Grapefruit

See also :

• Grapefruit seed extract
• Grapefruit Essential Oil
• Naringenin

Special Precautions of Grapefruit

• Drug Interactions : Experts explain that certain medications react adversely to grapefruit juice by processing in your body at a faster rate. While this may sound harmless, researchers say it actually creates a significant increase in the drug's potency. In some cases, the strength of certain medicines can be raised to a point equivalent to the patient getting double the dose with each pill. The number of drugs known to interact with the furanocoumarins in grapefruit tops 85. More than 40 of these medications have potentially serious interactions with grapefruit as well as pomelos, limes and Seville oranges : Artemether (Artenam, Paluther) , Buspirone (BuSpar), Carbamazepine (Tegretol), Carvedilol (Coreg) , Cisapride (Propulsid) , Clomipramine (Anafranil), Cyclosporine (Neoral, Sandimmune), Dextromethorphan (Robitussin DM, and others) , Estrogens, Etoposide (VePesid), (Sporanox), Medications changed by the liver (Cytochrome P450 3A4 (CYP3A4) substrates), Medications for high blood pressure (Calcium channel blockers) , Medications used for lowering cholesterol (Statins) , Methylprednisolone, Praziquantel (Biltricide), Quinidine, Scopolamine (Transderm Scop), Sedative medications (Benzodiazepines), Sildenafil (Viagra), Terfenadine (Seldane), Caffeine, Erythromycin, Fexofenadine (Allegra), Losartan (Cozaar) , Saquinavir (Fortovase, Invirase) , Theophylline, Warfarin (Coumadin) interacts with grapefruit. If you take any medications, check with your healthcare provider before adding grapefruit to your diet or using it as a medicine. Grapefruit interacts with a long list of medications.
• Breast Cancer: There is concern about the safety of drinking excessive amounts of grapefruit juice. Some research suggests that postmenopausal women who consume a quart or more of grapefruit juice every day have a 25% to 30% increased chance of developing breast cancer. Grapefruit juice decreases how estrogen is broken down in the body and might increase estrogen levels in the body. More research is needed to confirm these findings. Until more is known, avoid drinking excessive amounts of grapefruit juice, especially if you have breast cancer or are at higher than usual risk for developing breast cancer
• Grapefruit seed extract is not grapefruit juice. It is also not grapefruit essential oil and it is most certainly not an herbal tincture. Chemical manufacturers take the leftover grapefruit pulp, a waste by-product from grapefruit juice production, and in an intensive, multi-step industrial chemical process, change the natural phenolic compounds into synthetic quaternary ammonium compounds. Typically, in chemical synthesis of this type, chemical reagents and catalysts are used under extreme high heat and pressure or vacuum. Synthetic ammonium chloride is one of the chemical catalysts used in this process. The US Department of Agriculture´s (USDA) National Organic Program defines synthetic as “A substance that is formulated or manufactured by a chemical process or by a process that chemically changes a substance extracted from naturally occurring plant, animal, or mineral sources.” Grapefruit seed extract is a synthetic chemical compound, cannot be called “organic,” and is not permitted in organic food products.

The benefits of Grapefruit are

• It is high in fibre and low in calorie. It contains bioflavonoid and other plant chemicals that protects against the serious disease of cancer, tumour and heart diseases.
• Grape fruit increases the metabolic rate.
• Appetite Loss: Grapefruit works as an excellent appetizer as compared to any other drug. It is said that smell of the grapefruit reduces the feeling of hunger. This is the reason why people include grapefruit in their weight loss programs. High fiber contained by this fruit can satisfy hunger and thus, avoids any overeating temptation.
• Fever: The pulp or the juice of grapefruit provides assistance to the patient to recover easily from the fever. It reduces burning sensation that occurs during high temperature. It also cures several cases of cold and phenomena. Grapefruit juice, if combined with water, can quench the thirst.
• Fatigue: Grapefruit is beneficial in the treatment of fatigue. It helps you to dispel your fatigue and general tiredness caused due to the routine work. It can bring about a refreshing feeling in you when you drink equal amount of grapefruit juice and lemon juice.
• Influenza: Grapefruit is a valuable remedy for influenza as it helps to minimize acidity from the system. The bitter properties arising from an essence called 'maringin' in grapefruit tones up the system and the digestive swathe.
• Malaria: The juice or the fruit itself consists of valuable and natural 'quinine' which are advantageous for the treatment of malaria. The quinine can be easily extracted from the fruits by boiling a quarter of grapefruit and spraining the pulp.
• Acidity: The fresh grapefruit juice has alkaline reaction after digestion. The citric acid of the fruit is tarnished in the human body and thus, increases the effect of the alkalinity reaction after digestion. The juice extracted from the grapefruit is beneficial in preventing the acid formation and many other diseases that arise due to the presence of acidity in the body.
• Indigestion: Grapefruit is useful for solving the problem of indigestion. It is very light as compared to other food articles and thus, acts immediately on indigestion by easing the heat and irritation caused in the stomach. It improves the flow of digestive juices, thereby improving the digestive systems.
• Insomnia: A simple glass of grapefruit juice, if drunk before going to bed, can promote healthy and sweet sleep and thus, alleviates insomnia.
• Diabetes: A diabetic patient can safely eat a grapefruit. The consumption of this fruit can reduce the starches from the body. If a patient is diabetic, intake of grapefruit can facilitate you to fight with this health issue.
• Constipation: A glass full of fresh squeezed grapefruit in the morning is the best remedy to control the constipation. They result best in stimulating the colon and other parts of the body.
• Flatulence: 10 to 20 drops of grapefruit seeds in the juice, taken before the meals and three times a day, work as an appropriate pro-biotic and digestive enzyme.
• Urinary Disorders: Grapefruit juice is quite rich in potassium and vitamin C and thus, works as the best medicine in the case of scanty urination caused due to the liver, kidney or heart problems.
• pink grapefruit contains a substance called pectin, which is a complex carbohydrate that gives pink grapefruit antibacterial, antifungal and antiparasitic properties. Thus, the consumption of pink grapefruit will boost the body's immune system to fight any bacteria, fungi or parasites it may come into contact with. This in turn boosts the level of overall health.
• grapefruit juice is beneficial for liver detoxification. Grapefruit juice will significantly increase the activity of the liver enzymes responsible for breaking down toxins and thus allows greater excretion of toxins from the body. Since certain carcinogens are among these excreted toxins, the risk of cancer is reduced.
• Cancer : Grapefruit may be red and pink color, and having this color makes it rich in lycopene. With lycopene, growing tumors are reduced.