西瓜有多好 你可能不知道
Question:
問：
Is watermelon good for you? How much?
西瓜對人體有好處嗎？有多大好處？
Answer:
答：
Watermelon is rich in nutrients – including vitamins A and C, B vitamins and potassium — but where it really packs a punch is with lycopene, the antioxidant pigment that gives the fruit its deep red color. Some studies suggest that lycopene may have cardiovascular benefits, including reducing the risk of stroke, and eating watermelon may slightly lower blood pressure. Researchers have also looked at lycopene’s possible role in protecting against various cancers, though evidence is scant.
西瓜營養豐富，包括維生素A、維生素C、B族維生素和鉀，但西瓜最有用的成分是番茄紅素，即讓西瓜呈現出深紅色的那種抗氧化劑色素。一些研究表明，番茄紅素可能有益於心血管健康，包括降低中風風險，並且吃西瓜可能會輕微降低血壓。研究人員還對番茄紅素在預防各類癌症上可能起的作用進行了研究，不過證據不足。
You can get lycopene from tomatoes, particularly cooked and stewed tomatoes, but “on a fresh basis, you can’t do better than watermelon,” said Penelope Perkins-Veazie, a professor at North Carolina State University in Raleigh who has studied lycopene and is an unpaid science adviser to the National Watermelon Promotion Board. Red watermelon has more lycopene than other watermelon varieties, and “seedless watermelon tends to have more,” she said.
人們可從番茄，尤其是經過烹製的熟番茄中吸收番茄紅素，但“在新鮮的情況下，西瓜是最好的，”在位於羅利的北卡羅來納州立大學(North Carolina State University)研究番茄紅素的教授佩內洛普·珀金斯-維齊(Penelope Perkins-Veazie)說，她同時還是全國西瓜促進委員會(National Watermelon Promotion Board)的無薪科學顧問。她表示，紅色西瓜中的番茄紅素比其他品種的西瓜多，且“無籽西瓜中的番茄紅素往往更多”。
Lycopene from watermelon is also easily absorbed into the body. In one small study, researchers gave volunteers lycopene from tomato juice and lycopene from watermelon; the tomato juice had received heat treatments to boost absorption. They found the two groups had similar blood levels of lycopene.
西瓜中的番茄紅素易被人體吸收。在一項小型研究中，研究人員向志願者提供了番茄汁中的番茄紅素和西瓜中的番茄紅素。爲了促進吸收，番茄汁經過了加熱。研究人員發現，兩組人的血液中的番茄紅素含量相近。
Though watermelon doesn’t have as much fiber as many other fruits and vegetables, it is fat-free, contains a lot of water and is low in calories, with about 45 calories in a one-cup serving.
儘管西瓜的纖維含量不及其他很多水果和蔬菜，但它不含脂肪，水分豐富，熱量低，一杯份西瓜中所含的熱量僅爲45卡路里左右。
Many people worry about the amount of sugar in watermelon, but “that’s a bit of a misconception, because the sugar content is actually lower than some other fruits, gram for gram,” said Jennifer McDaniel, a registered dietitian and spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. While a cup of diced watermelon has about nine grams of sugar, a medium banana contains 14 to 15 grams of sugar, as does a cup of blueberries. Dietary guidelines recommend adults eat two cups of fruit a day.
很多人擔心西瓜的含糖量，但註冊營養師、營養與飲食學會(Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics)發言人珍妮弗·麥克丹尼爾(Jennifer McDaniel)表示，“這裏有一些誤解，因爲同等重量的話，西瓜的含糖量其實比其他一些水果還低。”一杯切成丁的西瓜所含的糖分約爲9克，而一根中等大小的香蕉的含糖量爲14到15克，和一杯藍莓相當。一些膳食指南建議成年人一天吃兩杯水果。
And while watermelon has a high glycemic index, a measure of a food’s ability to raise blood sugar levels, that also adds to the confusion. In fact, its high water content gives it a low glycemic load, meaning it does not raise blood sugar levels quickly in amounts typically eaten.
西瓜的血糖生成指數高——這是一個衡量食物提高血糖水平的能力的指標，這也進一步增加了人們的困惑。實際上，高含水量使西瓜的生糖負荷降低，也就是說按照常規的量食用西瓜不會導致血糖水平迅速升高。
