Fruit. It’s one of the basic food groups of any food pyramid and can be one of the healthiest food groups for you to eat. Fruit often contains higher quantities of vitamins and antioxidants than other food groups, and they taste good, too.
But many people don’t know some of the other amazing benefits of many fruits. Specifically, many people are unaware that some fruits are great natural sources of dietary fiber, which is important to help eliminate waste from the body, maintain a healthy colon and healthy gut bacteria.
Beyond that, though, certain unripe fruits have higher levels of natural dietary fiber than other foods. Among the unripe fruits that you may want to consider eating are “underripe bananas, papayas and mangoes” because “in their unripened state, they contain higher amounts of digestive-resistant starch, which is important for optimal gut health.” Dr. Mercola explains:
“Fiber is typically classified as either soluble or insoluble. However, from a health standpoint, the fermentability of the fiber is what’s really important. Digestive-resistant starches are low-viscous fibers that resist digestion in the small intestine and slowly ferment in your large intestine.
“Here, resistant starches act as prebiotics, feeding healthy bacteria. Due to their slow fermentation, they won’t make you gassy. They also add significant bulk to your stools, and help you maintain regular bowel movements.
“Best of all, since they’re indigestible, resistant starches do not result in blood sugar spikes. In fact, research suggests resistant starches help improve insulin regulation, reducing your risk of insulin resistance.
“Besides underripe banana, papaya and mango, other foods high in resistant starch include white beans, lentils, seeds and products like potato starch, tapioca starch and brown rice flour.”
This higher content of digestive resistant starch in these foods also has additional benefits due to the fermentation of this fiber producing short-chain fatty acids that help to recalibrate the immune system and also have the added benefit of helping you to feel more full for a longer period of time, which may be useful in helping to lower the number of calories that a person eats. This has obvious benefits for the person who is trying to lose or maintain their weight.
All these benefits being said, American society in general does not tend to eat unripe or underripe fruits, so creative food combining in recipes may be useful.
Regardless, if you are looking to improve your guy health, boost your immune system, and possibly lose weight, we recommend that you consider trying unripe bananas, papaya, and mangoes.