This salad may have anti-cancer properties. Learn the recipe and refer to it at least once a week
Fruit salads are considered a healthy substitute for store-bought sweets. They are usually used by people who want to lose extra weight. However, it is worth knowing that these types of snacks do not only support weight loss. They also have another very important advantage – they protect against cancer. This is how citrus salad works, among other things.
Citrus salad is a delicious and easy to prepare snack. Just peel, divide into pieces and combine several types of citrus fruits, for example grapefruit, orange and pomelo, and “garnish” the whole with a few mint leaves. But this is only one of the available options. There are many more. You don't have to limit yourself to just four ingredients. You can enrich their list with kumquats, tangerines, clementines, as well as lemon and lime juice. It is also worth seasoning the salad with honey, grated ginger and ground cinnamon. These additions will enhance the anti-cancer potential of citrus fruits.
How can citrus salad protect against cancer?
Citrus fruits provide many micro- and macroelements. They contain, among others, vitamin C, A and E, as well as B vitamins, calcium, iron, phosphorus, potassium, biotin and beta-carotene. They are also a source of polyphenols from the group of flavones and phytochemical compounds. It is to them that citrus fruits owe their anti-cancer properties. It has been proven that they have antibacterial and antifungal properties. They also reduce tissue inflammation and seal the walls of blood vessels. In addition, they protect the body against oxidative stress. A large part of polyphenols and other valuable compounds are found in the white casing covering the fruit, so it is not worth getting rid of it during peeling.
Oxidative stress occurs when free radicals, i.e. reactive oxygen species, multiply and begin to dominate the body. When their concentration is too high, they begin to damage key elements of cells (cell membranes, DNA, proteins, etc.). The changes and destruction they cause play a very important role in the development of various types of cancer, including esophageal, stomach, oral and skin cancer. In turn, polyphenols prevent damage caused by free radicals and thus protect against the development of cancer.
How much citrus fruit should you eat to avoid cancer?
You should eat at least one citrus fruit a day, for example orange, pomelo, grapefruit, etc. It is also worth including a citrus salad in your menu and eating it once a week, although you must remember that not everyone can do it. Contraindications include, among others, allergy to citrus fruits. Patients with chronic digestive system diseases and those undergoing pharmacotherapy should also be careful about this type of fruit.
