Amazing Health Benefits Of Pineapple Rinds
Have you ever bought a delicious-looking pineapple, chopped it up immediately, and thrown away the rinds? If so, you’re not alone! Most people don’t think twice about throwing away the rinds and core of the pineapple because they’re often considered useless, like the peels of an orange.
However, there are actually some amazing health benefits of the pineapple rind. In this article, we’ll break down those benefits and then dive into a few ways you can make use of pineapple rinds.
Overview
Before we get to the rinds specifically, let’s take a look at pineapples in general. Pineapple is a tropical fruit that’s been used for centuries for its medicinal properties. Believe it or not, pineapples are incredibly low in calories but high in vitamins, enzymes, and antioxidants, making them a certifiable superfood.
Pineapples are members of the bromeliad family and are the only bromeliad that makes edible fruit. Originally, pineapple was indigenous to South America, where it has been cultivated and incorporated into the cuisine and healing practices for centuries. Currently, the majority of pineapple is grown in Hawaii, Costa Rica, Brazil, and the Phillippines.
Health Benefits of Pineapple Rinds
Now that we’ve covered a bit about pineapples overall, we’ll dive into the amazing health benefits of the rind.
Goodbye Inflammation
Perhaps of the most compelling reasons to incorporate the pineapple rind into your diet is because it is rich in the enzyme bromelain. This powerful enzyme works to reduce inflammation in the body. Sometimes bromelain is even used after surgery or injury for swelling reduction. The great benefit of bromelain is that it can work to combat inflammation in specific areas, such as at the site of injury or the sinuses, or simply swelling in general.
Gives Your Gut a Boost
The rind of pineapple is also thought to ease and smooth digestion. These impressive peels can help the gut fight off intestinal parasites and the painful symptoms of constipation and IBS.
Pineapple rinds have also been known to give your gut a boost by helping to build up the population of healthy flora in your gut. Although we’re used to talking about bacteria like it’s a bad thing, there are actually several strains of bacteria that your body needs to function properly. A lot of this “good” bacteria can be found in your gut, where it helps fight off the bad bacteria, aid in digestion, and offer protection against illnesses. To have a healthy gut, you need to eat a diet (full of gut-friendly foods like pineapple rinds) that allows you to maintain a healthy bacterial equilibrium in your digestive system.
Gives Your Immune System a Boost
Given that pineapple rinds are rich in vitamin C, it might come as no surprise that they are experts at helping your immune system prevent and fight off infections. Between the vitamin C and bromelain naturally found in pineapple rinds, they can fight off bacteria, suppress coughs, cut and dislodge mucus, heal wounds, and help you to feel better overall.
When you’re sick, and your immune system is trying to fight off an illness, it’s important to eat foods that are helping your body combat the virus or bacteria, rather than making recovery harder. For this reason, eating foods like pineapple rinds that boost your immune system is a great way to ensure that you’ll be feeling better soon. Try to avoid foods such as anything greasy or fried, drinks with caffeine or alcohol, and foods that are hard to digest, such as high-fiber cereal.
Fights Off Joint Pain and Arthritis
Anyone with chronic joint pain or arthritis knows how bothersome the dull ache or occasional burning sensation caused by these ailments can be. If you feel aches in your joints after using certain joints a lot, such as standing up after gardening or walking upstairs, then it might be a good idea to incorporate lots of anti-inflammatory foods into your diet.
Given that bromelain is a natural anti-inflammatory, pineapple rinds are amazingly effective at fighting off the painful effects of arthritis.
Protects Your Eyes
Alongside bromelain and vitamin C, pineapple rinds are also rich in beta carotene. Although beta carotene might sound like something out of a science fiction novel, chances are you’ve come into contact with this nutrient if you’ve ever had produce that’s yellow or orange. Beta carotene is what gives fruits like pineapple and veggies like carrots their color. Aside from helping color our plate, beta carotene is so useful because our bodies naturally turn it into vitamin A, an essential nutrient.
The combination of vitamin C and vitamin A, made from the beta carotene found in the rind, makes for a powerful vision protector. These two have been known to help fight off eye diseases such as glaucoma.
Boosts Your Blood
The bromelain found in the pineapple rind is also beneficial for your blood because it prevents blood clots from forming. It works in tandem with the copper in pineapple juice to boost your blood because copper promotes the formation of healthy red blood cells. If that wasn’t enough to get your blood pumping for some pineapple rind, there’s also a small amount of potassium in the rind which helps fortify blood vessels and counteract the negative effects that sodium can have on blood pressure.
Helps Keep Your Teeth & Bones Strong
Pineapple rinds are also an amazingly beneficial food because they contain lots of manganese. Manganese promotes teeth and bone growth and helps to strengthen and repair broken bones and teeth. The vitamin C in pineapple rinds also helps to ensure the cleanliness and health of your gums, an essential part of complete oral health.
Bonus: Earth Health!
One bonus benefit of eating pineapple rinds is that while they’re working their magic on your overall health, eating them is also helping keep the earth healthy! Food waste is a large problem, especially in countries like the U.S., where nearly 40 million tons of food are wasted every year. By eating or using the pineapple rinds, you’re cutting down on food waste and getting the most out of your produce, a small, individual action that can help keep the earth healthy for future generations.
How Can I Make Use of the Amazing Health Benefits of Pineapple Rinds?
Now that we’ve covered all the amazing health benefits of pineapple rinds, you might be thinking: how can I take advantage of them? We’ve come up with three easy ways to eat and use the pineapple rinds to make sure you’re getting all the health benefits you can from this awesome tropical fruit.
Tepache
Tepache is a traditional Mexican street beverage that is made from fermented pineapple rinds. Although fermentation might sound intimidating, it’s surprisingly easy to make this delicious drink at home. Similar to kombucha in texture but lighter and less overwhelming in flavor, this bubbly beverage is the perfect addition to any taco Tuesday or hot summer afternoon.
DIY Facial Toner
If you want to make use of the incredible benefits of pineapple rinds for your skin, you can make a bromelain-rich toner at home using the peels. Simply places the peels in a saucepan for 25 to 35 minutes with as much water as you’d like and let them simmer. Turn off the heat, let the liquid steep for another half an hour or so, strain the peels out, and there you have it, a DIY toner!
Conclusion
Next time you go to toss the pineapple rinds, try turning them into tepache or a DIY toner to make use of all the amazing health benefits these peels have to offer!
Sources:
Enzyme Play Audio | genome.gov
6 Health Benefits of Vitamin A, Backed by Science | Healthline
