Watermelon. Natural Viagra .health benefits.Nutrional Facts

Watermelon is thought to have originated in southern Africa, where it is

found growing wild, because it reaches maximum genetic diversity

there, resulting in sweet, bland and bitter forms. Alphonse de Candolle,

in 1882, already considered the evidence sufficient to prove that

watermelon was indigenous to tropical Africa. Though Citrullus

colocynthis is often considered to be a wild ancestor of watermelon

and is now found native in north and west Africa, Fenny Dane and

Jiarong Liu suggest on the basis of chloroplast DNA investigations

that the cultivated and wild watermelon appear to have diverged

independently from a common ancestor, possibly C. ecirrhosus from

Namibia.
It is not known when the plant was first cultivated, but Zohary and Hopf

note evidence of its cultivation in the Nile Valley from at least as early as

the second millennium BC. Although watermelon is not depicted in any

Egyptian hieroglyphic text nor does any ancient writer mention it, finds

of the characteristically large seed are reported in Twelfth dynasty

sites; numerous watermelon seeds were recovered from the tomb of

Pharaoh Tutankhamun.
By the 10th century AD, watermelons were being cultivated in China,

which is today the world's single largest watermelon producer. By the

13th century, Moorish invaders had introduced the fruit to Europe;

according to John Mariani's Dictionary of American Food and Drink,

"watermelon" made its first appearance in an English dictionary in

1615.
Museums Online South Africa list watermelons as having been

introduced to Native Americans in the 16th century. Early French

explorers found Native Americans cultivating the fruit in the Mississippi

Valley. Many sources list the watermelon as being introduced in

Massachusetts as early as 1629. Southern food historian John Egerton

has said he believes African slaves helped introduce the watermelon to

the United States. Texas Agricultural Extension horticulturalist Jerry

Parsons lists African slaves and European colonists as having

distributed watermelons to many areas of the world. Parsons also

mentions the crop being farmed by Native Americans in Florida (by

1664) and the Colorado River area (by 1799). Other early watermelon

sightings include the Midwestern states (1673), Connecticut (1747) and

the Illiana region (1822).


Watermelons on display by a roadside vendor in Delhi, India
Charles Fredric Andrus, a horticulturist at the USDA Vegetable

Breeding Laboratory in Charleston, South Carolina, set out to produce

a disease-resistant and wilt-resistant watermelon. The result, in 1954,

was "that gray melon from Charleston". Its oblong shape and hard rind

made it easy to stack and ship. Its adaptability meant it could be grown

over a wide geographical area. It produced high yields and was

resistant to the most serious watermelon diseases: anthracnose and

fusarium wilt.
Today, farmers in approximately 44 states in the U.S. grow watermelon

commercially, and almost all these varieties have some Charleston

Gray in their lineage. Georgia, Florida, Texas, California and Arizona are

the USA's largest watermelon producers.
This now-common watermelon is often large enough that groceries

often sell half or quarter melons. There are also some smaller, spherical

varieties of watermelon, both red- and yellow-fleshed, sometimes called

"icebox melons".

In Japan, farmers of the Zentsuji region found a way to grow cubic

watermelons, by growing the fruits in glass boxes and letting them

naturally assume the shape of the receptacle. The square shape was

originally designed to make the melons easier to stack and store, but

the square watermelons are often more than double the price of normal

ones, and much of their appeal to consumers is in their novelty.

Pyramid-shaped watermelons have also been developed and any

polyhedral shape may potentially also be used.

Watermelon may be a natural Viagra

 Men hoping for some fireworks in their love life this Fourth of July may

want to skip the burgers and beer at the barbecue and eat plenty of

watermelon.

Watermelon may be a natural Viagra, says a researcher. That's because

the popular summer fruit is richer than experts believed in an amino

acid called citrulline, which relaxes and dilates blood vessels much like

Viagra and other drugs meant to treat erectile dysfunction (ED).

