• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
live love fruit logo

Live Love Fruit

Eat Vibrantly. Live Vibrantly

About Start Here Work With Me

  • Home
  • Start Here
  • About
  • Health
  • Remedies
  • Recipes
  • A-Z Conditions
  • Fitness
  • Environment
  • Self Improvement
  • My LLF
  • Shop
Category: > Health > 10 Amazing Health Benefits of Dragon Fruit

10 Amazing Health Benefits of Dragon Fruit

Apr 13, 2014 Carly Fraser Save For Later Print

Last Updated: May 16, 2020

12.6K shares
  • Facebook8.6K
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
dragon fruit on table cut in half

 

Dragon fruit (Pitaya) is one of the more curious looking fruits in the produce section of the grocery store. Perhaps you questioned it’s flavour, or brilliant pink hues. This psychedelic explosion of colour actually benefits your health in a myriad of different ways! In fact, the health benefits of dragon fruit far outweigh anything you’ve ever imagined!

Before we get to the amazing health benefits of this astounding fruit, you may wonder what it tastes like. If left to ripen (the green “leaves” on the fruit will start to brown when the fruit is ripe, and the fruit itself will be slightly soft to touch), this fruit tastes a little bit like a marshmallow kiwi! Incredibly sweet with a very slight background tang, this fruit is a definite must-try!

This fruit is excellent on its own, or paired with other fruit like kiwi and pineapple. It is also great as an addition to smoothies.

10 Health Benefits of Dragon Fruit

dragon fruit infoCardiovascular

The seeds in dragon fruit are high in polyunsaturated fatty acids (omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids). These healthy fats actually help reduce triglycerides and lower the risk of cardiovascular disease. Dragon fruit also contains vitamin B3 which lowers our bad (LDL) cholesterol levels while raising our good (HDL) cholesterol levels. Additionally, dragon fruit is known to help decrease high levels of oxidative stress, one of the main contributing factors in cardiovascular disease.

Cancer

Dragon fruit is loaded with beneficial antioxidants like phytoalbumins (located mainly within the seeds) which aid in the prevention of cancer-causing free radicals. They also contain high levels of vitamin C, which helps to block tumour cell growth, and can improve quality of life of patients currently suffering from cancer (reduced symptoms like fatigue, nausea, vomiting, pain and appetite loss). Dragon fruit can also help rid the body of toxic heavy metals, which are a major culprit in the formation of tumours in the body.

Digestion and metabolism

Dragon fruit is incredibly high in fibre! I can personally eat 2-3 dragon fruits and be satisfied for hours on end (I was actually quite surprised to feel so full after such little fruit!). The fibre content in dragon fruit helps regulate our digestion and prevents constipation and diarrhea. Keeping your stomach full for hours after you have eaten is one issue facing those who want to lose weight. This exotic fruit will not only keep you satisfied for longer periods of time, but it will help improve your metabolic rate, assisting with weight management. Dragon fruit also helps regulate blood sugar levels (again, due to the high fibre content), and helps your body from experiencing sugar spikes that you would normally get from eating refined sugary sweets (donuts, cakes, cookies, etc.).

Immune support

The high vitamin and mineral content in dragon fruit, ranging from Vitamin’s C, B1, B2, B3, as well as calcium, phosphorous, iron, protein, niacin and fibre, make it a great way to improve the functioning of your immune system. Your immune system starts in your digestive tract, and as we saw above, dragon fruit is a great way to support a healthy GI tract. Getting a proper amount of vitamins and minerals in your diet helps prevent you from getting sick and catching infections. As well, antioxidants (which dragon fruit is loaded), can help fight off bacteria and viruses in the body. The 80% water content of dragon fruit will also help flush out stagnant toxins, which may otherwise manifest as some sort of disease or illness (either now or in the future).

Eyes

Improved eyesight from eating dragon fruit? You bet! This fruit contains Vitamin A in the form of carotene which is needed by the retina of the eye for both low-light (night vision) and colour vision. Night blindness and other eye problems such as age-related macular degeneration can be caused by a deficiency in Vitamin A.

