Useful properties of watermelon seeds for the body: are there any contraindications, chemical composition, what and how they can be cured, how tasty it can be cooked. Someone likes watermelon, some don't, but they eat it a lot (especially in summer and autumn) and it is not an exotic fruit (read about the beneficial properties of watermelon). In its red juicy sugar flesh there are always many dark brown hard large seeds. Just chewing them with watermelon pulp is unpleasant and not tasty. Should I throw them away? Can they be eaten? Do they have healing properties? Let's figure it out.
Properties of watermelon seeds
All the substances that make watermelon useful are present both in the pulp and in the seeds, and even in the rind of the watermelon. For example, biological substances that increase the alkalinity of urine and affect the cleansing of the urogenital area: salt toxins dissolve in the kidneys and are excreted in the urine. Also, in addition to the diuretic effect, watermelon seeds have an antiseptic anti-inflammatory effect. They taste no worse than sunflower seeds, they can also be fried, dried and salted. So, we can safely talk about both the medicinal and culinary properties of watermelon seeds.
By the way, for the first time I ate dried watermelon seeds in Thailand, where they are sold like pumpkin seeds in any stores! But in Russia and Ukraine they are thrown away for some reason.
The chemical composition of watermelon seeds
The photo on the pack with peeled watermelon seeds indicates the calorie content per serving of 25 g - 150 kcal, but at 100 g it turns out - all 600 kcal It is more pleasant to eat dried watermelon seeds. At the same time, they do not lose their properties: vitamins and microelements are preserved. They even contain healthy fats - polyunsaturated (including omega-6), monounsaturated, and saturated.
The calorie content of watermelon seeds per 100 g is 560-600 kcal, so there:
Proteins - 28, 3 g Fats - 47, 4 g Carbohydrates - 15, 29 g Saturated fatty acids - 9, 78 g Water - up to 5 g Ash - up to 4 g Fiber is not contained at all, but there are many vitamins and useful micro and macro elements.
Vitamins:
Vitamin B1 thiamine - 0.2 mg B2 riboflavin - 0.15 mg B3 nicotinic acid - 0.35 mg B6 pyridoxine - 0.9 mg B9 folic - 58 μgRP - 3.5 mg
Macronutrients:
Phosphorus - 750 mg Calcium - 55 mg Potassium - 650 mg Magnesium - 514 mg Sodium - up to 100 mg
Trace elements:
Iron - 7.3 mg Manganese - 1.62 mg Copper - 690 μg Zinc - 7.3 mg
Raw watermelon seeds contain hemicellulose, the more common name is semi-cellulose, so it contains polysaccharides that do not dissolve in water and enhance the cleansing properties of seeds. Although we know that watermelon is not an oilseed crop, its seed oil still contains 20-40 percent. Its properties resemble almond.
The benefits and harms of watermelon seeds
Traditional medicine appreciates this watermelon product because it perfectly removes uric acid from the body. This healing property prevents the appearance of urolithiasis. Seeds are especially useful for men, because they support the function of the prostate gland, and due to the content of selenium and zinc, they prevent the development of adenoma, normalize sexual function.
The protein content (about 35%) indicates a sufficient content of amino acids to maintain muscle mass and replenish the energy expended by the body. There are four useful amino acids in watermelon seeds: tryptophan, glutamic acid, lysine and arginine. The latter supports the heart muscle and normalizes blood pressure, reduces the risk of heart attack.
Less effective, but still help the useful substances of watermelon seeds to improve vision, maintain the health of eyes, nails, skin, hair. They improve metabolism, the functioning of the nervous system and are very well known as an anthelmintic agent. Watermelon, including all its constituents (pulp, seeds, rind), contains a controversial amino acid, citrulline. The fact is that when it enters the digestive tract, it is converted into L-arginine, which our body is able to synthesize on its own. The benefits of citrulline include the ability to lower blood pressure, dilate blood vessels, they treat impotence, it affects the level of glucose in the blood. But there is also a controversial side - harm to people with impaired citrulline synthesis.
Studies have shown that citrulline in the body is broken down with the release of a "bad" product - ammonia. It is excreted in the urine, but it is this fact that proves the harmfulness of the pulp and seeds of watermelon for patients with citrullinemia, which is associated with the urea cycle.
How to cook watermelon seeds
The most popular recipe is to fry them. Before cooking, the seeds are washed and dried on a towel, for example. Then, pour them into a heated dry frying pan and fry for about 6 minutes, until they begin to darken. Dissolve a teaspoon of salt in? a glass of water and pour this mixture into a skillet. Continue toasting until the liquid is gone. Turn off the heat, refrigerate the watermelon seeds and serve.
Anthelmintic recipe:
before preparing the product, the watermelon seeds are dried in the oven, then crushed and mixed in a 1:10 ratio with low-fat milk. The resulting "cocktail" is drunk during the day at least 2 glasses. They drink on an empty stomach.
Folk recipe for hypertension:
dry the seeds and rind of the watermelon, then grind them into powder. Take it half a teaspoon 2 r. in a day. If you take the powder constantly for one month, then the pressure will return to normal. Also, the recipe acts as a choleretic agent, but powder should be consumed in 2 or 3 teaspoons in the morning and at bedtime.
In general, in the cooking of other countries, watermelon seeds are used more actively. The Chinese, for example, fry them with different spices, grind them in Africa and add them to soups and sauces.
