All ancient texts, philosophies, religions, treatises ..every word of literature, philosophy or sacred text written by man, has one or the other mention of fruits. All regions of the world have their own specialties, all other regions have learnt to appreciate each one of these, most have been discovered and loved, and there are still many deep inside bountiful forests that have not been utilized to the fullest. Fruits continue to mesmerize humans since Adam’s times, when the apple (or was it???) was the forbidden fruit that Adam could not resist. Of course, though the geographical location of Eden, the presence of two fig leaf clad humans and the exact specie of the forbidden fruit is under controversy, the fact that it was a forbidden FRUIT is undisputed. So, fruit stands for the earliest temptation known to mankind. No wonder then, that it is the first complete food that humans knew and the vegetarians among us, even back in the Cro-Magnon times, loved to munch on the fleshy goodies that the forests around our caves provided…perhaps an apple, or a peach?
While Eden is a Christian concept, the Koran also says that fruits like the grape, figs, dates and olives are God’s gift to the believing part of mankind. Most old civilizations consider fruits to be possessed of divine or magical properties. Most were dedicated to Gods and Goddesses.
All this reverence is not only because of their attractive appearance. Historically and botanically speaking, fruits, dried and fresh, are the staple food of man. Indeed many argue that man is not a carnivore (for various reasons), and needs no meat to survive, only fruits, vegetables, plant products are enough, even quite nutritious. But we shall not get into that discussion here. The fact remains that fruits contain substantial quantities of nutrients, minerals, vitamins, enzymes, anti-oxidants, have a cleansing and de-toxing effect on the human digestive system, and can serve as medicines to fight the ill effects of unnatural and artificial diets too.
Fruits have a hydrating effect, something like moisturizing our insides. Fruit juices can be the best sources of sugar and vitamins at the same time. As diuretics, the potassium, magnesium and sodium content in fruits can increase the frequency of urination and at the same time control its density, thus controlling water retention in the body, helping our kidneys to relax and function normally. Heavy foods make our intestines sluggish and we all know what the effects of a sluggish intestinal tract are… like some giant sleepy python, unwilling to move, accumulating undigested material (that should have passed out as shit long ago), it rots inside us, thereby rotting our insides.. Then the toxins that such a sluggish system can push out into the blood are reduced. Consuming fruits changes all this – alkaline salts present in fruits can neutralize the most stubborn stomach acids, and thus promote intestinal elimination. This way the digestive system can be kept free from toxic wastes, keeping the intestinal tract active and healthy. Consumption of fruits, therefore, can cure the sick of the principal cause of almost all maladies – a sluggish system. Fibrous matter in fruits also serves to aid in smooth elimination of wastes in the body, amounting to smooth bowel motion. Hence keeping fruits as a regular part of the diet does away with the chances of constipation.
Besides, there are some direct effects like the presence of calcium, iron and magnesium in fruits like apricots, raisins and dried dates, great for blood and for the bones. Fruits like custard apple supply almost 800 mg of calcium per piece, meeting almost the whole of our daily requirement.
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Citrus fruits and guavas, custard apples are an invaluable source of vitamin C, and eaten raw, manage to retain the entire vitamin content. Several others (particularly the brightly colored ones) contain carotene which supplies us with vitamin A. In fact the fresh yellow mango pulp is a very rich source of Vitamin A, and can provide up to a week’s requirement of the mineral. The papaya is yet another excellent source of Vitamin A and C, in addition to being extremely good for the liver.
Fruits should never be eaten cooked, and should form a meal by themselves, preferably one variety at a time. Taken as juices, they start losing their properties, so eating fruit is much better than DRINKING it.
Ancient wisdom as well as modern medicine recommends juice fasting as a sure method of cleansing the system by fasting. A glassful of diluted juice should be taken every two hours, between eight am and eight pm. The juice should be diluted with equal quantity of water, and be freshly squeezed, never canned. Citrus juices make the best fasting juices, oranges, grapefruit and even pineapple. Six to eight glasses of this juice in a day is an excellent idea for even a weekly de-tox program.
In place of fasting, one can also have an all fruits diet, highly beneficial for chronic diseases like bronchitis, rheumatism, chronic catarrh and constipation as the fruits floods the body with extremely useful salts and minerals. The fruits that can be taken should be fresh, ripe and juicy, apples, pears, grapes, oranges, grapefruit, pineapple, peaches, melon or any other juicy fruit in season, but no bananas, and no other foods. In fact this is the secret to utilizing the great advantages that a fruit diet or juice diet can provide. NEVER, try to combine fruits with any other diets. For this reason, always make sure that fruits are taken at least half an hour before any other food stuffs.
There are strong anti-oxidant and some other qualities in fruits which can actually keep our organs for younger longer. For instance, fruit sugars, and vitamins B complex and C can aid heart functioning (so binge on apple, lemon, orange and pomegranate), while apple, date and mango can do wonders to the central nervous system. Regular consumption of these fruits will give the body ample doses of phosphorus, glutamic acid and vitamins A, and will sharpen the memory, prevent exhaustion, nervous tension and mental illnesses like insomnia and hysteria. Berries, extremely rich in iron, phosphorus and sodium also help in nervous disorders as well as blood building. Watermelons, with their great diuretic powers, make great kidney cleansers while pineapple, and pomegranates help in chronic nasal congestion such as that caused by hay fever. Regular drinking of grapefruit juice is actually known to cure the common cold while bananas, apples and figs can help fight brain diseases.
However, one should keep in mind that fruits contain a very high percentage of sugar so moderation in consumption is a good idea. Apart from that, fruits provide much more nutrition and life giving a well as body building nutrition than almost any other food known to mankind.
