Ever wondered what you could make out of pumpkin seeds or how beneficial it is for your health?
Pepita or pumpkin seed is beneficial for diabetes, weight loss, for parasites and intestinal Worms, for prostate problems, hair loss and many more.
Well, for starters it enhances your immunity and ensures you have a good sleep. Pumpkin seeds have far more beneficial factors than expected, and this article will help clear your doubts.
If you’re a person who loves pumpkins, you have much more reasons to eat them on a regular basis.
Pepita or most commonly known as pumpkin seeds are the kernels of the pumpkin and are entirely edible. They are hulled and roasted and contain the high amounts of nutrients. They can also be consumed raw.
Table of Contents
Nutrition Profile Of Pumpkin Seed
Raw pumpkin seeds contain more nutritional value than roasted pumpkin seeds. Here’s what raw pumpkin seeds offer:
- Raw pumpkin seeds are a rich source of fiber which is important to prevent constipation and it helps improve your digestive functions.
- They increase your intake of protein and boost mineral intake as well.
- The seeds are also rich in iron, potassium, magnesium, zinc, and phosphorus, all of which help to function in red blood cells.
- It’s also a source of vitamin E a form of fat-soluble vitamin which keeps your cardiovascular system healthy by reducing blood pressure and thins your blood to reduce the risk of blood clotting.
- It’s also a rich source of vitamin K which helps in blood clot formation so that it prevents bleeding out, helps heal your skin after an injury, strengthens bone growth and helps maintain it.
- Rich in iron- pumpkin seeds offer 16% of your daily dose of iron in just a ¼ cup.
Health Benefits Of Pumpkin Seeds
1. Magnesium-Rich
It’s often forgotten that magnesium is an exceedingly important mineral for your body. Magnesium deficiency causes several health problems, many of which go unnoticed because they seem so common.
Some of these health problems include headaches, constipation, insomnia (lack of sleep), low blood sugar, and moodiness.
Pumpkin seeds are found to have very high amounts of magnesium content. A small serving of pumpkin seeds can go a long way. It helps regulate muscular movements and functioning of the nerves.
2. Protein Rich
1 cup of roasted pumpkin seeds contains 11.87 grams of protein. Pumpkin seeds are rich in protein and a source of amino acids that help increase serotonin levels in your body and these enhance your moods!
3. Rich In Zinc
Zinc, also another commonly forgotten mineral plays an important part in our body. It helps improve immunity, cell growth and division, sleep and mood, insulin regulation, and sexual functions in men and most of all help boost metabolism in your body.
It also indirectly improves your skin, hair, and nails. Thus, zinc is very important for your body and pumpkin seeds to contain high amounts of zinc.
4. Potassium
Potassium does the job of regulating muscle contractions, fluids, balancing minerals and helps lower the risk of recurring kidney stones and bone loss or bone damage as your body ages.
Pumpkin seeds are known to have 588 mg of potassium per 1 cup, far more than a banana contains.
5. High In Fiber
Pumpkin seeds are very high sources of fiber and surprisingly or maybe not, they seem to have higher fiber content than most nuts.
The fiber from these seeds is known to digest faster than those fibers found in many beans, grains, and nuts and hence prevent constipation more effectively. They also help regulate blood sugar.
6. The Fat That Is Healthy
Have you come across the term ‘Healthy fat’? Pumpkin seeds have high-fat content, but it’s the kind of fat that is good for your body, the kind your body loves! Like all kinds of fat, these are also not meant to be taken in large amounts.
The pumpkin seeds are a hearty source of omega three fatty acids and a rich source of monounsaturated fats that protect the heart, help manage your weight and prevent or lower the risk of inflammation. Healthy fats help for the overall development and balance of the body.
7. Use Pumpkin Seeds For Parasites And Intestinal Worms
From pumpkin seeds to oils to extracts, they have been known and valued for their power to fight parasites. These have immense anti-microbial properties that make them fight against parasites and fungus.
