Gac Fruit!
When we hear the term "super" which is typically used as an adjective prefacing words like super reporter, super job or super party, our minds immediately conjure a person, place or thing (insert noun here) that is extra-ordinary or of the highest quality or standard, something that cannot be duplicated by average means. So what does it mean when we use the word "super" in terms like "super foods" or in particular "super fruit"?
Fruits and vegetables fall into the category of "super foods" in, and of themselves, and the more vibrant the color, the better. Arguably, you can make a case for just about any fruit or vegetable but, are they all "super foods"? Simply put, NO, they are not! For purposes of this article and the current "fad" of "super foods" and health conscious peoples' interest in acquiring said foods, I will try to keep it simple. In a nut shell, a super food goes over and above what average fruits and vegetables already do...provide proper nutrition to our body's cells in the form of antioxidants and phytonutrients, vitamins and minerals. When our cells get the nutrition they need our bodies start to function the way they were designed too, naturally, warding off illness and disease. This also gives certain fruits and vegetables the label of even having certain medicinal qualities. But, if we are to call a fruit or vegetable "super", then what is it that makes it, well, "super"?
Simply put, a fruit or vegetable that is labeled "super", is so because it provides, pound for pound, more antioxidants, phytonutrients, vitamins, minerals or a combination there of, than your average fruit or vegetable. Again, for purposes of this article, I am going to limit this discussion to only a few such "super foods", specifically fruit or "super fruit".
Probably the "super-est" of "super fruits" known to the civilized world and only now being discovered by the main stream of the western world, is the Gac fruit or Momordica cochinchinensis as it is known scientifically. This "
Fruit from Heaven" as it is called in Southern Asia, is easy to grow, but is very seasonal and only ripens between the months of December and January when it becomes a vibrant reddish-orange in color. Gac has been used for thousands of years as food and in medicinal applications to promote healthy eyesight, enhance circulatory vitality, longevity and increase energy.
Gac, about the size of a cantaloupe, contains 76 times the amount of lycopene found in tomatoes. The Beta-carotene levels found in the Gac fruit (Momordica cochinchinensis) are extremely high, exceeding the levels found, pound for pound, in carrots. With high levels of fatty acid bound carotenoids, called Lipocarotenes, the Gac fruit's ability to enhance the bioavailability of the fruit's existing carotenoids is nothing short of "super"! Gac fruit, like olive oil, also contains high concentrations of oleic and linoleic acids and lower concentrations of saturated fatty acids.
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