Mangoes are tropical stone fruits, plump and oval in shape. The global production of mango is concentrated in Asia and India. There are over thousands of mango varieties available worldwide. Among them, Mangifera indica is considered as the main variety.

Other than this there are other main varieties such as kent, Keitt, Osteen , Haden, Valencia pride, etc. Among the all mango varieties ‘Alphonso’ mango variety is considered as the king of mango varieties due to its flavor, sweetness, and nutrient richness. The top mango producing countries are India, China, Thailand, and Mexico. So, with these details, in this article, we mainly focus on the health benefits of mango.

02. Nutrition Profile of Mango

One cup or 165g of mango can provide approximately  Sufficient amounts of dietary requirements of sugar, dietary fiber,  vitamin C, magnesium and potassium. And also it is a good source of carotenoids (Vitamin A) and polyphenols including flavonoids like quercetin and phenolic acids like mangiferin and gallic acid. These compounds have anti-inflammatory effects.

03. Health Benefits of Mango

1. Prevent Heart diseases

Cardiovascular disease is a leading global health issue in the world. In Us, one person is dying every second from this disease and around 647,000 are dying each year due to this disease. It’s 1 of every 4 deaths. [1]

This way you can understand how much people are falling in this disease and must know the reasons for this disease. This is a condition of blocking blood vessels in the heart and this may cause chest pain, heart attacks, or Stroke. [2]

There are many types of heart diseases,

• Symptoms of heart disease in your blood vessels (atherosclerotic disease)
• Heart disease symptoms caused by abnormal heartbeats (heart arrhythmias) (0)
• Heart disease symptoms caused by heart defects
• Heart disease symptoms caused by weak heart muscle (dilated cardiomyopathy)
• Heart disease symptoms caused by heart infections
• Heart disease symptoms caused by valvular heart disease

When considering Mango, It has a great ability in preventing heart diseases. In addition to the above nutrient status, mango contains no fat or cholesterol as  It is scientifically proven that mean intake of total fats, saturated fatty acids (SFA) monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA), cholesterol and total carbohydrates comparatively reduced with mango consumption which helps in preventing heart diseases. [3]

2.Prevent Cancers

Phenolic compounds and ascorbic acid have antioxidant properties and they perform free radical scavenging activities which are important in preventing cancer induction.

3.Regulate blood pressure

In addition to that  Sugars, magnesium, potassium, vitamin E, Vitamin C, and dietary fibers are increased with consumption of mangoes while intake of sodium will be reduced. Increased intake of dietary fiber will regulate serum cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and blood sugar levels. Reduced sodium levels in the body prevent the risk of cardiovascular diseases thus mango can be considered as a  sodium low fruit.

03. Bioactive compounds and functional benefits

Different parts of mango plants contain important bioactive compounds that are beneficial for human health. Stem bark yields Mangostin, 29-hydroxy mangiferonic acid and mangiferin, flower yield alkyl gallates. The root of mango contains the chromones while the leaf and flower yield an essential oil containing humulene, ocimene,  elements, and many others.

Fruit pulp contains vitamins A and C, β-carotene and xanthophylls. These bioactive compounds are used to treat several diseases such as diarrhea, dysentery, anemia, asthma, bronchitis, cough, hypertension and insomnia. All these parts are used to treat tumors, snakebites, datura poisoning etc.

In addition, several kinds of research conducted on mango reveal that It has anti-diabetic effects, an aqueous extract of the leaves possess hypoglycaemic activity. The mode of action is the intestinal reduction in the absorption of glucose. The results of this research also suggest that mango flour can possibly help in the treatment of diabetes.

Studies on mangiferin shown to have effects against Herpes simplex virus and to inhibit replication within cells and to antagonize the cytopathic effects of HIV.

When considering antiallergic activities of stem bark components like  Vimang and mangiferin, the study results have proven that natural extract could be successfully used in the treatment of allergic disorders. Mangiferin was the major contribution in the antiallergic effect. In addition to the above effects, mangiferin is responsible for anti-parasitic effects. However it is obvious that most of the functional properties of mango are bounded with mangiferin, hence it can be considered one of the most important functional components in mango.

This way mango helps to keep our life healthy. If you have any question please ask in the comment section below.

References:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/318823639_Nutritional_Evaluation_of_Different_Mango_Varieties_available_in_Sri_Lanka

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/227096234_Diseases_and_Disorders_of_Mango_and_their_Management