Nervous system

The high B Vitamin content in dragon fruit helps to support the formation and maintenance of some of the most basic structures in the nervous system. It helps in the formation of nerve cells themselves, and makes us more alert, and experience higher levels of mental clarity. Calcium in dragon fruit is also essential in enhancing the functioning of the nervous system. It keeps our nerves healthy and ensures their ability to communicate effectively. The healthy fats in dragon fruit are also crucial to help nourish and protect the myelin sheath which allows for proper conductive signalling in the brain.

Strong bones and teeth

Because it is a good source of calcium and phosphorous, dragon fruit helps strengthen your bones and teeth and aids in tissue formation and repair. These two important nutrients work together closely to build strong bones and teeth, which makes dragon fruit a wonderful fruit to help aid in the prevention of brittle bones and osteoporosis. The co-dependency of these two minerals means that taking a calcium supplement simply won’t help the health of your bones, as would eating whole ripe fruit which contains the combination of the two minerals. Always keep in mind that both calcium and phosphorous are needed to support any increase in bone mass.

Glowing skin

The high seed content in dragon fruit makes them a great source of healthy monounsaturated fats which improve the look and feel of our skin. Pretty much all fruit is antioxidant rich, including dragon fruit, and so consuming a diet rich in raw plant-based foods will stave off free radicals and make you not only look younger, but make your skin tighter, more flexible and bless you with a beautiful healthy glow!

Anti-inflammatory

Dragon fruit is known as a great anti-inflammatory as it helps to decrease irritation of the joints. Inflammation in the body caused by unhealthy eating habits and poor lifestyle choices (smoking, alcohol, drugs, etc.) create an acidic environment which manifests as a variety of diseases like arthritis, cancer, and diabetes to name a few. When we start to replace healthy foods, like dragon fruit, for unhealthy foods (like sweets and refined processed foods), we will notice that the aches and pains that used to haunt us day in, day out, suddenly fade away. Replacing your favourite sugary desserts for things like dragon fruit and mango (or any other fruit) will help get you out of your sugar-tooth rut and improve your body for the better.

Anti-aging

Skip the anti-aging cream, save thousands of dollars, and instead go eat dragon fruit! The high vitamin and mineral content as well as vast arrays of antioxidants in the dragon fruit make it an excellent anti-ager! The antioxidants work against free radicals in the body which are responsible for not only physical ailments (disease, and illness), but also for the aging of your skin. The more fresh fruit and vegetables you consume, the tighter and younger your skin will become.

12.6K shares
  • Facebook8.6K
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn

Filed Under: Food Education, Health Tagged With: dragon fruit, health, Nutrition

Carly Fraser

About the Author

Carly Fraser has her BSc (Hons.) Degree in Neuroscience, and is the owner and founder at Live Love Fruit. She currently lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba, with a determined life mission to help inspire and motivate individuals to critically think about what they put in their bodies and to find balance through nutrition and lifestyle. She has helped hundreds of thousands of individuals to re-connect with their bodies and learn self-love through proper eating habits and natural living. She loves to do yoga, dance, and immerse herself in nature.

View Profile

Reader Interactions

Related Posts

  • health benefits of peaches
    8 Amazing Health Benefits of Peaches
  • 10 Amazing Health Benefits of Cacao Nibs
  • person holding watermelon with spoon in the fruit with backdrop of moraine lake
    8 Amazing Health Benefits of Watermelon
  • Detox green smoothie with spinach, pineapple, and banana
    10 Health Benefits of Green Smoothies
  • fresh green asparagus in a basket
    10 Amazing Health Benefits of Asparagus
  • 5 Amazing Health Benefits of Garlic
  • freshly cut avocado
    Amazing Health Benefits of Avocado

Comments

  1. Dianna Barnes says

    Nov 13, 2018 at 9:48 pm

    I’m a 60 year old woman and today I just ate my first dragon fruit and I really liked it. I’m going to start eating it on a regular basis and see how my body starts feeling. I well let you know. It was quite tasty.

