Star Fruit: A Powerful Health Booster
Star Fruit promotes detoxification, helps with metabolism, and is loaded with essential nutrients, fiber, and vitamins B and C.
Table of Contents
Want to dazzle your health with incredible nutrients? Then load up on star fruit, a vitamin-rich, luscious fruit that will make you feel better from the inside out and pamper your skin and hair.
After all, star fruit is called a “magic fruit” for a reason. In this post, we will explore the health benefits of star fruit and how to include them in a regular diet.
About Star Fruit
The star fruit, commonly known as the carambola, is typically grown in areas with a tropical climate. This fruit is cultivated in great abundance in places like India, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
Due to unfavorable weather that affects cultivation, star fruit is typically accessible throughout the year with occasional pauses. Because of its star-like appearance when sliced horizontally, this fruit is known as “star” fruit.
The star fruit is a bright green color when it is immature. It becomes yellow as it ripens, signaling it is prepared for eating as the green tint disappears. The star fruit often has a juicy texture, a little crunch, and a sweet and acidic flavor.
You can consume the star fruit while raw if you want sour and savory flavors.
You can prepare a frosty mug of star fruit juice if you don’t like to consume fruits and enjoy them in beverage form. Try including this fruit in your salad if you’re a health-conscious foodie who likes to create different kinds of salads for a fantastic experience.
The word “carambola” is believed to have originated in Portuguese. “Food appetizer” is what it refers to.
Star Fruit Nutritional Profile
Because of how it looks, the basic but wonderful star fruit is frequently overlooked. You shouldn’t, however, judge a book by its cover—in this case, the fruit’s skin. The unassuming star fruit is a powerhouse of key nutrients and vitamins.
100 grams of a medium-sized star fruit contain[1]:
| Calories | 28kcal |
| Carbohydrates | 6.1 |
| Protein | 1 g |
| Fiber | 2.5 g |
| Vitamin C | 25.8 mg |
| Calcium | 3mg |
Star fruit is a fantastic and nutritious choice during the hot and muggy summers as it also has 91% water.
Health Benefits of Star Fruit
Star fruit is simultaneously savory and nourishing. Its acidic and sweet flavor can be cherished as it is rich in nutrients promoting good health.
A few benefits of eating star fruit are listed below.
1. The Anti-Inflammatory Star Fruit[2]
Vitamin C can be found in abundance in the star fruit. This fruit’s serving consists of 57% of the daily required amount of vitamin C. Vitamin C detoxifies your body from impurities, and dermatitis can benefit from its anti-inflammatory properties.
Also, it aids your body’s defenses against the flu and ordinary colds. Eating foods high in vitamin C can dramatically increase your resistance to colds and your ability to fight infections.
Disease, poor skin, slow tissue healing, and exhaustion can all result from vitamin C deficiency.
By including star fruit in your diet, you can ensure that your vitamin C levels are always at their highest.
2. The Heart-Healthy Star Fruit[3]
The star fruit is a rich source of sodium and potassium, two essential elements for controlling blood pressure. Both minerals must be adequate for stable blood pressure and cardiac rhythm.
Moreover, it contains calcium, which is incredibly good for your heart. The body can reduce the risk of cardiovascular illnesses, including strokes and cardiac arrests, by maintaining healthy calcium levels.
It supports healthy blood flow and fluid balance throughout the body, lowering the risk of heart disease.
3. The Diabetic Regulator Star Fruit[4]
100g of star fruit has 2.8g of fruit fiber, which aids in monitoring blood sugar levels.
Fruit fiber slows the release of glucose that occurs after eating. This aids in controlling your insulin and blood sugar levels. Consuming fiber-rich foods can prevent diabetes and effectively assist those who already have it.
Starfruit provides a nutritious treat for both diabetic and non-diabetic people because it tastes so good and is high in fiber.
4. The Cholesterol Manager Star Fruit[5]
Being high in fiber also aids in reducing high cholesterol and the risk of heart disease.
Moreover, with only 0.3g of fat per 100g, this fruit is ideal for managing good cholesterol levels.
5. The Metabolism Booster Star Fruit[6]
Another benefit to this fruit’s abundance of nutritional fiber is that it helps with digestion. It aids in controlling the size and smoothness of your stool, making it simple to exit your body.