It not only prevents the unhealthy microbes from entering and harming the body but eliminates them. Just a ¼ cup a day has shown to improve your immunity.
8. Non-Allergic
Pumpkin seeds as we know to provide more nutritional requirements than most nuts; it even contains more healthy fat. So, for all those who are allergic to nuts, don’t worry about nutrition. Pumpkin seeds are here to help!
9. Reduces Inflammation
Raw pumpkin seeds are high in chlorophyll and hence are green. Chlorophyll naturally cleanses the body, and this prevents inflammation that can occur in a case of a high acid diet.
10. Weight Lose And Anti-Diabetic Effects
Recent laboratory studies on animals have shown that pumpkin seed extracts, oils, and ground pumpkin seeds improves regulation of insulin in diabetic animals and prevent unwanted disasters of diabetes on kidney function by decreasing oxidative stress suggesting that this may also apply to people.
Poly and mono-saturated fats found in pumpkin seeds and extracts have been known to improve your metabolism rate and keep it running smoothly and maintain hormonal balance in your body.
The higher your rate of metabolism, the faster you lose weight. Unfortunately, there has been no proof of any benefit regarding weight loss.
11. Testosterone Rise
Pumpkin seeds have high unsaturated fat, are full of fiber and contain several other nutrients that may help increase testosterone levels.
Pumpkin seeds also contain a form of amino acid called leucine that helps enhance fat oxidation and endurance and hence it is popular as sports nutrition. Athletes especially find this quite beneficial.
12. Pumpkin Seeds For Prostate Problems And Bladder Treatment
Pumpkin seeds have been known to be beneficial for prostate health. The protective compounds in pumpkin seeds and some part also contributed by the high zinc content have been valued for its work in treating benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) a condition where the prostate enlarges.
They have also been known to treat effectively overactive bladder, a condition where you have a sudden urge to urinate that may lead to involuntary urination.
Pumpkin seeds have been known to not only treat physical and physiological ailments but psychological ailments as well. Research suggests that the L-tryptophan in the seeds can help elevate mood and fight depression, anxiety, and stress.
It can help increase serotonin levels and, in turn, have a positive effect on your mood, appetite, sleep, and pain. The abundance of amino acids is said to help elevate anxiety.
The powerful antioxidants present help reduce inflammation and pain and ease arthritis symptoms. They help thwart heart diseases.
13. Hair Growth And Skincare
Pumpkin seeds happen to be super effective in this area as well! If you are suffering from hair loss or thinning of hair, or if your skin needs rejuvenation, pumpkin seeds are the way to go!
They help cure hair loss by stimulating hair growth; helps strengthen your hair, maintain a healthy scalp and helps in the formation of collagen and skin cells and, therefore, rejuvenating it.
If you do not prefer eating them, you can always buy some pumpkin seed oil and create a conditioner.
Here’s How
- Take one-half of an apple and blend it, add one tablespoon of the seed oil and shea butter to it.
- Whisk the egg in a separate container and add it to the apple puree while stirring constantly.
- Your conditioner is now ready! Wash your hair with shampoo and then apply the conditioner to your hair and scalp thoroughly. Leave it in for 20 to 30 minutes and then rinse it off.
14. Prevents Kidney Stones
Studies have found that eating pumpkin seeds can prevent calcium oxalate stone, the most common type of kidney stones.
Although the properties responsible for this are not identified, it is said that pumpkin seeds help reduce levels of the substance responsible for the formation of kidney stones, and it increases the levels of the substance that helps prevent the formulation of stones.
15. Protects Men’s Bone And Benefits Women Postmenopause
Regular intake of pumpkin seeds can help improve bone mineral density in men. It is well known that postmenopausal women are at high risk of osteoporosis, but so are men. Osteoporosis is highly likely t affect men as much as it affects women.
