of
favourable influences'. According to Buddhist legend the demoness Hariti, who
ate children, was given a pomegranate to eat by Buddha in order to cure her of
that antisocial habit.
The word pomegranate comes from the French name
pomme grenate ('seedy apple'). The grenade, that nasty little weapon of war,
takes its name from the fruit.
The pomegranate is listed as a treatment
for tapeworms and diarrhoea in Andrew Chevallier's Encyclopaedia of Medicinal
Plants, and it has been used for just that till modern times. The fruit also
appears on the coats of arms of the British Medical Association, the Royal
College of Midwives, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and
the Royal College of Physicians of London.
Pomegranates are a source of
vitamin C, folic acid, potassium, polyphenols and antioxidants, which help to
decrease the risk of heart disease and cancer. It has long been known that the
juice has natural antiseptic properties. According to research in 2005,
pomegranate juice works against prostate cancer cells in laboratory
tests.
Pomegranates are being hailed as a super-food which can protect
the heart. Scientists in Israel have shown that drinking a glass of the fruit's
juice each day, can reduce the risk of heart disease. "Pomegranate juice
contains the highest antioxidant capacity compared to other juices, red wine and
green tea," said Professor Michael Aviram. In studies at the Rambam Medical
Center in Israel, the juice of the pomegranate was found to slow down
cholesterol oxidation by almost half. That is the 'bad' cholesterol which leaves
the fatty deposits which narrow the arteries and lead to heart disease.
Another study discovered that pomegranate extract may prevent joint
damage linked to rheumatoid arthritis. Earlier reports suggest that pomegranate
extract may block the action of enzymes that damage cartilage in osteoarthritis.
You can harness all that antioxidant power any time of year with
Wonderful Pomegranate Liquid Fruit Supplement, SoftGel Fruit Capsules and Fruit
Supplement Bars from PowerFruits (www.powerfruits.co.uk).
The
PowerFruits pomegranate bars, liquid supplement and capsules are around four
times higher in antioxidants than normal fruit juice concentrates, thanks to the
fact that they're made from the whole fruit, not just the juice.
The
Wonderful Pomegranate Liquid Food Supplement contains 180mg of anthocyanins,
125mg ellagic acid and 70mg punicalagins per serving. Meanwhile each Wonderful
Pomegranate SoftGel Fruit Capsule contains 80mg anthocyanins and 50mg ellagic
acid.
Wonderful Pomegranate Fruit Supplement Bars, on the other hand,
are a delicious way to get two of your daily fruit and veg portions under your
belt, not to mention 250mg of anthocyanins and 117mg ellagic acid, plus 46
percent of your daily vitamin C requirement and 12 percent of your daily fibre
intake.
Wonderful Pomegranate Liquid Fruit Supplement: £26.99 (60 servings)
Wonderful Pomegranate SoftGel Fruit Capsules: £24.99 for 60
Wonderful Pomegranate Fruit Supplement 25g Bars: £34.99 for 30
The Powerfruit range is available via www.powerfruits.co.uk
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