Grapefruit is a nutritious citrus fruit that got its name because it grows in clusters like grapes. Grapefruit contains more than 150 different phytonutrients and may help lower your risk for high cholesterol, heart disease and certain types of cancer, according to an article published in "Food & Nutrition" in January 2010. It is also a good source of antioxidants, including vitamin C.
Vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin that is essential for healing wounds and forming and repairing tissues, including collagen, blood vessels, ligaments, skin and cartilage. Since it is an antioxidant, it also helps limit damage to your cells from free radicals, limiting you risk for arthritis, cancer and heart disease. Vitamin C also plays a role in protein metabolism and the formation of certain neurotransmitters. Your body doesn't store vitamin C, so you need to consume it every day.
Grapefruit Vitamin C Content
One serving of grapefruit is half of a medium grapefruit, which is 4 inches in diameter. Each serving contains 44 milligrams of vitamin C, which is 73 percent of the daily value of 60 milligrams for people following a 2,000-calorie diet. If you eat an entire grapefruit, you will have consumed the recommended amount of vitamin C for the day. This makes grapefruit an excellent source of vitamin C.
Increasing Vitamin C Consumption
Eat half of a grapefruit as a snack or before meals, add grapefruit slices to green salads or fruit salads or sprinkle half of a grapefruit with sugar and broil it for a sweet and tangy dessert. Include grapefruit in a fruit salsa and serve it alongside tuna, pork or chicken dishes, or add slices of grapefruit, oranges and limes to a pitcher of lemonade for a twist on this traditional beverage. Grapefruit pairs well with avocado and fish, so try a salad with tilapia, avocado, grapefruit, orange bell pepper and avocado.
While grapefruit is a healthy food, people on certain medications shouldn't consume the fruit or its juice. It may interfere with some blood pressure medications, statins, antihistamines, anti-anxiety medications, anti-arrhythmia drugs and organ transplant-rejection drugs, causing the medication levels in your blood to be either too high or too low. Check with your doctor to ensure that grapefruit won't interfere with any medications you are taking before adding it to your diet.
- Purdue University: Grapefruit
- Food & Nutrition: Savor: Grapefruit
- USDA Nutrient Data Laboratory: Grapefruit, Raw, Pink and Red and White, All Areas
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Vitamin C
- Office of Dietary Supplements: Vitamin C
- Food and Drug Administration: Grapefruit Juice and Medicine May Not Mix
- grapefruit image by Witold Krasowski from Fotolia.com