Pumpkin seeds contain high amounts of zinc and rich in phytoestrogens, and this helps in the increase of “good” HDL cholesterol and decreases blood pressure, hot flashes, headaches, joint and muscle pains in postmenopausal women.
The high zinc content in these seeds reduces the risk of osteoporosis especially at the hip and spine in men and women.
16. External Use
If you suffer from dry skin, roughness, pimples, spots and freckles, etc. pumpkin face pack can help reduce and prevent skin damage and rejuvenate your skin. All you need to do is apply a face pack made from the pulp of this fruit and leave it on for 10-15min before washing it off.
17. Diuretic Properties
The diuretic properties in pumpkins are so rich in fiber and contain fewer calories which make it suitable to treat obesity and constipation. This is especially important for people suffering from IBS- Irritable Bowel Syndrome.
The presence of amino acids contribute to good health by helping synthesize proteins, helps in the development of muscle and scar healing, helps eliminate ammonium, helps enhance the immune system. They also not only prevent tapeworms but also kill them.
18. Parent, Essential Oils Helps Fight Cancer
PEOs or Parent Essential Oils are those that increase oxygen levels in your bodies. Consumption of adulterated oil and fat from food processing industries cause a loss in oxygenation ability.
In the beginning, the food contains the functional and vitally needed oxygen transferring parent essential oils, but once they are processed and refined, they are ruined.
Your body doesn’t know how to make them on its own; it derives it from consumption of PEOs. The common everyday processed foods are giving people cancer!
Thankfully, it’s been proven that the pre-cancerous cells can be killed or just stay benign by resupplying cellular oxygen through adequate amounts and a proper ration of PEOs. Pumpkin seed oil does just that!
19. Libido Boosters
Pumpkin seeds are also greatly known to boost your libido. The essential minerals like calcium, phosphorus, niacin, and potassium are known to be essential for regulating your sex drive. Also, they contain high amounts of zinc which prevent testosterone deficiency in men.
How To Use Them?
They can be used in soups, salads, sandwiches if you want to add texture to them. They can also be made for a pesto sauce by blending in the pumpkin seeds, olive oil, and fresh basil.
How Much Pumpkin Seed You Should Eat
A quarter cup of pumpkin seeds offers 57.7% of magnesium, 34.4% of iron, 29.7% of manganese, 21.4% of zinc, 19.7% of monounsaturated fat, 19.2% of copper, and 16.9% of protein!
Best Way To Eat Pumpkin Seed
To preserve all the nutrients and gain almost all of it, in that case, it’s best to eat pumpkin seeds raw! If you are buying pumpkin seeds in bulk, you want to make sure they smell fresh and not stale or spoiled. Organic seeds are better as they are not contaminated with pesticides and other harmful chemicals.
If you plan to eat it raw, it’s best to soak them in water or sprout them; next, you dehydrate them in your oven. You can also choose to dehydrate using a dehydrator.
If you prefer to have them roasted, make sure you roast them on low heat and keep an eye on them. You don’t want to burn them or over roast it; they could lose their nutritional value.
Side Effects Of Pumpkin Seed
1. Indigestion
As you may have heard people say, too much of anything is bad. This goes for pumpkin seeds as well. Although they have exceedingly nutritional benefits, eating too much it can cause diarrhea, gas and constipation
It can cause stomach ache especially if you eat them in huge quantities
2. Loss Of Nutrients
Overcooking them can cause them to lose their nutritional value, thereby you won’t be acquiring any nutrition and will result in a deficiency.
3. Causes Low Blood Pressure
This can be unsafe for people with low blood pressure, pumpkin seeds lower your blood pressure level and hence should not be consumed if you have low blood pressure.
4. Weight Gain
Pumpkin seeds have high-fat content, although it is ‘good’ fat, it has not been proved to help in weight loss and hence if consumed in large quantities can cause you actually to gain
No scientific evidence supports the use of pumpkin seeds by pregnant and breastfeeding women, so it is better to steer clear of this.
