Health Benefits of Pumpkin Seeds - An Overview

Introduction

Pumpkin seed is a nutrient-dense plant product with various health benefits and medicinal properties. They can provide substantial nutrition, such as fats, magnesium, and zinc, even if consumed in small amounts regularly. In addition, it is highly enriched with various amino acids, carotenoids, dietary fiber, vitamins, and minerals. This makes it a very good health supplement.

Pumpkin seeds are also used for medicinal or therapeutic purposes as it has antihypertensive, antitumor, antibacterial, immunomodulatory, antiparasitic, antiinflammatory antiparasitic, and antihypercholesterolemic properties. In addition, it increases the bioactive compounds in the human diet. The seeds are usually byproducts and discarded during the consumption of the pumpkin. However, it should be incorporated into the diet as a snack or ingredient of a meal as it is highly nutritious. Incorporating pumpkin seeds as a part of the diet can help prevent dietary deficiency and promote overall well-being and health.

What Are the Pumpkin Seeds?

Pumpkins are delicious fruits from the Cucurbitaceae family. It is usually grown and consumed as a vegetable across the globe. Pumpkins are usually grown with cucumber and squash in tropical and subtropical regions. This vegetable is utilized to make various food items, including desserts. However, the small oval flat-shaped seeds are removed before consumption or processing and discarded as agricultural residue. The seeds are usually nutty in flavor. Therefore, it is cheaper in cost and a highly nutrient-dense product.

Following are the various ways of incorporating pumpkin seeds into the diet.

• It can be used in salted and roasted forms as a snack.

• It can be used in a sprouted form.

• It can be used in baked form.

• It can be used to coat meat and fish.

• It can be sprinkled on salads.

• It can be used as a garnish in soups.

• It can be added to cookies.

• It can be added to oatmeal raisins.

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• It can be added to the diet as pumpkin seeds butter.

• It can be added to granola.

• It can be sprinkled on tacos.

• It can be added to bread dough before baking.

What Are the Nutritional Value of Pumpkin Seeds?

Pumpkin seeds contain abundant nutrition and are highly enriched with minerals and fibers. These are great sources of critical nutrition that the body needs. Pumpkin seeds are available in the market without its shell. It is available in roasted, fried, battered, and plain variants. The raw unsalted and plain variant is more nutritious as they contain higher amounts of dietary fiber and unsaturated fats. As a result, the seeds usually provide low calorie and low sodium content, making it a healthy weight maintenance method. In addition, pumpkin seeds are good sources of iron, zinc, protein magnesium, manganese, copper, potassium polyunsaturated fatty acids, carotenoids, and c- tocopherol.

Following is the nutritional value of the pumpkin seeds as per 100 grams of seeds.

• Macronutrients

  • Carbohydrate - 10.7 grams.

  • Protein - 32.03 grams.

  • Fats - 49.05 grams.

• Micronutrients

  • Vitamin B9 - 58 micrograms.

  • Vitamin B3 - 4.8 micrograms.

  • Vitamin B5 -0.75 micrograms.

  • Vitamin B6 - 0.14 micrograms.

  • Vitamin B2 - 0.15 micrograms.

  • Vitamin B1 - 0.27 micrograms.

  • Vitamin C - 0.2 micrograms.

  • Vitamin A - 16 International units.

  • Vitamin E - 35.8 micrograms.

• Major Minerals

  • Sodium -7.0 microgram.

  • Potassium - 809 micrograms.

• Mineral Deposits

  • Copper - 1.43 microgram.

  • Iron -8.8 micrograms.

  • Magnesium - 592 micrograms.

  • Manganese -4.54 micrograms.

  • Zinc -7.8 micrograms.

  • Selenium - 9.40 micrograms.

• Phytochemicals

  • Beta Carotene - 9.0 micrograms.

  • Beta CryptoXanthin - 1 microgram.

  • Lutein Zeaxanthin -74 micrograms.

• Fiber - 6 grams.

• Provided Energy - 559 kilocalories.

How Are Pumpkin Seeds Beneficial to Health?

• Antioxidant Properties - Pumpkin seeds are a very good source of antioxidants. It is enriched with powerful antioxidants like vitamin E and carotenoids. It protects the body from free radicals and prevents various diseases. It also reduces inflammation in the body.

• Blood Pressure Regulation - It contains potassium which helps in maintaining blood pressure.

• Eye Health - The Vitamin C, A, E, and beta carotene content of pumpkin seeds help improve eye health. It helps in reducing age-related macular degeneration.

• Blood Sugar - Pumpkin seeds are beneficial for diabetic patients as it helps in maintaining the blood sugar level.

• Cancer Prevention - It helps reduce the risks of various cancers, such as stomach, breast, colon, and prostate cancer, as it can slow down the growth of cancerous cells.

• Cardiac Health - Pumpkin seeds contain magnesium, zinc, and fatty acids, which keep the heart healthy. It also maintains the blood pressure and cholesterol level in the blood, which prevents cardiovascular diseases.

• Improves Sleep - Pumpkin seeds contain zinc, magnesium, and tryptophan, reducing stress and anxiety and promoting good sleep.

• Improves Bladder Health - It helps reduce the symptoms of overactive bladder in benign prostate enlargement and improves bladder health.

• Bone Health - The magnesium content of pumpkin seeds helps improve bone health. It helps in the formation of healthy bones.

What Are the Downsides of Pumpkin Seeds?

People under diuretic medication should avoid pumpkin seeds as they can interact with the medications. In addition, certain people may get allergies to pumpkin seeds, leading to scaly and irritated skin surfaces. Instead, it should be consumed in roasted soaked or sprouted form as the phytic content of the seeds reduces certain nutrient absorption.

Conclusion

Seeds are extremely nutrient-dense as they contain all the starting material essential to develop into plants. Pumpkin seeds can be considered a gold mine in diet due to their health benefits and medicinal properties. Therefore, it should be added to the diet to fulfill the nutritional requirement.

It is a functional, healthy, sustainable, and medicinal food product. Its rich nutritional content provides various health benefits and boosts the immune system. It can be easily incorporated into a diet in various forms, such as a snack in roasted form, sprinkled into salads, greek yogurt salads, and smoothies. It is one of the most economical and sustainable food products that can help fight malnutrition. However, they contain certain phytic acids, which can reduce the bioavailability of certain nutrients in the body. Therefore, it is recommended to roast, soak or sprout the seeds to decrease their phytotoxicity and they should be consumed in moderation to avoid constipation.