Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office Shares Pumpkins Nutritional Benefits
“Respect the pumpkin! Respect the pumpkin!” Pitiful thing! The pumpkin wants to share its healthy gifts with us! What do we do? We cut the pumpkin into spooky, fun, goofy images for Halloween and puree it up for a Thanksgiving pie! Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office is making light of the pumpkin’s plight and admits to liking the pumpkin fun while also valuing its tasty, healthy features for our Groton chiropractic patients who are undergoing chiropractic care for back pain or neck pain and their supporting families.
RESPECT FOR THE NUTRITIOUS PUMPKIN
Appreciation for the pumpkin grows and grows! The well recognized pumpkin or squash of the cucurbita moschata species of fruits is hot tolerant and resistant to insects and disease…as well as the essential ingredient for great pumpkin pies! (1) Well-known for being nutrient-dense and recipe-flexible, the pumpkin is said to be a potent source of proteins, metabolites, carbohydrates, monounsaturated fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids, tocopherols, carotenoids, tryptophans, sterols, and more. Some of its most promising functional properties recognized today are wound healing, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidative, anti-ulcerative, spermatogenesis-enhancing, etc. (2) The scent, flavor, and color traits of the pumpkin - terpenoids (oxygen-containing metabolites that contribute to aromatic scent and flavor and even color) and carotenoids (tetraterpenoids responsible for color) - are quite healthful. (3) All this in the pretty fall fruit we cut into jack-o-lanterns that young and old alike enjoy…including Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office and our Groton chiropractic families!
AGE MATTERS
Age counts in the lifespan of the pumpkin and the human! For the pumpkin, the mature stage of its ripening – versus the young and ripened stages – proved to have the highest phenolic and flavonoid content (33 compounds!), the highest antioxidant activity, and the greatest antibacterial activity. (4) For the human, aging generates more and more molecular damage to cells in reaction to oxidative stress due to environmental, lifestyle, and disease issues. The right intake of antioxidants is key as we age. The cucurbita fruits (types of pumpkin/squash) are high in these antioxidants as well as in zinc and copper. Researchers even proposed that these should be consumed every day! (5) Our aging cells would appreciate that! In a study of extracted seed oils like pumpkin, melon, and black cumin, researchers discovered a cornucopia of useful cytoprotective – cell-protecting - properties related to the prevention of age-related diseases brought on by oxidative stress. (6) Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office is in favor of protecting cells and the health of our Groton chiropractic patients.
CONTACT Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. James Cox on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he illustrates the importance of controlling inflammation as well as chiropractic spinal manipulation treatment with The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management.
Schedule your Groton chiropractic appointment today. Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office respects the pumpkin for all its nutritional value. And we still anticipate the annual carving, decorating, and cooking!
