Facts About Key Lime
Key lime, scientifically known as Citrus aurantifolia or Mexican lime, or West Indian lime, is a hybrid citrus fruit typically cultivated in the Florida Keys. Their color alters from green to yellow as they age, even though they are harvested while still green.
Key limes taste a bit tarter than what we call “regular limes” because they have a higher acidity level. Because of this, they are perfect for combining with sweeter flavors, which is how the famous Key lime pie came to be. In Mexico, key limes are available throughout the year. At the same time, in the US, they can only be grown between June and September (mainly in Florida and California).
Nutritional Value of Key Lime
The high fiber content of key lime juice can be beneficial to digestion. Additionally, the juice has a high magnesium and potassium content.
One ounce of fluid contains approximately 22% of the recommended daily intake of vitamin C. Flavonoids are a type of antioxidant that can be found in key limes. Together with the vitamin C that they contain, these antioxidants are thought to have anti-cancer, antibiotic, and detoxifying benefits.
Despite their diminutive size, key limes contain many nutrients, especially vitamin C.
The following can be obtained from key lime (44 grams):
- 11 grams of calories
- Carbohydrates: 3.7 g
- 2-grams protein
- 0 g fat
- 2-gram fiber
- Vitamin C, which accounts for 22% of the RDA
- Iron: 0.2 percent of the daily recommended allowance
- Calcium: 0.5 percent of the Daily Value
- One percent of the recommended daily potassium intake
Key lime also has trace levels of riboflavin, niacin, folic acid, magnesium, and phosphorus in it.
Health Benefits of Key Lime
Immune System Booster
As was just discussed, limes are loaded with vitamin C, an essential component of a healthy immune system. According to certain investigations, vitamin C aids in the synthesis of white blood cells. White blood cells recreate an important role in the body’s defense against disease and other infections.
Vitamin C may not only lessen the severity of a cold but also shorten the amount of time you are likely to be bothered by its symptoms.
Inflammation is your body’s natural response to illness and outside invaders. Vitamin C may be able to help reduce inflammation in your body. In the meantime, vitamin C is known to boost collagen formation, a protein essential for the healing of wounds. Additionally, key lime aids in the body’s ability to recover from wounds.
Consuming the fruit of the key lime tree can help strengthen your immune system and safeguard your health.
Cholera Treatment
In addition, although it has been eradicated in many nations, cholera is still a lethal and persistent disease in other regions of the world. On the other hand, key limes and other citrus fruits can help protect one against this potentially fatal disease.
Numerous studies have been conducted on applying key lime juice, particularly during the tragic epidemic of cholera in 1994. Even though the key lime juice was consumed intermittently after the patients had been exposed to cholera-infested water, the number of fatalities decreased when mixed with ostensibly cholera-infested water.
It proved to be an extremely effective disinfectant in that combination.
Helps with Weight Control
According to some sources, key lime extract and essential oils, and plant compounds can help people lose weight and are used in a variety of diets.
Because they contain soluble fiber, consuming them will keep you feeling fuller for longer. Furthermore, the citric acid present in lime can help reduce fat formation in the body.
However, there is no human study to support this assertion in the scientific world.
Antioxidants
These antioxidants are compounds that shield your cells from the damage caused by free radicals. These Free radicals are molecules that have the prospect of causing harm to your cells, which could then result in the following:
- Diabetes
- Ailments of the heart
- Cancer
There are a number of different compounds in key limes that function as antioxidants, including:
- Ascorbic acid
- Kaempferol
- Flavonoids
- Quercetin
- Limonoid
Consuming key limes will cause your body to manufacture more antioxidants, which will, in turn, shield you from the impairment caused by free radicals.
Increases the Fertility of Men
Because it has a heightened concentration of vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid), key lime seems to be an ideal option for improving male fertility.
A study conducted on rats found that consumption of key limes led to a rise in the levels of a number of hormones, including testosterone and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH).
Infertility has been linked to deficiencies in both of these hormones. Because of this, drinking key lime may improve male fertility because it raises the level of sex hormones in the body.
Handles Cardiovascular Disease
In the United States, cardiovascular disease claims the lives of one person every 37 seconds.
The consumption of key limes has been shown to lower the chance of getting heart disease. To begin with, as was previously said, key limes contain a significant amount of vitamin C. The levels of blood pressure, which are a significant risk factor, can be lowered with the help of vitamin C.
Atherosclerosis is another condition that could be warded off by taking vitamin C. Plaque can also construct up in your arteries as a consequence of this condition, which is another factor that contributes to heart difficulties.
Helps People with Diabetes Type 3
According to the American Diabetes Researchers, limes and other citrus fruits may help people who are infected with type 3 diabetes. This is because these fruits have significant levels of dissolved fiber, which aids in the body’s digestion of sugar intake into the bloodstream.
As a result, diabetic patients have a reduced risk of experiencing dangerous spikes in their blood sugar levels. Additionally, limes and other citrus fruits have a low glycemic rate, which means that they will not produce unexpected rises in sugar levels. This is to the benefit of the effect that dissolved fiber has on the body.
Fosters the Growth of Healthy Skin
There are various properties in key limes that are beneficial to the health of the skin.
In the first place, they contain a lot of vitamin C, which is essential for the exhibition of collagen, a protein that aids the skin stay tight and strong. A study that involved more than 4,000 women discovered that those who took in a greater quantity of vitamin C had a reduced likelihood of developing wrinkles and dry skin as they got older.
Second, key limes are loaded with antioxidants, which can aid in the fight against the signs of aging that appear on the skin. Oxidative stress is a disorder that develops when there is an imbalance in the body between the number of free radicals and the number of antioxidants. It’s possible that it’ll make you look older than your years.
A study on mice indicated that consuming a drink containing citrus had a good effect on some of these symptoms, including lowering the appearance of wrinkles and increasing the creation of collagen.
The Absorption of Iron
Iron is essential for the exhibition of red blood cells in your body. In addition to this, iron is necessary for the proper distribution of oxygen throughout the body. Anemia (iron deficiency) is a condition that can develop if your body’s iron stores are depleted.
As a result, you could experience:
- Paleness
- Hair and skin that is dry
- Fatigue
- Difficulty in breathing
The ability of key lime to increase the way in which the body absorbs iron is only one of the fruit’s amazing health benefits.
Arthritis
One of the many complications associated with arthritis is an excess of acid that becomes trapped in the body. Unfortunately, when a significant amount of uric acid accumulates in the body, it has the potential to aggravate the pain and laceration caused by arthritis. Uric acid is one of the secretory fluids that will empty out of the body during the process of urination.
Citric acid, found in citrus fruits like key limes, is a water-soluble acid that aids in the breakdown of uric acid. This results in an upsurge in the amount of urine that is expelled from the body. Citrus fruits, in general, have properties that are anti-inflammatory, and they can be used to treat a wide variety of infections.
Prevents Kidney Stones
Kidney stones are small mineral crystals that can be painfully removed from the body. It is possible for them to form on the inside of the kidneys if the urine is extremely concentrated or if there are significant levels of stone-forming minerals, such as calcium, present in the urine.
Citrus fruits abundant in citric acids, such as key limes, help prevent kidney stones by increasing the quantity of citrate in the urine and binding to the minerals that can form stones.
The chance of acquiring kidney stones was shown to be significantly reduced in those study participants who consumed a greater quantity of citrus fruits.