Constipation sufferers will find relief from this fruit’s digestion stimulation and intestinal health improvement.
Also, other signs of poor digestion, like cramping and bloating, will be lessened by maintaining good colon health.
6. The Be-Beautiful Star Fruit[7]
However, one midsize star fruit offers iron, potassium, calcium, and vitamins A, B5, and C, making this luscious fruit an excellent choice for health and appeal.
- Hair: The B vitamins in star fruit prevent hair thinning, thicken hair, and promote hair development, giving you beautiful, thick hair.
- Nails: These B vitamins also fortify nails, keep them from breaking, and promote nail growth.
- Skin: Vitamin C increases collagen, reduces inflammation, and lightens dark spots, while vitamin A accelerates skin cell turnover, treats acne, and smooths wrinkles. B vitamins, moreover, moisturize and retain moisture, making your skin glowing.
So be beautiful by having this juicy fruit!
Star fruits come in two primary varieties that their color and form can identify. One fruit is a little, green, tart fruit, while the other is a bigger, yellowish, and much sweeter fruit. You can also find hybrid variants that are reddish-orange or orange (with white dots).
Way to Inculcate Star Fruit into Diet
Star fruit can be eaten easily; wash, cut, and consume. The star fruit can be eaten in a few different ways, too, if the Chef inside of you wishes to create a delicious treat.
- Use dried carambola with mixed nuts and breakfast cereal. The fruits can also be used to freshen your mouth after dinner.
- For pudding, simmer cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, fennel, and clove in sugar.
- Many people in India replace star fruit with tamarind.
- Use coconut oil[8], lemon, garlic, onion[9], green chilies, and other seasonings to sauté carambola with paneer or other imitation meats.
- Use the fruit’s gorgeous, vibrantly colored star slices to adorn dishes and desserts.
- Saute the pieces in oil, then add the jaggery, fenugreek, mustard seeds, and chili to make carambola chutney. Refrigerate after transferring to a sterile glass jar.
- Mix the fruit with other juices made from tropical fruits like mango, dragon fruit[10], strawberry, kiwi, or peach. Just add to fizzy carbonated water, rum, or beverages
- Tropical fruit salads with strawberries, bananas, grapefruit, peach, and fruit slices should be included.
- To satisfy your appetite, have some jam produced from star fruit, which tastes delicious and is packed with health advantages.
Despite being available all year, star fruits’ harvest season lasts from June to February. From September through December, production spikes.
Wrap Up
The luscious star fruit is as delightful to glance at as it tastes. This fruit is very nutritious. Its abundant essential nutrients, like fiber and vitamin C, will keep you strong and healthy.
This excellent fruit is also incredibly adaptable and can be served in various ways, ensuring you never grow bored with it.
The advantages of star fruit include improving digestive health and lowering inflammatory responses. Moreover, it might benefit respiratory, cardiac, and immune health.
Whether you eat it raw, add it to salads and juices, or both, star fruit has health advantages.
Although star fruit offers health benefits, overeating it might be dangerous. Hence, consume this fruit in moderation and enjoy the health advantages.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Can people with kidney disorders eat star fruit?
No. It is not recommended for anyone with kidney illness to eat star fruits. Eating star fruit can cause rapid kidney injury, seizures, and even death in these circumstances.
Please seek medical advice before consuming star fruit. Never self-medicate or stop a medication you are receiving on your own.
2. Can a pregnant lady eat star fruits?
The best part is that eating “starfruit” is safe while pregnant. The star fruit, called carambola, promotes a healthy pregnancy.
Vitamins A, C, and E are abundant in them. Moreover, it includes fiber, sodium, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, potassium, and folic acid.
3. What kind of star fruit is fresh enough to eat?
Ripe star fruits provide the finest flavor when eaten. Unripe star fruits can have an overly acidic and occasionally harsh flavor.
The most significant time to eat star fruit is when it is yellow with a trace of green around the edges, which happens when the fruit is fully mature.
4. What is star fruit known as in India?
Carambola is also known as star fruit generally, kaparakhi hannu in Kannada, vajrappuli in Malayalam, kamrakh in Hindi, carmbala in Marathi and Konkani, and kamrakh in Hindi.
