Believe it or not, there is more to pumpkins than carving jack-o-lanterns at Halloween time.
In fact, this big ole’ squash has a PLETHORA of antioxidants to help rid the free radicals from your body and give a boost to your immune system function and reduce the risk of cancer and heart disease.
For example: the oil produced in pumpkin seeds is said to slow the progression of prostate tumors.
(DISCLAIMER: Now I don’t know how true that is and I don’t tend to make claims of things in relation to cancers and other major illnesses so do YOUR due diligence on that one!)
But the antioxidant in pumpkin comes from beta-carotene. It also contains Vitamin A.
Adding pumpkin to your diet also gives you added fiber – as shown below LOL!
Okay okay… maybe poor taste but funny none-the-less. Anyway, also be aware of the…
Benefits of Pumpkin Seeds
Pumpkin seeds are rich in magnesium as well as zinc, which happens to improve a poor appetite. Also, Gustin (a protein that improves your sense of smell and taste) is reliant on zinc to function properly.
Of course you can buy pumpkin seeds from the store but more than likely they are covered in table salt; therefore, it’s better to buy the pumpkin yourself, gut it then rinse and bake your OWN pumpkin seeds. There are plenty of videos on YouTube that can show you how to do that but in the event that you don’t want to go through all of that, here’s a tip for ya…
When I became a raw fooder, I would take (raw, natural) store-bought pumpkin seeds, soak or marinate them (usually in tamari wheat free soy sauce or Nama Shoyu raw soy sauce) and then season and dehydrate them with various seasonings such as: cayenne, onion & garlic powder for a SUPER-yummy snack! This can also be done in the oven, fyi.
But when that is not convenient, try to find them in a local wholefood-type store where they are either raw or roasted with SEA SALT.
So now that you know ways that pumpkin benefits health, be sure to add it to your diet when and where you can!
