“Respect the pumpkin! Respect the pumpkin!” Poor
thing! The pumpkin wants to share its healthy gifts with us! What do we do? We cut the pumpkin into spooky, fun, silly looks
for Halloween and mash it up for a Thanksgiving pie! Vancouver Disc Centers
is playing with the pumpkin’s quandry and admits
to liking the pumpkin fun while also valuing
its edible, healthy features for our
Vancouver chiropractic patients who are being treated for back pain or neck pain and their supporting families.
RESPECT FOR THE NUTRITIOUS PUMPKIN
Respect for the pumpkin keeps growing! The commonly known pumpkin or squash of the
cucurbita moschata species of fruits is insect-, disease-, and hot-tolerant…as well as the most common ingredient for amazing
pumpkin pies! (1) Recognized for its being nutrient-dense
and recipe-flexible, the pumpkin is described as a potent
source of proteins, metabolites, carbohydrates, monounsaturated fatty acids,
polyunsaturated fatty acids, tocopherols, carotenoids, tryptophans, sterols, and
more. Some of its most promising functional
properties recognized today are wound healing, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory,
antioxidative, anti-ulcerative, spermatogenesis-enhancing, etc.
(2) The scent, flavor, and color attributes of the pumpkin
- terpenoids (oxygen-containing metabolites that contribute to aromatic scent
and flavor and even color) and carotenoids (tetraterpenoids responsible for
color) - are quite healthful. (3) All this in the beautiful
fall fruit we cut into jack-o-lanterns enjoyed by young and old…including Vancouver Disc Centers and our Vancouver
chiropractic families!
AGE MATTERS
Age is significant in the pumpkin's and the human's lifespan! For the
pumpkin, the mature stage of its ripening – versus the
young and ripened stages – exhibited the greatest
phenolic and flavonoid content (33 compounds!), the highest
antioxidant activity, and the greatest antibacterial activity. (4)
For the human, aging brings increasingly more
molecular damage to cells in response to
oxidative stress from environmental, lifestyle, and disease factors.
A key to proper diet as we age is an adequate
intake of antioxidants. The cucurbita fruits (varieties of pumpkin/squash)
are high in these antioxidants as well as in zinc and copper. Researchers
even proposed that these should be consumed every
day! (5) Our aging cells would appreciate that! In
a study of extracted seed oils like pumpkin, melon, and black cumin,
researchers found a treasure trove of useful
cytoprotective – cell-protecting - properties related to preventing age-related diseases triggered
by oxidative stress. (6) Vancouver Disc Centers is in favor of
protecting cells and the well-being of our Vancouver
chiropractic patients.
CONTACT Vancouver Disc Centers
Listen to this PODCAST
with Dr. James Cox on The
Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he
illustrates the importance of managing
inflammation as well as chiropractic spinal manipulation treatment with The Cox® Technic System of
Spinal Pain Management.
Schedule your Vancouver chiropractic
appointment soon. Vancouver Disc Centers respects
the pumpkin for all its nutritional benefit. And we still anticipate the annual cutting, decorating, and cooking!