Eating healthy is hard work, right? Well, not exactly. As long as you do a little planning, it can be incredibly easy to have food options in your home that are both healthy and tasty.
One simple method for picking the right food is to focus on superfoods. These are foods that are considered exceptionally nutrient dense.
Usually when we think of superfoods, we think of the famous ones: kale, blueberries, quinoa, matcha, etc. But did you know that dragon fruit is a superfood as well? It’s true!
Here are six reasons why you should add dragon fruit to your shopping list:
1. Immunity Booster
Dragon fruit contains high levels of Vitamin C and carotenoids. These help boost your immune system and give your white blood cells the tools they need to fight against infections.
2. Antioxidants
Dragon fruit is rich in antioxidants, namely betacyanins and betaxanthins, which can help combat cell damage. These benefits work topically as well, so you can try adding dragon fruit powder to your next face mask to improve your skin health and give yourself that extra glow.
3. Digestion Support
Did you know that more than 70% of people deal with some sort of digestive problem? Even if you have never experienced serious issues, it is fair to say we have all dealt with bloating, gas, and abdominal pain at some point.
Dragon fruit is packed with prebiotics, which help stimulate the growth of good bacteria in the stomach and intestines. So if you are on a low-FODMAP diet, or just want to improve your gut health, dragon fruit is worth a look.
4. Maintaining Your Heart Health
Heart disease is one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Unfortunately, heart health cannot be restored overnight, so it’s important to take precautions before problems become too serious.
One way you can improve the health of your hardest working muscle is to add more omega-3 and omega-9 fats to your diet. A study done in 2010 showed that consuming dragon fruit, which contains both of these powerful omega compounds, lowers the risk of developing heart disease and high blood pressure.
Omega-3 in particular helps with weight reduction, decreasing liver fat, and increasing your HDL (good cholesterol). However, omega-3 is an essential fat, meaning our bodies cannot produce it, so our best option is to include more omega-3 rich foods, like dragon fruit, in our diet. Hip hip heart-ray :)
5. Stabilizing Sugar Levels
Consuming sugar leads to insulin spikes, which can make you feel sluggish and hungry. Experiencing insulin spikes too frequently increases your risk of disease, like type 2 diabetes. One method for combating these spikes is to incorporate more fiber in your diet.
A single cup of dragon fruit contains approximately 25% of your daily recommended fiber intake. So when you are thinking about making a dessert, consider adding dragon fruit powder to the recipe. It will taste great and help keep your insulin in check..
6. Fighting Acne
Acne is not just a problem for teenagers. Many of us deal with adult acne (you are not alone!). Dragon fruit powder can be added to your face masks, which will not only help with redness reduction but also collagen production. Collagen helps prevent scarring from acne and promotes smooth and resilient skin.
How Do You Use Dragon Fruit?
It’s hard to mess up dragon fruit. It tastes great no matter how you try it. Fresh, frozen, powdered - it’s all good!
We love using the freeze-dried dragon fruit powder because it’s super convenient while preserving all the nutrients and fiber. You can mix it in a smoothie or yogurt and get a quick boost of vitamins and antioxidants.
Need a recipe idea? Check out this recipe for Ancient Dragon Pudding or some of the others in our Recipes section.
