Orange Benefits and Nutritional Facts

Orange Health Benefits and Nutritional Facts

THE NUTRITIONAL VALUES OF ORANGE
Oranges are highly valued for their vitamin C content. It is a primary
source of vitamin C for most Americans. This wonderful fruit also contains
large amounts of folacin, calcium, potassium, thiamin, niacin and
magnesium and fiber.

Orange trees are evergreens, seldom exceeding 30 ft in height. The
leaves are oval and glossy and the flowers are white and fragrant.
These semitropical evergreens probably originated in Southeast Asia.
Columbus and other European travelers brought sweet orange seed and
seedlings with them to the New World.

Varieties include the sweet orange, the sour orange, and the mandarin
orange, or tangerine. The United States produces the sweet variety.
Spain produces the sour variety,

Oranges Serving size 1 - medium (154g/5.5oz)
              Amounts Per Serving      % Daily Value
Calories                             70
Calories from Fat                 0
Total Fat                              0g                                  0%
Sodium                              0mg                                 0%
Potassium                      269mg                               7%
Total Carbohydrate           21g                                  7%
Dietary Fiber                      7g                                  28%
Sugars                              14g
Protein                                  1g
Vitamin A                                                                         2%
Vitamin C                                                                     130%
Calcium                                                                             6%
Iron                                                                                       2%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Data from CDC
5 Day Fruit

Health Benefits of Orange
In addition to its nutritional values, orange may offer various health
benefits on various chronic conditions. For instance, it may cut risk on
cancer and certain heart disease development.

Orange juice may have benefits of cutting cancer risks
Hesperidin, other flavonoids, limonin 17-beta-D-glucopyranoside, and
other limonoid glucosides are potential chemopreventive agents in
orange juice that could account for the decreased colon tumorigenesis
associated with feeding orange juice. Research has shown that
hesperidin inhibits colon carcinogenesis and that feeding
double-strength orange juice delays the onset of chemically induced
mammary cancer in rats. [1]

Orange peel may also cut risk of cancer.
Researchers have shown that intake of fruit juices and green tea
extracts (containing 75 mg vitamin C) or of orange peel powder
(containing 3 mg vitamin C) together with 300 mg L-proline inhibited
N-nitrosoproline (NPRO) formation effectively. Urinary excretion of NPRO
is considered as an indicator for stomach cancer. [2]

Orange juice may have benefits of lipid profile improvement.
In a 2-week study of 72 mildly hypercholesterolemic healthy subjects,
Sterol Orange juice supplementation significantly decreased total (7.2%),
LDL (12.4%), and non-high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (7.8%)
compared with baseline and compared with placebo OJ (P<0.01).
However, there were no significant changes in HDL cholesterol or
triglycerides with the Sterol Orange juice . [3] While, researchers from
Canada found that Orange juice (750 mL/d) improved blood lipid profiles
in 25 hypercholesterolemic subjects, confirming recommendations to
consume >/=5-10 servings of fruit and vegetables daily. [4] Finally, a rat
study suggests that diets containing apple or orange pectin help
decrease cholesterol levels in liver and serum. [5]

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[1] Miyagi Y, et al, Inhibition of azoxymethane-induced colon cancer by orange
juice.Nutr Cancer. 2000;36(2):224-9. [2] Xu GP, et al, Effects of fruit juices,
processed vegetable juice, orange peel and green tea on endogenous formation
of N-nitrosoproline in subjects from a high-risk area for gastric cancer in Moping
County, China.Eur J Cancer Prev. 1993 Jul;2(4):327-35. [3] Devaraj S, et al, Plant
sterol-fortified orange juice effectively lowers cholesterol levels in mildly
hypercholesterolemic healthy individuals. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2004
Mar;24(3):e25-8. Epub 2004 Feb 5. [4] Kurowska EM, et al,
HDL-cholesterol-raising effect of orange juice in subjects with
hypercholesterolemia.Am J Clin Nutr. 2000 Nov;72(5):1095-100.    [5] Gonzalez M
et al, Effects of orange and apple pectin on cholesterol concentration in serum,
liver and faeces.J Physiol Biochem. 1998 Jun;54(2):99-104.