HEALTH BENEFITS OF MAMEY FRUIT

HEALTH BENEFITS OF MAMEY FRUIT

Mamey is a sweet, creamy fruit that grows in Florida, Texas, California, Hawaii, Mexico, and South America. It is exceptionally rich in fiber, antioxidants, and beta carotene and is high in vitamins C, A, & B and minerals such as copper, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and iron. Mamey contains antiseptic properties and is often recommended to help calm the nervous system, soothe an upset stomach, and alleviate headaches. Mamey has been found to reduce the risk of colon cancer, improve immune function, and help to protect against heart disease and osteoporosis. It is also excellent for helping to alleviate hypertension and the symptoms of cardiovascular disease. Mamey is a great food for eye and skin health and can help to prevent age related macular degeneration, cataracts, and skin cancer. It is a wonderful food to help rebuild and nourish the body after a long illness as it is easy to digest and rich with healing properties. Mamey fruit can range from a softball size to a football size and are ripe when soft all the way around. They have a rough brown exterior but a deep orangey red flesh that is decadently sweet and satisfying. Mamey fruit is completely fat-free, cholesterol-free, and sodium free and makes an excellent addition to smoothies, puddings, pies, fruit salads, and ice creams. It is often said that mamey tastes just like pumpkin pie in terms of its flavor and texture. When in season, mamey can be found in the tropical fruit section of most supermarkets, as well as in speciality caribbean and mexican food stores. They can also be found online and through mail order or at farmer’s markets in southern Florida, Texas, California , & Hawaii. Mamey is a fruit treasure with wonderful health properties that should not be missed.

   Mamey sapote, is a species of tree native to Central America, naturally ranging from southern Mexico to southern Costa Rica. Today, the tree is cultivated not only in Mexico, but also in Central America, the Caribbean, and South Florida for its fruit, which is commonly eaten in many Latin American countries. It has different names depending on the country: mamey, zapote colorado (Costa Rica), níspero and zapote rojo (South America), among others.Mamey sapote is a large and highly ornamental evergreen tree that can reach a height of 15 to 45 meters (60 to 140 feet) at maturity. Like most fruit trees, it is mainly propagated by grafting, which ensures the new plant has the same characteristics as the parent, especially its fruit. It is also considerably faster than growing trees by seed.The leaves are pointed at both ends, 4 to 12 inches in length and grow in clusters at the ends of branches.The fruit is about 10 to 25 cm (4 to 10 inches) long and 8 to 12 cm (3 to 5 inches) wide and has flesh ranging in color from pink to orange to red. The brown skin has a texture somewhat between sandpaper and the fuzz on a peach. The fruit's texture is creamy and soft. A mamey sapote is ripe when the flesh is pink when a fleck of the skin is removed. The flesh should give slightly, as with a ripe kiwifruit.

The mamey sapote is related to other sapotes such as sapodilla (Manilkara zapota), abiu (P. caimito) and canistel (P. campechiana), but unrelated to the black sapote (Diospyros digyna) and white sapote (Casimiroa edulis) It should not be confused with the mammee apple (Mammea americana).Mamey sapote provides about 215 calories, 2.5 grams of protein, less than 1 gram of fat and 56 grams of carbohydrates per 1-cup serving of chopped fresh fruit. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, this serving supplies 9.5 grams of dietary fiber, or 38 percent of the recommended daily value. Mamey sapote is an excellent source of several vitamins and minerals. A 1-cup serving delivers 67 percent and 63 percent of the daily values for vitamins C and B-6, respectively, as well as 23 percent of the daily value for potassium. It also provides almost 20 percent each of the daily values for vitamin E and copper.

Choosing nutrient-dense foods that are highly satiating for relatively few calories is a simple way to lose or prevent unwanted pounds. Mamey sapote fills you up – and helps delay the onset of hunger – in a few ways. According to the USDA, roughly 30 percent of the fruit’s carbohydrates come from starch. These complex carbohydrates contribute to long-term satiety because they take longer to digest. More significantly, mamey sapote is a high-fiber food that offers substantial amounts of both types of fiber, soluble and insoluble. Its insoluble fiber takes up space in your stomach to help you feel fuller on fewer calories, while its soluble fiber slows the rate at which digested food exits your stomach.

            Mamey sapote is a heart-healthy food. The fruit’s soluble fiber promotes healthy cholesterol levels, thereby reducing your risk of heart disease. Its high potassium content protects cardiovascular health by keeping blood pressure in check and supporting normal heart function. As an excellent source of vitamin C, mamey sapote helps maintain firm capillaries and blood vessels. Its substantial vitamin E content helps prevent the buildup of plaque in your blood vessels and arteries, which lowers your risk of heart attack, stroke and coronary artery disease. As antioxidants, vitamins C and E also protect against the kind of free-radical damage associated with heart disease and other chronic illnesses. Vitamin E is particularly beneficial to cardiovascular health, as it helps prevent the oxidation of artery-damaging LDL cholesterol.

               Mamey sapote – which is in season from June through September – isn’t widely available in the continental United States outside of southern Florida. If you can find it, choose firm fruit and let it ripen at room temperature. Ripe mamey sapote is soft and highly perishable – it should be eaten or stored in the refrigerator. Eaten on its own, sapote is a light, healthy snack. In Cuba, Mexico and other countries where it’s popular, the naturally creamy fruit is traditionally used to make sapote ice cream. For a refreshing dessert that contains no added sugar, blend sapote with low-fat milk, ice, vanilla and a dash of nutmeg or cinnamon. Diced sapote tossed with chopped mango, sliced kiwi and pomegranate seeds makes a breakfast-worthy tropical fruit  salad.

Prof. John Kurakar