HEALTH TIPS

Hail The ‘Queen Of Fruits’ – The Mangosteen!

All rise as we shine the limelight on ‘Her Majesty’ and take you on a little nutritional adventure to find out more about mangosteens. Brace yourself for a whole new fruitful discovery!

Little do we know that the rind of a mangosteen is actually the hero in the nutritional aspect of the fruit. The flesh itself, albeit tasty, contains nearly zero-nutritional value!

• The dried mangosteen rind is use to treat dysentery, diarrhoea and gonorrhoea.

• When made into an ointment, mangosteen rind powder is used to treat skin disorders such as eczema and other skin disorders.

• Mangosteen pulp and rind contains many antioxidants, which may have anti-tumour activity.

• Mangosteen also appears to have anti-inflammatory properties. Studies have demonstrated that prenylated xanthones, a substance found in abundance in mangosteens, can help to treat tuberculosis.

Choosing Effective Mangosteen Supplements

If you're looking at purchasing mangosteen products for health purposes, follow these useful tips:

- Be sure you buy ones that include the processed whole fruit. As mentioned before, the fruit itself contains negligible nutritional value hence it is necessary to include the dark-coloured, less edible rinds to receive the health benefits.

- Look for a supplement that is as close to the whole fruit as possible.

- Generally, mangosteen products are taken daily, throughout the day, instead of all at once. They should contain as few fillers, sugar, and flavour enhancers as you can find. A few additives may be necessary, as the rinds of the mangosteen can be very strong tasting.

- Avoid products that promise miraculous recoveries and results! Instead, look for mangosteen products with more reasonable promises. This superfruit does provide wonderful health benefits, and can boost our immune systems, but, like everything else, it is not magic. When buying mangosteen supplements, you want to find the effective kind, not the popular but useless ones.

Adapted and excerpted from www.mangosteenadvice.com

Sham Latiff