"We have known that watermelon has citrulline," says Bhimu Patil,

PHD, director of the Fruit and Vegetable Improvement Center at Texas

A&M University, College Station. Until recently, he tells WebMD,

scientists thought most of the citrulline was in the watermelon rind.

"Watermelon has more citrulline in the edible part than previously

believed," he says.

How could watermelon be a natural Viagra? The amino acid citrulline is

converted into the amino acid arginine, Patil says. "This is a precursor

for nitric oxide, and the nitric oxide will help in blood vessel dilation."

So, the burning question: How much watermelon does it take?

"That is a good question," Patil says. Unfortunately, "I don't have an

answer for that."

He does know that a typical 4-ounce serving of watermelon (about 10

watermelon balls) has about 150 milligrams of citrulline. But he can't

say how much citrulline is needed to have Viagra-like effects.

He's hopeful that someone will pick up on his research and study the

fruit's effect on penile erections.



NUTRITIONAL FACTS

Watermelon, raw (edible parts)
Nutritional value per 100g (3.5 oz)
Energy 30 kcal 130 kJ

Carbohydrates

- Sugars 6.2 g
- Dietary fiber 0.4 g

7.55 g
Fat 0.15 g
Protein 0.61 g
Water 91.45 g
Vitamin A equiv. 28 μg 3%
Thiamine (Vit. B1) 0.033 mg 3%
Riboflavin (Vit. B2) 0.021 mg 1%
Niacin (Vit. B3) 0.178 mg 1%
Pantothenic acid (B5) 0.221 mg 4%
Vitamin B6 0.045 mg 3%
Folate (Vit. B9) 3 μg 1%
Vitamin C 8.1 mg 14%
Calcium 7 mg 1%
Iron 0.24 mg 2%
Magnesium 10 mg 3%
Phosphorus 11 mg 2%
Potassium 112 mg 2%
Zinc 0.10 mg 1%




HEALTH BENEFITS OF WATERMELON

The health benefits of watermelon are really great. No matter how it is

sliced, it is packed with some of the most important antioxidants found

in nature.
It is an excellent source of vitamin C and a very good source of vitamin

A, particularly through its concentration of beta-carotene.
The beautiful red watermelon is also a source of the potent carotene

antioxidant which is called lycopene. These antioxidants travel

throughout the body neutralizing free radicals. Free radicals are

substances in the body that can cause much damage to us. They are

able to oxidize cholesterol, making it stick to blood vessel walls and

thicken them which can lead to hearty attack or stroke. The lycopene

which gives fruits the attractive red color that we find in watermelon

can help reduce the risks of prostate cancer.
It is a surprising fact that watermelon is the only fruit that contains

higher concentrations of lycopene than any other fresh fruit or

vegetable.
Watermelon is a fruit that is rich in electrolytes sodium and potassium

that we lose through our perspiration.
Watermelon is rich in the B vitamins necessary for energy production.

Food experts recommend watermelon as a very good source of vitamin

B6 and a good source of vitamin B1 and magnesium. Because of its

higher water content approximately ninety percent and calorie value it

is ranked more valuable than other fruits.
Watermelon has a special cooling effect and is exceptionally high in

citrulline, an amino acid that our bodies use to make another amino

acid, arginine, which is used in the urea cycle to remove ammonia from

the body.
The antioxidants help reducing the severity of asthma. It also reduces

the risk of colon cancer, asthma, heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis,

and prostate cancer.
Watermelon is a good source of thiamin, potassium and magnesium

which protect our body from so many diseases.
Watermelon is fat free but helps energy production. It protects against

macular degeneration.


When the heat of summer tires us with thirst, eating watermelon is a

safe alternative to taking energy drinks. Since it contains high water

quantity it can hydrates us whereas other drinks are caffeine filled

energy drinks which can easily dehydrate us. Nothing can be more

satisfactory on a hot, dusty day than a crisp, juicy slice of watermelon!