With its sweet fragrance and rosy red color, the allure of a juicy ripe strawberry is almost irresistible. In fact, most people’s mouths begin to water just at the sight of one of these red delicious beauties. Luckily, given the health benefits of strawberries, there is really no reason to deprive yourself. In fact, you should go ahead and indulge to your heart’s content!
Strawberries are loaded with antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients. These include anthocyanins, flavonols, ellagitannins, terpenoids, stilbenes, hydroxy-cinnamic acids, hydroxybenzoic acids, and phenolic acids. Based on typical serving sizes, researchers rank strawberries fourth among high antioxidant foods. This has instigated a flurry of research studying the benefit of strawberries on preventing cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain types of cancer, especially breast cancer and prostate cancer. This is why a bowl of strawberries with a little milk is considered one of the healthiest snacks you can eat. Plus, even if you decide to sprinkle a little sugar on them, the polyphenols in the strawberries reduce the spike in blood glucose that you would normally have after eating sugar.
Each strawberry you eat is a potent heart-shaped nutrient package for your body! Just one single medium-sized strawberry contains eleven percent of the recommended amount of vitamin C you need so it isn’t hard to get a whole day’s supply of vitamin C in one sitting these delicious berries! Strawberries are also very high in manganese, iodine, folate, copper, potassium, biotin, phosphorus, magnesium, and vitamin B6. In addition, they contain good amounts of calcium, iron, selenium, and vitamin A. It’s no wonder strawberries are the ultimate heart-friendly food as well as an excellent choice for diabetics. Strawberries are also excellent for the eyes and will help fight any type of inflammation such as arthritis. They are also an excellent choice for anyone looking to lose weight since they are extremely nutrient dense and contain only four calories per strawberry.
The health benefits of strawberries are at their peak when they are fully ripe and eaten fresh. The next most healthy strawberries are those that are frozen right at their peak of ripeness. Unfortunately, many of the frozen strawberries available in grocery stores are not fully ripe when frozen. Therefore, to maximize the nutritional benefits of frozen strawberries, you’ll want to buy a pallet of locally grown strawberries during peak ripeness and freeze them yourself in airtight containers or ziplock bags. Buying local strawberries ensures they weren’t picked under-ripe before shipping which greatly impacts their phytonutrient quantity and quality.
The strawberry season varies depending on your geographic location. For example, in the United States, strawberries usually peak in the middle of June in the northern states and mid-February in the southern states. Check out farmers markets, roadside stands, and natural grocery stores for the best quality ones. Keep in mind that strawberries grown in rich organic soil will be higher in nutrients than conventional strawberries grown in nutrient-poor soil. They’ll taste better too!