Healthy Benefits of Strawberries

A key part of the health benefits of strawberries is this fruit’s high water content. Like many nutritious fruits, strawberries are composed of more than 75 percent water. This means that by eating strawberries, you feel fuller on a smaller amount of calories than foods with less water content. Strawberries, therefore, are an excellent food for losing weight or maintaining your current weight. Another health benefit to strawberries’ high water content is that they help keep your skin hydrated, which leads to healthy, glowing skin. Hydration can also help you stay energized and satisfied throughout the day.

Strawberries are also packed with soluble fiber, an incredibly heart-healthy benefit. Soluble fiber attaches to cholesterol and helps remove it from the body, which therefore lowers your body’s cholesterol levels and reduces your risk for heart disease, stroke, and other cardiovascular health problems. Combine strawberries with the high-quality carbohydrates in foods like oatmeal for a nutrient-packed, filling breakfast that offers plenty of health benefits.

The soluble fiber in strawberries is also part of an ideal diet for people worried about type 2 diabetes. Since being overweight is a leading cause of type 2 diabetes, the water and soluble fiber in strawberries can greatly benefit people concerned with this condition. An additional health benefit of strawberries’ high fiber content: strawberries can help people who suffer from irritable bowel syndrome and other digestive problems. Eating strawberries and other high fiber fruits and vegetables is an excellent way to ease digestion and sooth stomach upset, constipation, diarrhea, and other painful symptoms.

People can also gain health benefits from the high amount of folate in strawberries. Folate is a B vitamin that contributes to strong, healthy hair and vibrant skin. Doctors recommend that pregnant women increase their folate intake during gestation, so strawberries are an excellent food choice. Folate can help prevent osteoporosis. Research shows that folate is an important nutrient for developing and maintaining strong, healthy bones and teeth. Strawberries can also boost your mood, another healthy benefit to eating this fruit.

Additionally, strawberries are full of potent antioxidants, vitamin C and anthocyanins, which can help with arthritis and other joint-related diseases or pain. Antioxidants also offer another health benefit: they help fight age-related memory loss, cataracts and other eyesight problems – all common complaints of people 65 and over. Age-related macular degeneration is a problem for many adults; they can benefit from the powerful antioxidants in strawberries and other health-boosting fruits.