Soursop – Health Benefits, Uses and Important Facts

Soursop is a great tropical fruit to add to your diet because it is good for your health. The fruit of the soursop tree (Annona muricata), which is also called graviola, is large, heart-shaped, and prickly. It has soft, juicy meat. It is dark green when it is raw, but as it ripens, it becomes a bit lighter green. This fruit looks and tastes a lot like custard apples and cherimoyas in many ways. Its white, sweet, juicy flesh is full of small, shiny black seeds.

What is soursop?

Soursop is a fruit that grows in warm and tropical parts. It has a lot of different names. It is called Annona muricata by scientists, but other names include guanabana, paw-paw, sirsak, and graviola.

Soursop is in the Annonaceae family, which is also called the "custard apple" family. The fruits are big and oval, and they grow on trees. The green outside has spines, and the white, fibrous inside is covered by that. They can get as tall as 8 inches and as heavy as 10 pounds. The taste of soursop is most like a mix of mango and pineapple.

Soursop has been used in traditional medicine to treat a wide range of illnesses and health problems. It is rich in nutrients and has many health benefits because of this.

Nutritional profile of soursop:

One cup (225 grams) of soursop pulp has 148 calories, 2.3g of protein, 37.8g of carbs, and 0.7g of fat. Soursop is a great way to get fibre, vitamin C, and potassium.

Health benefits of soursop: 

Soursop facilitates better digestion

One soursop fruit has about 83% of your daily fibre needs. Fibre is an important nutrient for digestive health. Fibre can help keep you regular and stop digestive problems like constipation.

Soursop may have anti-carcinogenic effects

Even though most research is done in test tubes, soursop may be helpful in fighting and preventing cancer. One study found that a soursop extract could kill cancer cells and shrink breast cancer tumours. In a second study, an extract was shown to stop the growth of leukaemia cells.

Soursop fights pain and swelling 

Antioxidants combat free radicals, which lessens the damage that oxidative stress does to your cells. Inflammation is one of the things that can happen because of oxidative stress. Since soursop has antioxidants, it may help to reduce inflammation in the body.

Soursop helps keep blood pressure steady 

Heart disease and heart attacks can be caused by high blood pressure. Getting too much sodium in your diet can lead to high blood pressure. Potassium helps your body get rid of sodium and relaxes the walls of your blood vessels, which can both help lower your blood pressure. About one-third to one-half of your suggested daily intake of potassium can be found in a whole soursop fruit.