Patriot Health Digest
Pomegranates and the juice inside them might help your blood pressure, cholesterol, blood glucose levels, and your brain health. The red peels have around 50% of the fruit and more antioxidants than even the juice.
Pomegranate peels are usually discarded and believed to be inedible, but they are used for various health benefits within Ayurvedic medicine, an alternative practice with connections going back into ancient Indian culture.
After getting separated from the fruit, these peels can then be dried out and ground into a powder to be steeped into hot water and drunk as a tea. This powder can even be purchased as a supplement.
Thanks to their high amounts of antioxidants, pomegranate peels give several benefits. Here are 4 surprising health benefits of pomegranate peels.
1 — Might help with skin conditions
Pomegranate peels have a lot of antioxidants and polyphenols, and they have been shown to treat hyperpigmentation, which is condition characterized by dark spots on skin.
One study found that using pomegranate masks and a serum each day for around 1 month helped lighten places of hyperpigmentation with no bad side effects.
Pomegranate peels might also guard against ultraviolet B harm and decrease aging signs, though human research is still lacking.
2 — Might reduce your risk of getting a chronic disease
Pomegranate peels could also lower risk factors for chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.
One small study discovered that taking a 1,000mg of pomegranate peel extract helped cholesterol and blood sugar levels in people who were overweight by acting like an anti-inflammatory agent.
In a different study among people with type 2 diabetes, the patients who took 500 mg of pomegranate peel extract had an improvement in their cholesterol, blood pressure, and hemoglobin A1c, compared to those who didn’t take the extract.
3 — Might guard against hearing loss
Oxidative stress contributes to age-related hearing loss. Because pomegranate peels are filled with antioxidants, which help guard against oxidative damage, they could help stop or lower hearing loss.
Studies done on mice found good results, but human studies are also lacking in this area. So more research is needed to say for sure.
4 — Might improve your brain function
It was suggested that oxidative stress has a role in the onset of Alzheimer’s. Since pomegranate peels are filled with antioxidants, they could help improve the life in people with this condition.
Many animal studies with pomegranate peel supplements have revealed promising results, but more research on humans needs to be done to know for sure.
One study on human adults found that a supplement with pomegranate peel extract, along with other botanicals, improved the patients’ cognitive performance.
Author: Steven Sinclaire
