Linda Kordich's
Wellness Newsletter #5
Melons and More Melons
Discover the incredible benefits of Melons; blended, juiced, eaten!
Here's my Video for the week:
My Podcast:
(click below if you don't have time to read)
Why is it Important to Include Melons into our diet?
Melons are hydrating and full of healthy antioxidants, such as beta-carotene in cantaloupe and lycopene in watermelon. They're also good sources of electrolytes like potassium, as well as vitamin C. Melons also, when their peel is consumed ups the entire nutritional scoreboard. Melons are low in sodium, and very low in saturated fat and cholesterol. They are a good source of dietary fiber, vitamin K, potassium, and copper, and a very good source of vitamin B6. From the month of May through September, we should be consuming at least 3 pounds of melons per day. Once we get into Fall, then fruits like Pears should be consumed. Melons are incredibly water rich. And if you've been subscribed for some time with me, you're beginning to understand the incredible value of choosing water rich foods, especially in the summer. But what 'does' water rich mean?
Fruits Contain Perfect Mineral Waters
If you think you need to drink water with 1/2 your body weight (in ounces) for the proper amount of hydration to our bodies, think again "IF" you're eating 3 pounds or more of fruit daily. Fruits are mostly full of more than 90% water and it's the kind of water we truly need, as humans. If you 're eating more than 3 pounds or up to 3 pounds of fruit daily (depending on the fruit but it doesn't vary much) you can eliminate 1/2 of your water requirements for the day. However, if your diet is full of a lot of cooked, dry foods, then my suggestion is to 'up' your fruit intake on a daily basis.
Water Rich foods/fruits are Vital to our Being!
Melons contain about 90% water. And not just any kind of water. They're abundant in mineral waters. These specific mineral waters that are impossible to get anywhere else. Don't think that by drinking bottled water that's got minerals in them, that it's the same. It is not the same. Our bodies love fruit minerals because they have a special water to them that can't be duplicated, as they are intrinsically interwoven by the sun. Through photosynthesis. Because fruits have these special 'more absorbable' mineral waters inside of them, our bodies drink them up, helping us stay specially hydrated and especially feeling mineral rich; major minerals and trace minerals combined. We call them organic mineral waters. And it's not the kind of organic we think of today; like organic foods, etc.,. Organic mineral waters come from the fruits and vegetables only. That's why we call them organic, as they're organically extracted from inside the fruit/green/vegetable.
Fruit is Put on the back Burner for more than 88% of us!
Us humans need these mineral waters like we need sunshine, as well as the fact we must have air to breathe. It sounds drastic doesn't it? Well, under the circumstances we live in today, I feel like I have to say it this way because did you know, only about 12% of us Americans eat only one cup of fruit on a daily basis? What about the rest of us, the 88%? I can tell you, it's a sad story, and unfortunately true. Did you know that fruit is one of the most perfect foods for mankind?
Salivating
Did you ever salivate for a cold piece of watermelon on a hot day, or salivate for a crisp apple during Octoberfest? How about digging into a juicy, orange on a hot summer's day? Or a sweet, delicious pear during Fall time? I'm sure you have because it's a natural response, to salivate, for foods that God provided for us on Earth. Yet 88% of us just don't seem to ever eat much fruit. Perhaps bananas and oranges once in a while, but I can assure you, I've been looking at people's shopping carts for 5 decides, not because i'm nosy, it's just that my shopping cart have always looked so different from others. Most people buy white bread, red meat, deli meats, packaged cookies and chips and perhaps a bunch of bananas. Where's the water rich foods? Where's the color? And most of us wonder why on earth they have zero energy, that they're constipated, bloated and overweight. Let's remember, every. human being craves fruit, at some point in their lives; especially children! This tells us that fruit is a wonder food for mankind.
Constipation on the rise - Water Rich Foods on the Rise!
Water rich foods will alleviate constipation and keep our small and large intestines supple. It's really that simple. Let's think about this for a second? If we are eating most of our meals cooked, did you know when we cook our foods, we are cooking all the natural waters out of the foods? If so, then when we eat these foods, where do you think the body is going to get the water it needs to digest these foods? The answer is, we rob our own bodies of our own water. We are about 70% water, so doesn't it make sense we need to eat foods with at least that kind of percentage in order to establish balance in our bodies? 70% water rich foods and 30% more dried foods. But that's not what we are doing. Only 12% of us are eating fruit on a daily basis and probably closer to 99% of us are eating each meal, heavily cooked. Breads for example are 38% water. Chips contain about 3% water in them. Now imagine if you're eating crackers, cookies, chips, breads and lots of cooked foods wouldn't it be a natural thought to realize our bodies suffer due to the fact our bodies natural waters are being robbed just to get these dry foods through our long 30 feet plus, of intestines? This is precisely why so many of us become bloated, sick, constipated and most importantly, vitamin/nutrient deficient. Let's also not forget that salt and sugar steals water from our bodies as well.
