Health Benefits of Muskmelon

Summers are draining months that require you to consume a lot of liquid to prevent dehydration. Here, only drinking enough water won’t do. You may also require consuming other foods rich in water content. One of the best options to fulfil this requirement is having muskmelon daily.

It is a sweet and refreshing fruit of summer that contains water along with other nutritional content. It fills the body with minerals, vitamins, dietary fibres and other nutrients, which also help fight back diseases. Keep reading and learn about these health benefits of muskmelon in detail below!

Muskmelon has a cold refreshing taste with juicy sweetness on the insides. However, it can do more than just quenching the thirst of people. It can help you cure many conditions and provide the following health benefits:

1. Better Vision and Eye Health

Muskmelon is a rich source of three potent antioxidants that helps maintain your eye health. This includes lutein, zeaxanthin and beta-carotene. When the body absorbs this content, it helps cure related eye vision problems and improves its function. Apart from these, you can get vitamin A and C in high amounts by consuming this summer fruit which further helps your vision. In fact, as muskmelon has high vitamin content, it can reduce the risk of you having a cataract problem by up to 40%.

2. Boosts Immunity

One of the top health benefits of muskmelon is it helps boosts immunity thanks to its vitamin C concentration. It is a powerful antioxidant that improves the function of your body and strengthens your immunity. In addition, the fruit is also a rich source of beta-carotene, phytochemicals, and vitamin A. These contents help keep your gut healthy by destroying all bad bacteria, viruses, microorganisms, and toxins.

3. Maintains Blood Pressure

When you consume muskmelon regularly, you meet your body’s demand for potassium, thus avoiding blood pressure problems. In other words, normally, your blood pressure only fluctuates when the body is low on potassium or not getting enough fibre or water. However, this summer, fruit solves the problem by meeting the need and keeping your body hydrated throughout the day.

4. Keeps Digestive System Healthy

Muskmelon is high in fibre and water content. Hence, easy digestion is another  health benefit of eating muskmelon. So, by consuming it, you can cure your constipation, indigestion and other stomach issues. The fibre content in sweet melons helps regulate bowel movement better and creates a calming effect inside your stomach. Not to mention, it creates bulk in the stool and avoids hunger pain. In addition, vitamin C helps better stomach ulcers.

5. Support Cardiovascular Health

As muskmelon is high in potassium which helps keep blood pressure level at a healthy level, it further avoids any strain on your heart. In addition, its antioxidant content betters the blood flow to and from your heart and avoids any chance of undergoing cardiovascular disease. Apart from this, a compound called adenosine in this fruit benefits your heart health through its blood-thinning capacity and prevents blood from clotting.

6. Maintains Better Looking Skin

One of the best benefits of eating muskmelon is you can maintain a better-looking skin by consuming it daily. Thanks to its antioxidant content, it flushes all impurities out of your skin and maintains a glow. Moreover, its skin-friendly collagen content provides the body with the required protein level, keeping your skin tissue soft and preventing it from withering. In addition to this, since vitamin C in sweet melons is found in abundance, it provides you with spotless skin.

7. Promotes Hair Growth

Hair loss, dry hair, split ends, etc., are common hair problems, but you can avoid them by consuming muskmelon daily. The high amounts of vitamin A concentrated in the fruit keep your hair healthy and prevent it from undergoing conditions. Also, it stimulates the pores to improve sebum production. It is an oily secretion that keeps your hair healthy.

The following is the list of the nutritional value of muskmelon if you are consuming 100 grams of it:

• Protein: 0.84 grams
• Carbohydrates: 8.6 grams
• Dietary Fibres: 0.9 grams
• Fat: 0.19 grams
• Calories: 34 cal

While many enjoy eating muskmelon in small pieces straight out of the refrigerator, others like to try new varieties. There are multiple ways you can include this summer fruit in your daily life, like enjoying it as juice in the breakfast or salad for dinner. Know the details below:

1. Milkshake

One of the best ways to enjoy muskmelon is by turning it into a milkshake. For this purpose, add diced muskmelon in a jar along with crushed ice, milk, cream and vanilla essence and blend it for a puree. Now, enjoy it by topping it with ice cream.

2. Kharbuja Kheer

It is a popular dish made in the same way as rice kheer. The only difference is instead of adding rice, replace it with kharbuja or muskmelon.

3. Salad

Muskmelon salad is an excellent carb-free dinner which you can make by adding papaya, melons, tomatoes, and onions in a bowl. Also, top it with saucy, sweet and lemony vinaigrette for an enhanced taste.

4. Juice

This is a very simple recipe for your breakfast which you can make by blending chunks of muskmelons with crushed ice cubes. Or you can also make a smoothie by adding basil leaves, honey and yoghurt.

The following are the possible side effects of muskmelons if you consume too much of them:

• Spike in sugar levels: Since muskmelon is a sweet tasting fruit containing natural sugar, it can elevate the glucose level above the recommended level if over consumed. So, always watch out for the portion you take daily.
• Gastrointestinal issues: There are certain combinations that you must avoid eating together. Otherwise, it may develop gastrointestinal issues in the body, and one such combination is melon with water. As melons are watery, topping them with more water intake can result in gastric problems since it creates a healthy environment for microbes to grow.
• Digestive difficulty: If you eat watermelons at night, it can create digestive problems causing acidity. It is because during this time, the body’s digestive system is weak, and it is not able to break down the sugar present in the fruit.
• Diarrhoea: Watermelon is rich in fibre and water content, so it encourages gas issues and loose stool when you consume an excess of it.

Muskmelon is a very refreshing fruit that helps keep the body healthy in many ways. However, in some situations, experts recommend avoiding muskmelon consumption. Some of these conditions are:

• Stomach issues: If you have stomach issues, it is best to not eat muskmelon for the time being.
• Weak stomach: Muskmelon can be heavy on the stomach, and if you have a weak stomach, it can cause issues like gas and diarrhoea. So, best avoid eating it altogether.
• Cough and cold: When having a cough and cold, experts recommend not to eat muskmelon as it is a summer fruit and is cold-refreshing in nature.

To sum up, there are many health benefits of muskmelons concerning heart, hair, eye, stomach and others mentioned in detail above. So, you must adapt it to your daily diet to keep yourself hydrated during the summer months and gain glowing skin. However, keep the intake level balanced to avoid experiencing its side effects.