Friday, December 26, 2008

Goodness of Mangosteen

I wish to share more information on the goodness of mangosteen.

Mangosteen (Garcinia Mangostana), a tropical fruit grown in Southeast Asia countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam, consists of a thick dark purple smooth rind known as pericarp and 4 – 8 triangular segment of snow-white, sofe flesh knows as pulp. It has been proclaimed by many as the best among all tropical fruit, popularly known as “Queen of Fruit”.

The mangosteen fruit is rich in vitamins such as B1, B2 & C and contains minerals like calcium, potassium, sodium and iron. However, the standout feature of this fruit is the presence of a high concentration of xanthones, a class of plant derived nutrients or "phytonutrients".

According to numerous scientific studies, xanthones are found to exhibit strong antioxidant activity to enhance and support the immune system in our bodies. Of the more than 200 known xanthones that are found in the plant kingdom, more than 40 are found in mangosteen. Amazingly, the most concentrated source of xanthones are found in the pericarp (rind) of the mangosteen fruit.

We can read about many benefits of xanthones by internet search. Interestingly, I come to know that xanthones serve an important purpose by fighting free radicals. It seem s that free radicals seek to attain atomic stability by acquiring an electron from the cells in the human body; thereby, causing irreversible oxidation of the cells. Nevertheless, xanthones have an antioxidant effect and they counter the deleterious effects of free radicals thus protecting the biological cells in our bodies.

I have also read about the Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) test showing that mangosteen juice is 20-30 times more effective than other fruits and vegetables in absorbing free radicals.

Just like many of my friends in Malaysia and Indonesia, I really enjoy the delicious taste of mangosteen fruit but we can only eat the fruit pulp. We have been throwing away the pericarp and the seeds which are the main source of xanothones. Moreover, mangosteen is not available throughout the year except during the fruiting season.

In today’s health concerns especially for senior citizens (the ageing parents, uncles and aunties), wellness is true happiness to them. I strongly believe that precaution of sickness is much better than daily medication.

I am now a senior citizen too, just retired from working in Indonesia. When I am asked of my age, I used to tell people, “I am 26”.

Yesterday, we had a fellowship breakfast after the church service at Chrisma Assembly, Segamat, on Christmas day. I was introduced to a church member and he told me that he was 46 years old. Jokingly, I told him that, “I am also 46”, as I was born in 1946. To be a young old man is better than an old young man. Don't you agree? Hahaha....

Praise the Lord that as we grow older, age is no more our main concern. Most important is that we must always feel young in our hearts and we are still fit to go for brisk walking, jogging, running, swimming, cycling, playing games and doing other forms of light exercises.

After knowing the goodness that mangosteen fruit can offer, it will be good that we can drink mangosteen juice daily as nutritional supplement to keep us staying healthy.

(For information on original whole fruit mangosteen juice, click and visit http://www.myxango.com.my/jamesloh)

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wonderful sharing on the mangosteen and living life after long years of active employment.We spent the first half of our life building our career,pursueing the material success etc but at this stage of our life,it is the second and last half,it is significance we are pursueing.We have been blessed by God and we in turn bless other people and their life can be impacted!

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year 2009 and very best wishes for a great taste of mangosteen plus longevity! Though, do not forget that exercises, practicality, humors and pragmatism are ingredients to it all!

jmtan2007.blogspot.com said...

Goodness gracious. How audicious. It's the goodness of mangosteen! Yes, the mangosteen is a good local fruit. It's very sweet and nutritious, but how to eat the skin which is very bitter and hard to swallow. I've read in the papers the purple colour of the skin can be used for dyeing cloth.Natural and cheap way of dyeing. Anyway, our local fruits have a lot of nutritional values. Fruits like papaya,mango, pineapple,jackfruit to mention a few are good and much cheaper than imported ones. We don't have to look far for good things. If we were to only look carefully at what is around us, we can find acres of diamonds. So the grass is not always greener on the other side, you see.

Maxloh said...

It's true that when we eat mangosteen fruit, we throw away the pericarp (rind) because we can't eat it. But do you know that the pericarp of mangosteen can absorb fats? Do you know that the perculiar structure of the pericarp with its alkaline viscose that it is a main raw material for manufacturing medicines? It seems that the health power is in the "skin"!

Yesterday after the morning walk at Segamat Country Club, we sat down for a chit chat while reading the newspapers. One Mr. Seow told us that his mum used to add a few slices of the rind when cooking meat soup for the purpose of absorbing the top layer of fat in the boiled soup. He also revealed that by boiling the rind in water and drink it can help to relief diarrhea and lower cholesterol.

Why not try to drink the whole fruit mangosteen juice (XanGo Juice) after knowing the goodness of mangosteen for the presence of Xanthones (super antioxidant)in its pericarp? Prevention of illness with natural nutrient supplements is always better then medication. Tht's what I think.