General information about grapefruit
Grapefruit is included in the citrus fruit, the same as orange. There are many varieties of grapefruit, including pink, red and white. The name refers to the color of the flesh. For the red grapefruit, some people also call it as ruby, while the white grapefruit often called as blond. Nearly all kinds of citrus fruit (or tangy fruit) have low number of calories. Below is more detailed information about how many calories in one grapefruit.
Calories in grapefruit
Compared to white grapefruit, the pink and red grapefruit has a bit higher calories. So how many calories in one grapefruit? For the raw pink and red grapefruit, they have around 104 calories. On the contrary, the raw white grapefruit only has78 calories. These data is based on the USDA National Nutrient Database. However, this count is only for a medium grapefruit. The bigger the grapefruit, the more calories you will get and vice versa. If the grapefruit you find is sold in cup, not in a whole, then a cup of it usually has 96 calories.
Benefits of the nutrients in grapefruit
As you already knew how many calories in one grapefruit, you also need to know other valuable nutrients having by this fruit. The high amount of vitamin C having by grapefruit makes it able to fight colds. It is also a good choice as an aid for keeping the health of immune system.
Besides that, grapefruit also provide good amount of vitamin A, potassium, folate, dietary fiber, as well as vitamin B5. For more, it has very low amount of saturated fat with no cholesterol. Because of these valuable nutrients, grape fruit can offer the advantage of preventing the formation of tumor, protect colon and lung from cancer, and reduce the risk of kidney stone.
The pink grapefruit is known to have antioxidant lycopene. It is the one which is responsible for the pink hue. On the other side, studies shows that here is fewer risk of prostate cancer experienced by people who have diet with rich lycopene. This nutrient can increase the HDL (healthy cholesterol) level while reduce the LDL (bad cholesterol) level at the same time. As the result, taking grapefruit is recommended for people who wish to lower their LDL cholesterol.
Besides lypcopene, grapefruit also has some kinds of falvonones. It is a subclass of flavonoids. Several study revealed that flavonoids can exhibit anti inflammatory, anti-diabetic, anti-thrombogenic, neuroprotective, and anti-cancer activities.
The effect
Besides knowing how many calories in one grapefruit, it is also important to be aware of what grapefruit cando. Even though grapefruit can give you many benefits, there are some effects, which can be caused by this fruit. As warned by the National Institutes of Health, this fruit can interact with several medications. Interaction caused by grapefruit can change the effect of the medicine, and it is also possible to cause serious side effect. Therefore, if you are having medication and wan to consume grapefruit, it will be better to consult with your doctor first.
