Papaya A Day Keeps the Doctor Away

Teach your children about the benefits of fruit – by actually explaining what fruits can do. This post is just about papayas. Its benefits and why we cannot ignore this humble fruit. The next post is 2 simple recipes your kids can make at home on their own.

Beautiful papaya

Did you know that Papaya is known as the fruit of angles? First described by Christopher Columbus because of its beautiful bright orange color and its great ability to help with the digestive system and calming an upset tummy.

Papaya has high levels of vitamin C and enzymes called papain. Papaya is a naturally sweet fruit. One medium sized papaya fruit has 118 calories, no fat, 29 grams of carbohydrates, and 17 grams of sugar. Papayas have 33% more vitamin C than oranges and 13 times more than apples. (See http://health.learninginfo.org for more information on the nutrition content of papayas)

1. Digestion

Papaya has an abundance of the enzyme papain which breaks down proteins in food, allowing for better digestion. Papaya helps with bloated tummies. Papaya is extremely helpful for kids because of this. Its helps with constipation. Try giving your children a slice and you will notice the difference within the day. Babies as old as 6 to 8 months can eat papaya.

2. Immune System

Papaya is a rich source of antioxidants, Vitamin C, E and beta carotenes will builds the body’s immune system. And some argue that it is extremely helpful in fighting cancer-causing cells. Its vitamin C content is higher than most fruits, even oranges.

3. Healthy Skin

Because of its nutrient content, the body is given a boost of health helping with slowing down the aging process. Imagine our kids taking papaya from young. Our children would have wonderful skin and great health.

4. Reduces Inflammation

Papaya helps heal skin injuries - . Papain breaks down the inactive proteins in the skin, removing dead tissue from burns, removes warts, and treats ringworms and cold sores. Use the skin- grind it and place over the sore skin.

The papain and the vitamins help with reducing inflammation in diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, gout and asthma.




5. Healthy Heart

Because the papaya fruit is rich antioxidants it prevents the oxidation of cholesterol and thus prevents build up in blood vessel. Papayas are also a rich source of fibers, which can help lower high cholesterol levels.


Tip to parents: The juice from Papaya leaves are also extremely helpful in helping bring fever down. It is also quite typical to treat dengue fever. My mum and grandmother and a lot of families I know take this seriously. Blend or grind some papaya leaves and place a few drops in the mouth. Children can take it. Its bitter but it works.

Papaya leaves

Don’t ignore the humble papaya. Always in moderation but important enough to include in our diet.



See the next post for quick papaya recipes.


Don’t forget to teach your children the concepts introduced in this post.

Happy Cooking and Teaching!