Diabetics are allowed to consume grapefruit. Does this mean that consuming grapefruit can reduce blood sugar?
The truth is that eating grapefruit does lower blood sugar, but simply eating grapefruit won’t lower blood sugar. It depends on the level of blood sugar and how much and how you consume grapefruit.
The pomelo, also known as Wendan, is a citrus fruit in the Punica family, with the Shatin pomelo and the honey pomelo being the two most popular species.
Nutritional Facts of Grapefruit
For every 100 grams of edible portion of a grapefruit, it provides 84.8 grams of water, 12.2 grams of carbohydrates, 0.7 grams of protein, 0.6 grams of fat, and 0.8 grams of crude fiber, and it contains 57 kcal of energy.
Besides, the pomelo is also loaded with various micronutrients. For instance, it contains a variety of minerals such as calcium (41 mg), phosphorus (43 mg), and iron (0.9 mg); it also has a variety of vitamins like carotene (0.12 mg), riboflavin (0.02 mg), niacin (0.5 mg), and vitamin C (41 mg).
The glycemic index (GI value) of a grapefruit is 25, and the glycemic load (GL value) is 2. It is clear that a grapefruit does not contain a lot of sugar and is thus suitable for diabetics.
Does eating grapefruit really lower blood sugar?
Grapefruit acts as a hypoglycemic agent as it contains a variety of phytochemicals, however, some of these phytochemicals are found in the parts that we do not eat of the grapefruit:
Natural pigments in grapefruit peel
The pigments consist of fat-soluble carotenoids and water-soluble flavonoids, both of which are found in grapefruit peel. Of the water-soluble pigments, the main component is naringin, a polyphenol that is found in grapefruit peel, and possesses antioxidant and hypoglycemic activities.
Pomelo peel is rich in dietary fiber
Among them, the water-soluble dietary fiber component has the effect of promoting bowel movement and blood sugar reduction.
Grapefruit peel pectin
Pomelo peel pectin is a long linear molecule of a complex polysaccharide that not only lowers LDL cholesterol thus reducing the degree of damage of the artery wall, but also exerts a hypoglycemic effect.
Vitamin C is abundant in grapefruit pulp
As a natural antioxidant, vitamin C achieves both antioxidant and hypoglycemic effects through the removal of free radicals from the body.
If diabetics want to lower their blood sugar with the help of grapefruit, they should consider using every part of the grapefruit that is available to them. For instance, by soaking the grapefruit peel in water, cutting the grapefruit peel into pieces and soaking 15-20 pieces in water at around 25-70 degrees Celsius for 10 minutes each time.
“Dr. Rana Patir is an eminent Neurosurgeon of India with more than 30 years of experience in the field of advanced neurosurgery. Besides being a teaching faculty at AIIMS and at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, and professor of Neurosurgery at Guwahati Assam. He has also been the head of the department of Neurosurgery at Max hospitals, and Sir Ganga Ram hospital New Delhi. He is known as one of the best Neurosurgeons and spinal surgeons in India, having more than 10,000 neurosurgical procedures to his credit. He specializes in Minimal Invasive Brain and Spine Surgery, Skull Base Surgery, Neurovascular Surgery, Extra Cranial-Intracranial Bypass Surgery,”