The BEST Melons to consume
#1 Cantalouope
Contains more vitamin C and beta-carotene than honeydew, as well as potassium, folate, niacin, pantothenic acid, and thiamine. Beta-carotene converts to vitamin A, which helps with immunity, skin, bone, and eye health. Cantaloupe is also a good source of fiber, which can help lower blood pressure
#2. Watermelon Contains lycopene, which can help with cardiovascular and bone health, and may reduce the risk of some cancers. Watermelon is also 90% water by weight, making it a good snack for hot days.
#3. Honeydew and their varieties: Honeydew contains vitamin C, which helps the body produce collagen, a protein that keeps skin tissue healthy. Vitamin C is also an antioxidant that may protect skin from sun damage. A half-cup serving of honeydew contains about a quarter of the recommended daily intake of vitamin C
Fruits and Juicing to the Rescue!
Typically, all fruits are over 90% water. Vegetables also contain a lot of water (uncooked). Cooking fruits or vegetables lose a lot of water if you use salt and just by naturally cooking out their liquid. Here's a list for you to look at:
Foods Highest in Water
- Celery: Contains about 95% water by weight
- Cucumber: Contains over 90% water
- Iceberg lettuce: Contains over 90% water
- Tomato: Contains over 90% water
- Zucchini: Contains over 90% water
- Broccoli: High in water content and nutrients
- Green cabbage: High in water content and nutrients
- Cauliflower: High in water content and nutrients
- Eggplant: High in water content and nutrients
- Spinach: Almost 100% water by weight
Foods that dehydrate us:
- Ultra-processed foods
- Pickles
- Soy sauce
- Sweets and desserts
- Artichokes
- Beets
- Raw meat
- Coffee, especially in hot weather
Jay and I were always huge advocates of eating fruit in season. Now is the time to eat melons as it's mid August. Watermelons came into season around mid June and lasted until mid August. We can still get them but they start to become a little mealy inside the middle of the watermelon.
Melons just so happen to become ripe in the summertime, because the sunshine starts to really bring them to full ripeness. Sunshine bakes these melons to perfection. Their vines also become hot which stimulates the melons to grow bigger and riper. Unfortunately, most of us don't grow melons and have to depend on the grocery stores or farmer's markets to bring us ripe melons.
I can tell you, that rarely happens! That's because their goal is to store those melons as long as they can so they can profit from them as long as they can. If they only purchase ripe melons, their customer base can only handle the load of whatever it is they bought for the few days they'll be ripe. So they buy unripe and we buy them unripe, believing that these melons are hard and not too sweet. Truthfully, melons should smell deliciously sweet and they should be heavy.
How to Purchase Melons
How do we 'know' when to pick out the right, ripened melons?
It's very tricky. Google says melons are in season from June to October. My experience is definitely not that. Since I am from San Diego, California, I've spent many decades picking out melons, not just for juicing but also for eating, and I can assure you, no matter where you live, melons are not going to be in season in June, except for Watermelons and I would venture to say, late June.
Cantaloupes and Honeydew melons will not be ripe until mid August to mid September. After that, they will be too soft and usually bruised.
Melons for Juicing
However, if you're looking to juice your melons with SKINS on or even off, you can juice from June through September. Except for Watermelons. They lose their firmness around mid August.
Cantaloupes, Honeydews (and their varieties) including Watermelons can be juiced well during these three months for sure. Their FIRM insides and outsides juice well but they're not good for eating.
Blending & Eating Melons
Firm melons yield a fair amount of juice. Ripe melons are recommended for eating or blending. The only downside to this is the fact that all ripe melon's skins are not juiceable. You 'can' blend the skins but I don't recommend it because you will have to strain, strain and strain all of the skins and pulp out of the strainer which will make a mess, but if that's all you have, then do it.
Hint: When your Cantaloupes and Honeydews are super ripe, just make sure to scrape the bottom of the melons so you can eat that thin line of green that separates the flesh from the skin. This is where those valuable trace minerals live. And since the melons will be super ripe, that thin part of the melon will be easier to consume.
FYI: Try to eat melons alone, blend alone and juice by themselves. They digest better in the gut when consumed this way. :)
Varieties of Melons
There are many different varieties now of different kinds of melons. I personally love the Casaba Melons, Honey Globe and Canary Melons.
How to Pick?
- Pick a melon that feels heavy.
- Press on the stem for softness but not too soft
- Smell the stem - it should smell sweet and if it doesn't have a smell it's not ripe.
- Tap on it like the sound of a drum, like a hollow sound
- Make sure there's no bruising on the skin or that there's no fungus
- I like to see the skin (cantaloupes) smooth, not ruddy. Another good sign
Enjoy Your Summertime Melon Adventures!
See you next week. :)
Sending lots of love your way
Linda Kordich