    Reply
    • Carly Fraser says

      Nov 14, 2018 at 9:13 am

      That’s so awesome! Dragon fruit is so delicious, glad you enjoyed 🙂

      Reply
  2. Carrie says

    Mar 26, 2020 at 2:04 pm

    How often should you eat dragon fruit , once a week or more often

    Reply
    • Carly Fraser says

      Mar 26, 2020 at 3:09 pm

      You can eat it as much as you want! Sometimes I eat it every day!

      Reply
  3. Freda says

    Jan 5, 2021 at 6:57 pm

    I live in the North, where would I be able to get a fruit like this one? Can it come dry too?

    Reply
    • Carly Fraser says

      Jan 11, 2021 at 3:02 pm

      I live in Manitoba, and they sell dragon fruit at almost any grocery store. But yes, you can get freeze-dried dragon fruit online.

      Reply
« Older Comments

Trackbacks

  1. Dragon Fruit- Prevents Cancer, Protects Your Vision, Suppress Sugar Spikes & More says:
    Jun 10, 2016 at 12:20 pm

    […] – https://livelovefruit.com/health-benefits-of-dragon-fruit/ […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Free Ebook

Success! Please check your inbox to download your FREE eBook.

Reduce Chronic Inflammation Naturally!

The Ultimate Guide to Fight Inflammation and Restore Your Health!

21 Ways to Reduce Chronic Inflammation

Recent Posts

visual illustration of toxins stored in fat cells in body

How to Eliminate Toxins From Fat Cells That Are Making You Fatigued and Swollen

foot with demonstrated achilles pain

This One Stretch Relieves Plantar Fasciitis, Shin Splints, Achilles Pain, and Heel Pain

Neutrogena and Aveeno sunscreens recalled by Johnson & Johnson

Latest Sunscreen Recall Raises Concern Over Chemicals

lemongrass plant in garden

How to Plant Lemongrass to Repel Mosquitoes

Female Reproductive System next to adrenal glands representing organs in the body responsible for hormone production

10 Natural Ways to Balance Your Hormones

freshly pressed pineapple juice

15 Impressive Health Benefits of Pineapple Juice

Popular Posts

Man spraying pesticides on tea plants with other side of image showing dry loose tea bags

Pesticides in Tea: Is Your Favorite Tea Contaminated with Harmful Chemicals?

glyphosate in wine

Monsanto’s Harmful Chemical Glyphosate Found In 100% Of California Wines Tested

whole dandelion plant with flowers and roots on cutting board on a table

Dandelions Are Not Weeds! Top 10 Health Benefits of Dandelion

johnson & johnson baby products in pharmacy

Johnson & Johnson Finally Admits: Our Baby Products Contain Cancer-Causing Ingredients

10 Plants That Attract Dragonflies for Mosquito Control

companion planting chart

Use This Companion Planting Chart to Help Your Garden Thrive

France Bans Neonicotinoid Pesticides

France Bans All Five Neonicotinoid Pesticides Linked to Bee Deaths

Glyphosate in Food: Complete List of Products and Brands Filled with Dangerous Weed-Killer

whales dying from plastic pollution

Whales Dying From Plastic Pollution Are a Grave Reminder to Give Up Our Addiction to Plastics

illustrated piriformis muscle showing trigger points and radiating pain

How To Get A Deep Piriformis Stretch To Get Rid of Sciatica, Hip & Lower Back Pain

RECOMMENDED

Thank you! Please check your inbox to confirm your subscription!

Want to reduce inflammation and restore your health?

Join Live Love Fruit and we'll show you how!

Footer

Stay Connected!

Follows
  • 316k Followers
  • 1.9k Followers
  • 110k Followers
  • 607 Followers
  • 11.5k Followers
  • Home
  • About
  • Start Here
  • Write For LLF
  • Contact

Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a healthcare professional.
Content on Live Love Fruit may not be reproduced in any form.
Ads provided by AdThrive. Displayed ads do not constitute endorsement or recommendation by Live Love Fruit.

Copyright © 2012 - 2022 Live Love FruitPrivacy Policy | Terms of Service | Full Disclaimer | Affiliate Disclosure

12.6K shares
  • 8.6K