Pumpkin seeds lower blood glucose, cholesterol, triglycerides, blood pressure, infection risk, prevent...

Originally shared by Alex P

Pumpkin seeds lower blood glucose, cholesterol, triglycerides, blood pressure, infection risk, prevent atherosclerosis, cancer and hair loss, have the highest quality protein of any vegan food (and most foods), with much more complete protein (amino acid score 136) than Burger King hamburger beef (amino acid score 69), have half the total fat in flax seeds. Eating a few seeds every day seems like a great idea, maybe mixed with a few flax seeds. :)

HAIR REGROWTH and Prevention of Hair Loss

https://plus.google.com/+AlexPsi/posts/Y7WNKiH4bMs shows the picture before and after 24 weeks of 0.4 grams of pumpkin seed oil from the free paper at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4017725. In this study (Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2014: 549721) people who ate just 0.4 grams of pumpkin seed oil daily (about 10 seeds equivalent), have had their hair count increase 40% (measured scientifically at 24 weeks) and the appearance also showed (see the picture) real improvement. Testosterone is converted into DHT (dihydrotestosterone).

PREVENT ATHEROSCLEROSIS and PROSTATE CANCER

DHT makes the build up of arterial plaque and the onset of enlarged prostate or prostate cancer easier, besides causing hair follicles to go into a dormant state and eventually die. Inhibiting the conversion of testosterone into DHT can thus prevent strokes and heart disease, not just hair loss. The way it works is pumpkin seeds inhibit the enzyme (5 alpha reductase) that converts testosterone to DHT. There are many other inhibitors of DHT, such as lycopene (present in watermelon 4.5 mg/100 grams, tomatoes 2.5 mg/100 grams, grapefruit 1.4 mg/100 grams), rosemary (see https://plus.google.com/+AlexPsi/posts/5pfzN9H26AP), flax seeds (lignans in them inhibit the enzyme as explained at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7490559/ J Endocrinol. 1995 Nov;147(2):295-302), chia seeds, soy foods, and many other foods. Both pumpkin and flax seeds have secoisolariciresinol diglucoside https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secoisolariciresinol_diglucoside.

Monocytes attach faster to the endothelium causing arterial plaque when DHT is higher in the blood, as explained at ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10226099 ► free paper at http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/99/17/2317.long ► Circulation. 1999 May 4;99(17):2317-22.

PREVENT FREQUENT URINATION and Urinary Tract Infections ►
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4032845/ ► J Tradit Complement Med. 2014 Jan-Mar; 4(1): 72–74.

PERFECT PROTEIN QUALITY

Pumpkin seeds have amino acid score of 136, way higher than 69 for Burger King hamburger ► http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/nut-and-seed-products/3141/2. In 100 grams of pumpkin seeds you got 19 grams of protein, while Burger King got only 14 grams. So, you not only get more protein, but also MUCH MORE complete protein. Flax seeds have more omega 3 fatty acids than any other food and their protein quality is higher than Burger King beef, score 92, they are a good companion for pumpkin seeds as pumpkin have omega 6 and flax got omega 3. They both lower cholesterol, glucose and DHT.

EXCELLENT SOURCE OF ZINC - Insulin storing cells can have 1 billion times more zinc than mitochondria, Zinc lowers blood glucose

100 grams of pumpkin seeds got 69% of the daily Zinc needs, compared to 29% for flax seeds. Zinc is an inhibitor of DHT formation. One can combine flax and pumpkin to ensure not too much omega 6 is ingested affecting the omega 6 to omega 3 ratio, if one eats more than 10 pumpkin seeds a day. :)

Pumpkin seeds lower blood glucose ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24564589 ► Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2014;54(10):1322-9.

"Plasma TBARS i.e. lipid peroxidation decreased significantly after receiving Zn supplementation... Eight weeks of Zinc supplementation (45 mg zinc gluconate) in healthy volunteers showed a reduction in plasma levels of lipid peroxidation products, DNA adducts and reduced mRNA for TNF and IL-1 compared to control groups" ► people with hair loss have high TBARS and higher oxidative stress in blood. ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3407731/ ► Diabetol Metab Syndr. 2012; 4: 13.

