Pineapple – March’s Fruit of the Month
It’s the end of the first week of spring and like you, I’m really looking forward to the warmer weather!! With that, I’m also looking forward to all of the luscious fruit and veggies that are about to be in-season. Fruit that are sweeter. Veggies that are tastier and fresher. And best of all… all of it is CHEAPER!! YES, in-season produce is cheaper to purchase! Did you ever notice that?
About Pineapple
One of those fruit that are very much in season at the beginning of Spring is Pineapple, and that is a really good thing for your health. Before I get into the health benefits of pineapple, I wanted to let you know exactly when Pineapple season is. If it comes from Hawaii, then peak growing season is April – May. If your pineapple happens to come from the Caribbean, then there are two fruiting seasons: December – February and August – September (I had NO idea!! Did you know this?). This can pretty much guarantee that we get nice pineapple throughout the year, but just pay attention to it. You may find that it’s sweeter during those times.
Pineapple and Your Health
Here are some of the benefits of Pineapple:
- Low in Calories: It’s a great, Low-Cal food. There’s not a lot of fat in it so it won’t pack on the calories.
- High in Fiber: This is a great way to get in that roughage that helps to keep your colon clean and the good bacteria in your digestive tract happy. The fiber is also great because it helps the sugar in the pineapple release slower, so that your blood sugar doesn’t spike like it does with candies and pastries.
- High in Nutrients: Pineapple is a great source of Vitamin C and Manganese. 1 cup will give us most of our RDA. It also has other vitamins and minerals like Vit A, Magnesium, Vit B6, Zinc and Copper as well.
- Anti-Inflammatory: if you’ve taken a natural anti-inflammatory product, more than likely it had Bromelain in it. This is the enzyme that helps your body decrease inflammation, pain caused by inflammation, and many of the inflammatory diseases like Arthritis, post-exercise soreness, and more.
- Antioxidant: if you want to help decrease those free radicals (and TRUST me… you do!) then you want to eat foods that are high in antioxidants. It can help decrease your chances of getting sunburn (but still protect yourself), can help slow down the aging process, and helps to decrease all the damage that those oxidative buggers can cause.
- Aids Digestion: Bromelain is a digestive enzyme so eating a bit of pineapple with a meal might help your food digest better. Try it and see how it works out for you.
- Boosts the immune system: Because of its high level of nutrients, esp Vit C, its Bromelain enzyme content and its anti-inflammatory properties pineapple can have a wonderful affect on helping your immune system
work better and more efficient. - You can possibly grow another pineapple from it! Did you know that you can grow the pineapple
tops? Up! Just twist the top right off, and stick it in the dirt. It will grow a gorgeous green plant for your home and given the right conditions, it might even give you a pineapple in the future! I’ve never had mine grow a fruit, but a friend of mine did. Mine were very beautiful though. You should try it. If nothing else, you have a beautiful, FREE plant to beautify, calm, and relax your home. - It’s DeLICOUS! If summer had a flavor, it would be pineapple. Not much else to say, right?
How do you eat YOUR pineapples?
Do you eat fresh pineapple? Or do you prefer to eat it canned or frozen?
What’s your favorite pineapple dish or recipe? I’d love to hear from you!