Pumpkins
We recently had the opportunity to enjoy a bike ride on a trail along the central California coast. It was a beautiful day with the blue of the sky meeting the darker blue of the Pacific Ocean. We saw seals sunbathing, seagulls soaring, and surfers surfing. As we continued riding, though, we came upon acres and acres of brussels sprouts being harvested, and then a field of large orange pumpkins lazily awaiting to be plucked from the vines.
We’re nearing the time of year when pumpkin décor, pumpkin smells, carved pumpkins, and pumpkin pie will abound. But did you know just how much goodness is packed into those beautiful orange squashes?
The color alone is a dead giveaway of the pumpkin’s phytochemical abundance. Its flesh is loaded with carotene and carotenoids like zeaxanthin and lutein—antioxidants known for promoting and protecting eye health. Our body makes vitamin A from the abundance of the beta-carotene it contains. And yes, vitamin A is protective of the eyes, too, but it is also essential for healthy immune system function.
Vitamin A and vitamin D are the first nutrients I think of when seeking to prevent an autoimmune condition. Vitamin A plays a critical role in preserving and protecting the lining of the blood vessels and the digestive tract. When damage occurs to either, Vitamin A is essential to repair it. So when you think of having healthy blood vessels or gut lining, please include orange and dark green foods in your diet to provide what your body needs to make vitamin A.
Pumpkins are also a wonderful source of potassium. And it contains other minerals that Americans commonly under-consume, like magnesium.
Carotenoids are fat soluble, so eating your pumpkin with a little bit of fat—perhaps even the seeds—along with the flesh will enhance the bioavailability of these nutrients.
Pumpkin contains chlorogenic acid, a compound which has been found to have diverse pharmaceutical therapeutic benefit. It’s neuroprotective for conditions such as neuropathy. It is also anti-inflammatory, decreases fat accumulation in the liver, is kidney protective in a diabetic state, is a cancer fighter, and is good for skin conditions from acne to melanoma. Researchers describe pumpkin as “improving spermatogenesis, wound healing, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidative, anti-ulcerative properties, and treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia.”[1]
Pumpkin also contain quercetin, a polyphenol that is acknowledged to stabilize mast cells and histamine release, as well as being anti-cancer and anti-viral.
There’s so much good stuff in pumpkin, and we’ve just mentioned a few of its amazing ingredients. Wait till you hear about pumpkin seeds—next month!
[1] M. Batool et al., “Nutritional Value, Phytochemical Potential, and Therapeutic Benefits of Pumpkin (Cucurbita sp.),” Plants 11, no. 11 (2022): 1394, https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11111394.
Vi Nguyen et al., “Chlorogenic Acid: A Systematic Review on the Biological Functions, Mechanistic Actions, and Therapeutic Potentials,” Nutrients 16, no. 7 (2024): 924, https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16070924