Those not losing hair had zinc levels 17% above the levels of those losing hair ► Ann Dermatol. 2013 Nov; 25(4): 405–409. ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3870206/ . This comes to no surprise, since DNA synthesis, repair and 300 enzymes depend on zinc. In one study, those with hair loss, received a chelate of zinc and L-carnosine (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinc_L-carnosine) and all were cured partially or totally ► "The administration of zinc for zinc deficiency-related alopecia may recover appropriate activities of metalloenzymes, hedgehog signaling, and immunomodulation, all of which are required for normal control of hair growth cycle." ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22741940/ ► Dermatol Ther. 2012 Mar-Apr;25(2):210-3.

Zinc is known to lower blood glucose, as explained in the zinc post at ► https://plus.google.com/+AlexPsi/posts/2GX945NBG5k

People who are zinc deficient can actually die at 25 and since neurons have zinc, low zinc during childhood or womb period will also affect cognition.

REDUCE OXIDATIVE STRESS

Pumpkin seeds reduce oxidative stress markers, glucose and lipid levels in rats and humans ► humans ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3919090/ ► ScientificWorldJournal. 2014; 2014: 563576 ► rats ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3746528/ and ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24344360.

Flax and Pumpkin seeds mixture ameliorates diabetic nephropathy in rats. ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20570704.

PREVENT CANCER

The seeds also inhibit prostate cancer cells, breast cancer cells, colorectal adenocarcinoma cells ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26976217 ► Fitoterapia. 2016 Apr;110:150-6.

SPEED UP WOUND HEALING

Pumpkin oil also speeds up wound healing ► rats treated with pumpkin oil had higher wound contraction 97% compared to 58% for the control group. The pumpkin oil could significantly increase the collagen production 65%. Since hair contains collagen, this may be why it helps too ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26186459 ► Pharm Biol. 2016;54(4):581-7.

PREVENT HYPERTENSION

In rats, pumpkin seed oil exhibits an antihypertensive and cardioprotective effect through a mechanism that may involve generation of NO. ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22082068 ► J Med Food. 2012 Feb;15(2):180-9.

Pumpkin has Secoisolariciresinol, a lignan present in flax seed shown to reduce atherosclerosis in rabbits. ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12590454 as explained also in the flax seed post at ► https://plus.google.com/+AlexPsi/posts/RQL1hnvEPQq

PREVENT KIDNEY STONES

Pumpkin seeds lowered calcium-oxalate crystal occurrence ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3799495 ► Am J Clin Nutr. 1987 Jan;45(1):115-21.

ELIMINATE TAPE WORMS

Pumpkin seeds helped get rid of tape worms ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1036985 ► Zhonghua Min, 1976 Jun;9(1-2):31-5.

Pumpkin seed and areca nut combined led to an increased rate of effect on tapeworm expulsion (average time 2 h for combination vs 6-21 h for individual extracts) ► https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22910218 ► Acta Trop. 2012 Nov;124(2):152-7.

VERY ALKALINE FORMING

The USDA Table of foods ranked by their PRAL (Potential Renal Acid Load) score, shows that pumpkin seeds are the most alkaline forming seeds with a score of negative 14. There are many advantages to having an alkaline forming diet. Those eating more high PRAL foods are 2.5 times more likely to have calcium stones, since more calcium is absorbed to compensate for calcium loss in urine from bones due to the need to raise pH to prevent death. Since veggies are negative PRAL and lower total PRAL, it was natural that those with more veggies in diet had fewer calcium stones. ► http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24002043 ► Eur J Clin Nutr. 2013 Oct;67(10):1077-80. Alkaline diet reduces mortality ► free paper ► http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3195546/, J Environ Public Health. 2012; 2012: 727630.

► VEGANISM ◄

For 100+ reasons I didn't eat meat for 21 years and dairy for 13 years (12% of millennials have already given up meat in America) see ► https://plus.google.com/+AlexPsi/posts/Hz1V4iQUyyJ. Going vegan is like planting 62 trees in your backyard, as far as CO2 emissions reduction.💜😊💜

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