Mangosteen is probably one of my favourite things to eat when in Bali. There's something about its texture and sweetness. I honestly think I could live off it and coconut water very happily for months at a time without missing anything else too much. Something I didn't realise until relatively recently is the incredible health benefits it offers. Though it's not commonly talked about, here are 22 reasons to introduce it to your diet:
1. Prevents hardening of the arteries
2. Protects the heart muscle
3. Anti-Parkinson, anti-Alzheimer and other forms of dementia
4. Anti-depressant
5. Prevents and arrest fungus
6. Prevents bacterial infections
7. Viral fighters and prevention of infections
8. Prevents gum disease
9. Antiviral
10. Lowers fevers
11. Eye care-prevents glaucoma and cataracts
12. Pansystemic - a synergistic effect on the whole body
13. Energy boosters - anti-fatigue
14. Anti-aging
15. Weight loss
16. Lowers blood fat (what the heck, I didn't know there is fat in our blood!)
17. Anti-tumour benefits
18. Cancer: Mangosteen helps in the prevention of cancer with its powerful antioxidants.
19. Lowers blood pressure
20. Numerous references to "Immunostimulants"
21. Blood sugar lowering
22. It tastes super good!
Who in the world would buy that? What is mangosteen? The mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana) is a tropical evergreen tree, believed to have originated in the Sunda Islands and the Moluccas. The tree grows from 7 to 25 meters tall. The edible fruit is deep reddish purple when ripe.
It is closely related to other edible tropical fruits such as button mangosteen and lemon drop mangosteen. The outer shell of the fruit is rather hard, typically 4-6 cm in diameter. Cutting through the shell, one finds a white, fleshy fruit 3-5 cm in diameter.
Depending on the size and ripeness, there may or may not be pits in the segments of the fruit. The number of fruit pods is directly related to the number of petals on the bottom of the shell. On average a mangosteen has 5 fruits (round up figure).
You can normally find it online or in good health food shops for around $25 a bottle. You only need to get about 25 ml daily to reap the benefits which means a 500 ml bottle should provide a 20-day supply. Having a shot when you feel like something yummy and sweet will do loads more than just satisfy your cravings!